The respiratory health effects of acute in vivo diesel and biodiesel exhaust in a mouse model.

Background: Biodiesel, a renewable diesel fuel that can be created from almost any natural fat or oil, is promoted as a greener and healthier alternative to commercial mineral diesel without the supporting experimental data to back these claims. The aim of this research was to assess the health effects of acute exposure to two types of biodiesel exhaust, or mineral diesel exhaust or air as a control in mice. Male BALB/c mice were exposed for 2-hrs to diluted exhaust obtained from a diesel engine running on mineral diesel, Tallow biodiesel or Canola biodiesel.

Respiratory Health Effects of In Vivo Sub-Chronic Diesel and Biodiesel Exhaust Exposure.

Biodiesel, which can be made from a variety of natural oils, is currently promoted as a sustainable, healthier replacement for commercial mineral diesel despite little experimental data supporting this. The aim of our research was to investigate the health impacts of exposure to exhaust generated by the combustion of diesel and two different biodiesels. Male BALB/c mice ( = 24 per group) were exposed for 2 h/day for 8 days to diluted exhaust from a diesel engine running on ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) or Tallow or Canola biodiesel, with room air exposures used as control.

Biodiesel feedstock determines exhaust toxicity in 20% biodiesel: 80% mineral diesel blends.

To address climate change concerns, and reduce the carbon footprint caused by fossil fuel use, it is likely that blend ratios of renewable biodiesel with commercial mineral diesel fuel will steadily increase, resulting in biodiesel use becoming more widespread. Exhaust toxicity of unblended biodiesels changes depending on feedstock type, however the effect of feedstock on blended fuels is less well known. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of biodiesel feedstock on exhaust toxicity of 20% blended biodiesel fuels (B20).

primary human airway epithelial whole exhaust exposure.

The method outlined in this article is a customization of the whole exhaust exposure method generated by Mullins et al. (2016) using reprogrammed primary human airway epithelial cells as described by Martinovich et al. (2017).

Chemical analysis of fresh and aged Australian e-cigarette liquids.

Objectives: To assess the chemical composition of electronic cigarette liquids (e-liquids) sold in Australia, in both their fresh and aged forms.

Design, Setting: Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of commercial e-liquids sold in Australia (online and physical stores).

Main Outcome Measures: Chemical composition of 65 Australian e-liquids - excipients/solvents, flavouring chemicals, other known e-liquid constituents (including nicotine), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - before and after an accelerated ageing process that simulated the effects of vaping.

Fuel feedstock determines biodiesel exhaust toxicity in a human airway epithelial cell exposure model.

Background: Biodiesel is promoted as a sustainable replacement for commercial diesel. Biodiesel fuel and exhaust properties change depending on the base feedstock oil/fat used during creation. The aims of this study were, for the first time, to compare the exhaust exposure health impacts of a wide range of biodiesels made from different feedstocks and relate these effects with the corresponding exhaust characteristics.

Agricultural Dust Exposures and Health and Safety Practices among Western Australian Wheatbelt Farmers during Harvest.

Background: Agricultural farmworkers are routinely exposed to high levels of airborne dust particles that have been linked to adverse health outcomes.

Methods: This study measured personal and environmental exposures to dust particulates by farmworkers during harvesting activities. Farmers completed a workplace survey with regards to their health and safety awareness and practices and researchers observed general farm safety practices on selected farms using a checklist.

Capture and re-entrainment of microdroplets on fibers.

The capture of liquid microdroplets on fibers, webs, and surfaces is important in a range of natural and industrial processes. One such application is the fibrous filtration of aerosols. Contact angle and wetting dynamics have a significant influence on capture and re-entrainment, yet there is no comprehensive model that accounts for these properties and their influence on capture efficiency.

Soy Biodiesel Exhaust is More Toxic than Mineral Diesel Exhaust in Primary Human Airway Epithelial Cells.

As global biodiesel production increases, there are concerns over the potential health impact of exposure to the exhaust, particularly in regard to young children who are at high risk because of their continuing lung development. Using human airway epithelial cells obtained from young children, we compared the effects of exposure to exhaust generated by a diesel engine with Euro V/VI emission controls running on conventional diesel (ultra-low-sulfur mineral diesel, ULSD), soy biodiesel (B100), or a 20% blend of soy biodiesel with diesel (B20). The exhaust output of biodiesel was found to contain significantly more respiratory irritants, including NO, CO, and CO, and a larger overall particle mass.

