• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.1851-1863
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• 2013

Diurnal variation of particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was investigated by collecting PM10 at three different sampling altitudes using high buildings in the city center of Chiang-Mai, Thailand, during the relatively cold period in late February 2008. At site-1 (12 m above ground level), B[a]P concentrations ranged from 30.3-1,673 pg $m^{-3}$ with an average of $506{\pm}477\;pg\;m^{-3}$ contributing on average, $8.09{\pm}8.69%$ to ${\Sigma}PAHs$. Ind and B[b]F concentrations varied from 54.6 to 4,579 pg $m^{-3}$ and from 80.7 to 2,292 pg $m^{-3}$ with the highest average of $1,187{\pm}1,058\;pg\;m^{-3}$ and $963{\pm}656\;pg\;m^{-3}$, contributing on average, $19.0{\pm}19.3%$ and $15.4{\pm}12.0%$ to ${\Sigma}PAHs$, respectively. Morning maxima were predominantly detected in all observatory sites, which can be described by typical diurnal variations of traffic flow in Chiang-Mai City, showing a morning peak between 6 AM. and 9 AM. Despite the fact that most monitoring sites might be subjected to specific-site impacts, it could be seen that PAH profiles in Site-1 and Site-2 were astonishingly homogeneous. The lack of differences suggests that the source signatures of several PAHs become less distinct possibly due to the impacts of traffic and cooking emissions from ground level.

• Advances in environmental research
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.127-137
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• 2017

Cotton is the major fiber crop in Pakistan that accounts for 2% of total national gross domestic product (GDP). After picking of cotton, the dry stalks are major organic waste that has no fate except burning to cook food in villages. Present research focuses use of cotton stalks as feedstock for biochar production, its characterization and effects on soil characteristics. Dry cotton stalks collected from agricultural field of Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan were combusted under anaerobic conditions at $450^{\circ}C$. The physicochemical analysis of biochar and cotton stalks show higher values of % total carbon, phosphorus and potassium concentrations in biochar as compared to cotton stalks. The concentration of nitrogen was decreased in biochar. Similarly biochar had greater values of fixed carbon that suggest its role for carbon sequestration and as a soil amendment. The fourier transformation infrared spectroscopic spectra (FTIR) of cotton stalks and biochar exposed more acidic groups in biochar as compared to cotton stalks. The newly developed functional groups in biochar have vital role in increasing surface properties, cation exchange capacity, and water holding capacity, and are responsible for heavy metal remediation in contaminated soil. In a further test, results show increase in the water holding capacity and nutrient retention by a sandy soil amended with biochar. It is concluded that cotton stalks can be effectively used to prepare biochar.

• Journal of Korea Technical Association of The Pulp and Paper Industry
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.32-42
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• 2012

Wood biomass including forest residues, waste wood, and construction residuals has been widely generated in Korea, but forest biomass from the National Forest Management Operation Project plays a big role in generating wood biomass. Unfortunately the promotion policy of woody energy organized by the Forest Service in Korea concentrates more on demand creation rather than on supply expansion. Therefore, in order to utilize insufficient wood resources effectively, it is greatly required to develop uses for maximizing their added value. In particular, more attention to the use of the second generation biomass has been paid in foreign countries because there is a threshold that the first generation biomass cannot produce enough biofuel without threatening food supplies and biodiversity. In Korea, wood pellets are regarded as the alternative clean fuels to oils and coals that emit green house gases into the atmosphere. However, using wood as pellet raw materials can not be an economic way because the value of wood disappears right after burning in the boiler in spite of its contribution to the decrease of carbon emission. Differently from wood pellets, kraft pulping process using woody biomass produces black liquor as a by-product which can be used to generate electricity, bioenergy and biochemicals through gasification. Thus, it can be more economical to make a torrefaction of lignocellulosic biomass such as low-quality wood and agricultural leftovers as raw materials of pellets.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.2162-2176
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• 1971

From the ancient times our forefathers settled down in this peninsular and cultivated the hills and waste-lands into fields. Instead of fertilizing the lands they moved to find other fertile lands and lived a feudal life of agriculture and various machines played a main role in the land reclamation. The best method of land clearing, the time and efficiency in the operation and the effect of growing crops should sysematically analized prior to the time of 3rd Five-year Economic Development(1972-1976) in order to cultivated 210,000 ha of waste-land or the modernization of our country. The present study was investigated to find out a new working-system of mechanical land clearing and development of fertile soil. The results are as follows: 1) The land reclamation in natural slope is much more encourageable in land clearing and farming when the slope is below ten grades than bench terrace. 2) Weeds were mixed with soil in the land clearing work in order to supply organic materials and to make soil swollen instead of burning of just removing. 3) The equipments such as bulldozers, harrows, power tillers and so on should be prepared in order to do a systematic work in the land clearing. 4) The work of pulling-up roots is dependent upon the forms of roots spreading under the ground. The work of the pulling-up the straight roots was most difficult. 5) The land clearing work of the wrinkled style blocks was easy in pulling up roots and in the time of first plowing. The harrowing work could also be simply done. 6) The amount of soil carried was $240m^3/10a$, 15.6% increased amount from the standard block, while the required time of clearing work was 2 hours 15 minutes 45 seconds/10a, the one third of time required for the standard block. 7) The time disc harrowing work increased 50%, or 15 minutes/10a compared to the harrowing work required in the cultivated soil. 8) The time of rotary tilling increased 2.4 times or 1 hour 47 minutes 43 seconds/10a compared to the time required in the cultivated soil. 9) The reclamed land should be fertilized according to the soil quality, especially added fertilizer should be more than 1,200kg/10a, limes 20kg/10a. In order to produce added fertilizer grass fields should be needed. 10) The experiment of pasture growing is now progressing and therefore the effect of land clearing and the degree of developed soil will be investigated before long.