Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Mojdeh Rezvani; Mahdi Mohammadi
Abstract
Introduction: Due to the growth and development of new types of communication and information technologies around the world, the use of digital services is widely increasing and our country, Iran, is no exception to this rule. Information technology and digital services industries consume significant ...
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Introduction: Due to the growth and development of new types of communication and information technologies around the world, the use of digital services is widely increasing and our country, Iran, is no exception to this rule. Information technology and digital services industries consume significant amounts of energy in various forms as well as in various sectors such as production, distribution and use of relevant equipment and services and as a result, produce various pollutants, including greenhouse gases, and release them into the environment. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the eco-friendliness of digital services and IT industry of Iran in the web hosting and cloud services sectors through evaluating North-west data center of Iran as a representative of the IT industry of Iran in the web hosting and cloud services sectors.Material and methods: For this purpose, in this study, first the effective aspects of information technology on the environment as well as the environmental standards related to data centers were identified through library studies and review of existing domestic and foreign literatures and after that, 8 servers of “Iran Server” were investigated. In the next step, after estimating the amount of energy consumed and carbon dioxide produced by North-west data center of Iran (which has 319 active servers), the efficiency and environmental compatibility metrics of this data center were calculated and finally, by analyzing and summarizing the obtained results, eco-friendliness of North-west data center of Iran as a representative of IT industry of Iran in the web hosting and cloud services sectors, was investigated.Results and discussion: The results of energy consumption and pollutants production of North-west data center of Iran indicate that this data center consumes an average of 185.16 MWh of electricity per month, and followed by that produces 533.26 tons of carbon dioxide per month. Also, the values of Carbon Usage Effectiveness (CUE), Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) and Energy Reuse Effectiveness (ERE) metrics in this data center respectively equivalent to 2.88 (kg CO2 per kilowatt hour), 4.03 and 4.03 and also the values of Energy Reuse Factor (ERF) and Green Energy Coefficient (GEC) are zero. These values indicate that the energy consumption of Iran's data centers is supplied from non-renewable energy sources and this energy is finally released in the form of excess heat in the environment after consumption in different sectors, which emits a large amount of greenhouse gases including CO2 in the environment And inflicts numerous and irreparable damages on the environment such as air pollution, global warming, climate change, etc. Conclusion: A general summary of the information obtained from the study of various aspects of eco-friendliness of North-west data center of Iran as a representative of IT industry of Iran in the web hosting and cloud services sectors and its comparison with other green data centers in the world shows, this data center has not met the necessary metrics to comply with environmental standards related to green or eco-friendly data centers and as a result is not very compatible with the environment and is far from other green data centers in the world.
Hadi Zahedi; Yousef Rashidi; Seyed Hossein Hashemi
Abstract
Introduction: Today, noise pollution is recognized as serious health and environmental problem. With the spread of urbanization and migration and the construction of roads, rails, and air transport networks, as well as the rapid development of the industry over time, the issue of noise pollution is ...