Noise Exposure on Mixed Grain and Livestock Farms in Western Australia.

Noise presents an ongoing occupational health and safety issue, which despite numerous studies still presents a significant risk in agriculture with high exposures prevalent. In this study, we measured noise exposures associated with significant activities on 42 mixed grain and livestock farms in Western Australia. Employing a mixture of personal noise measurements using dosimeters, noise measurements using sound level meters, and a validated survey, we identified that 32% of farm workers were exposed to noise levels above the LAeq,8h 85 dB(A) limit, before considering extended shifts.

Occupational exposures to agricultural dust by Western Australian wheat-belt farmers during seeding operations.

Agricultural operations routinely expose farm workers to high levels of soil dust and other airborne particulate matter that have been linked to adverse health outcomes. The main objective of this study was to investigate exposure to agricultural dust during seeding operations of Western Australian farm workers. Twenty-one wheat-belt farms were recruited to participate in the study.

Ejection of Droplets from a Bursting Bubble on a Free Liquid Surface-A Dimensionless Criterion for "Jet" Droplets.

This work examines the ejection of droplets from a bursting gas bubble on a free liquid surface, both experimentally and numerically. We explore the physical processes which govern the bursting of bubbles and the subsequent formation of "jet" droplets. We present new relationships regarding the dependence of jet drop formation on bubble diameter.

Impacts of household coal and biomass combustion on indoor and ambient air quality in China: Current status and implication.

This review briefly introduces current status of indoor and ambient air pollution originating from household coal and biomass combustion in mainland China. Owing to low combustion efficiency, emissions of CO, PM, black carbon (BC), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons have significant adverse consequences for indoor and ambient air qualities, resulting in relative contributions of more than one-third in all anthropogenic emissions. Their contributions are higher in less economically developed regions, such as Guizhou (61% PM, 80% BC), than that in more developed regions, such as Shanghai (4% PM, 17% BC).

Biodiesel exhaust-induced cytotoxicity and proinflammatory mediator production in human airway epithelial cells.

Increasing use of biodiesel has prompted research into the potential health effects of biodiesel exhaust exposure. Few studies directly compare the health consequences of mineral diesel, biodiesel, or blend exhaust exposures. Here, we exposed human epithelial cell cultures to diluted exhaust generated by the combustion of Australian ultralow-sulfur-diesel (ULSD), unprocessed canola oil, 100% canola biodiesel (B100), and a blend of 20% canola biodiesel mixed with 80% ULSD.

Route of exposure alters inflammation and lung function responses to diesel exhaust.

Context: Mice are commonly used in studies investigating the effects of diesel exhaust exposure on respiratory health. A plethora of studies in this field has resulted in a range of exposure protocols, from inhalation of diesel exhaust, to the administration (via various routes) of diesel exhaust particles in solution.

Objective: In this study, we compared the physiological consequences of short-term exposure to diesel exhaust via inhalation to those due to exposure to the same diesel exhaust particles suspended in solution and delivered intranasally.

Plateau Rayleigh instability simulation.

The well-known phenomena of Plateau-Rayleigh instability has been simulated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The breakup of a liquid film into an array of droplets on a cylindrical element was simulated using a volume-of-fluid (VOF) solver and compared to experimental observations and existing theory. It is demonstrated that the VOF method can correctly predict the breakup of thins films into an array of either axisymmetric droplets or clam-shell droplets, depending on the surface energy.

Sliding/rolling phobic droplets along a fiber: measurement of interfacial forces.

Phobic droplet-fiber systems possess complex geometries, which have made full characterization of such systems difficult. This work has used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to measure droplet-fiber forces for oil droplets on oleophobic fibers over a range of fiber diameters. The work adapted a previous method and a theoretical model developed by the authors for philic droplet-fiber systems.

Evaluation of the force required to move a coalesced liquid droplet along a fiber.

This work presents a theoretical model describing the force required to move a coalesced liquid droplet along an oleophilic filter fiber. Measurements have been made using the atomic force microscope (AFM) to examine these forces over a range of fiber and droplet diameters as well as oil properties. Good agreement between measured and modeled forces was found.