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Introduction: Today, noise pollution is recognized as serious health and environmental problem. With the spread of urbanization and migration and the construction of roads, rails, and air transport networks, as well as the rapid development of the industry over time, the issue of noise pollution is considered a serious issue that prompted urban planning officials to provide a suitable solution for it. The use of sound barriers is one of the methods that is used in reducing and controlling the sound propagation path and is effective in reducing the traffic noise due to the movement of tires on the road, air passing rapidly over the vehicle, vehicle traffic, and some intentional anomalies (such as raising the volume of internal speakers, tampering with car exhaust, etc.). Currently, 20 highways in Tehran have noise pollution, and in some cases, sound barriers have been installed. The Sayyad Shirazi Highway is also equipped with three sound walls. The purpose of this study was to investigate the performance of the sound barriers located in the Sayyad Shirazi Highway. Material and methods: In this study, a three-section noise barrier was installed in Sayyad Shirazi Highway using a B&K2236 sound level meter according to the standard of the US-EPA in terms of sound level (at a height of 1.5 meters from the ground) in different positions relative to the wall. The sound level was measured at a distance of 5 and 20 meters behind the wall and then two factors of sound level reduction and the amount of sound loss were evaluated. Also, by measuring the sound level at houses (with a stone facade and double glazing) and in the living room of different floors, the equivalent sound level was compared with the sound standard in houses compiled by the US-EPA. Results and discussion: The equivalent sound level inside the highway varied between 70 to 80 dBs, and at a close distance (5 meters) behind the barrier, a decrease of about 15 dBs, and at a distance of 20 meters, a decrease of about 12 dBs was observed. Although in the barrier of Zanbagh Alley, due to the short length of the barrier and not properly designed barrier, the sound barrier (lack of proper installaion angle) was lower. Nevertheless of the reduction of about 12 dB, the equivalent sound level does not comply with standard limit (55 dB). It is difficult to meet the national standard due to the short distance between the highway and residential houses., Inside the houses behind barriers, measurements also indicated a relative non-fulfillment of standards. Although it seemed that with increasing altitude, the effect of sound barriers in reducing the equivalent level of sound would be less, this was not observed until the third floor, and sometimes even due to the loud noise of the utility room, the noise level in the first floor, was higher than the second and third floors. Due to the 6 meters height of the wall, with increasing height and in the fourth and fifth floors of houses behind the noise barrier, the effect was less, however, buildings with more than three floors were less observed near the barrier and the highway. Conclusion: The performance of the noise barrier was generally positive in reducing the equivalent sound level. The sound barriers of Bustan Vahed between Farvardin and Abuzar and the noise barrier of Zanbagh Alley were able to significantly reduce the noise level caused by traffic to a lesser extent. According to this study, none of the locations complied with the national standard limit (55 dB) of noise pollution.
Mohammad Mahmudi; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Amir Salemi
Abstract
Introduction: So far, several studies have been carried out all over the world on the development of appropriate indicators for the emission of hydrocarbon contaminants and several indicators have been presented in this regard. These indicators are divided into internal and external categories. External ...
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Introduction: So far, several studies have been carried out all over the world on the development of appropriate indicators for the emission of hydrocarbon contaminants and several indicators have been presented in this regard. These indicators are divided into internal and external categories. External indices determine the source of hydrocarbon pollution based on the ratio of metals in the oil, such as the ratio of nickel to vanadium. In contrast, indigenous indices, namely aromatic and aliphatic compounds, are used mainly for the propagation of hydrocarbon contamination. Because of the difference in reactivity, solubility, and thermodynamic properties between some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons isomers, they can be used to determine the source of hydrocarbon pollution. Material and methods: In many studies on hydrocarbon contamination, only one of the aliphatic or aromatic compounds in the water, soil and sediment environment is investigated. However, in this study, for the determination of hydrocarbon contamination in the south of Tehran, aromatic and aliphatic compounds were investigated in all water, soil, and sediment environments. To determine the amount of contamination, 33 samples of water, soil, and sediment were collected. After collection, the samples were immediately transferred to the laboratory and extraction of hydrocarbon compounds was done. Water samples were collected from wells, aqueducts, surface waters, and canals. Soil samples were obtained from surface and 50 cm depth of agricultural land, and primer soil and sediment samples were collected from sediments accumulated in canals, aqueducts and surface waters. Results and discussion: In this study, 16 important PAH compounds that are declared as carcinogenic by the US Environmental Protection Agency and aliphatic compounds (C8-C40) were studied. The average concentration of PAHs compounds in water samples was 2127.72 ppb ranging from 5 to 147125.56, in soil samples was 6715.7 ppb, ranging from 5 to 446642, and in sediment samples was957.77 ppb ranging from5 to11992.02. As for aliphatic compounds (C8-C40), their concentrationin water samples was 39.50 ppm with a range of 5-785.2, in soil samples was 1110 ppm with a range of 5-16160/74, and insediment samples was1751.13 ppm with a range of 5-30497.37. The presence of hydrocarbon contamination in the south ofTehran showed that petroleum pollution is petrogenetic. According to these results, the most contamination was observed insamples around the pond of oil waste and samples near the oil pipelines, where the hydrocarbon contamination can penetrateinto the groundwater and the soil. Also, the oil pollution in the area was not limited to the oil refinery, but part of it was relatedto the liquefied gas collection from the city and transportation to the canals to use for irrigation of agricultural land. Regardingthe comparison of concentrations of PAH and aliphatic compounds, the highest concentrations of PAHs were found in waterand sediment, respectively, and the highest concentrations of aliphatic compounds were in the soil, sediment, and water, respectively,respectively. Due to the fact that the hydrocarbon compounds in the water column are deposited into the channel depositsand these channels are periodically dredged by farmers in the region, there is no possibility of accumulation of high levels ofhydrocarbons in these environments. For this reason, the highest concentrations are in the soil environment. Conclusion: The results of measurement and analysis of oil hydrocarbons in water, soil, and sediment environmentsshowed that oil pollution is petrogenetic. Most of this pollution is related to oil spills from Tehran refinery and the otherreason is the collecting channels of urban surface runoff, which are contaminated with petrogenetic petroleum compoundsthat lead to the south of Tehran.
Javad bayat; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Korous Khoshbakht; Reza Deihimfard
Volume 14, Issue 2 , July 2016, , Pages 1-12
Abstract
In this study, 83 sampling points were chosen in the study area. Sampling was conducted at two soil depths (0-30 cm and 30-60 cm) and the concentrations of nitrate, phosphate, EC, pH and organic carbon were determined. Interpolation maps were created using the IDW method. These showed that in the top ...
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In this study, 83 sampling points were chosen in the study area. Sampling was conducted at two soil depths (0-30 cm and 30-60 cm) and the concentrations of nitrate, phosphate, EC, pH and organic carbon were determined. Interpolation maps were created using the IDW method. These showed that in the top soil, soil phosphorus, EC and OC have the maximum concentration in the northern part of the area and nitrate in the southern part of the area; in second depth soil, phosphorus has the maximum concentration in the North of the area and nitrate and EC in the South of the area, while OC has a uniform distribution over the whole area. Analysis of soil chemical properties showed high concentrations of nitrate and phosphate in the upper soil layer in the studied areas, mainly due to the use of untreated urban wastewater and chemical fertilizers by the farmers; in addition, results of organic carbon measurement showed that this area has a good condition in terms of organic matters. Soil pH in the area was alkaline and EC decreased at a lower depth. The results of Spearman correlation analysis showed that EC has a positive correlation with nitrate and a negative correlation with phosphate at both depths. Also, organic carbon has a positive correlation with soil phosphate in the top soil.
Zeynab Golhosseini; Mahdi Jalili Ghazizade; Seyed Hossein Hashemi
Volume 14, Issue 1 , April 2016, , Pages 81-90
Abstract
Bottom sludge generated in evaporation ponds is one of the most important wastes in combined cycle power plants. Since previous studies show that wastewater incoming to evaporation ponds contains various contaminants, so the settled sludge can be mentioned as a hazardous waste. Waste characterization ...
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Bottom sludge generated in evaporation ponds is one of the most important wastes in combined cycle power plants. Since previous studies show that wastewater incoming to evaporation ponds contains various contaminants, so the settled sludge can be mentioned as a hazardous waste. Waste characterization showed high concentration of heavy metals (i.e. Lead and Chromium) and Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons in the generated sludge. Regarding to classification criteria of the Basel Convention and other international instructions (such as EPA) revealed this waste can be categorized as a hazardous waste. Then all possible methods for sludge management was evaluated based on technical, economic and environmental aspects and land disposal was selected as preferred method. Finally various scenarios including landfill and surface impoundment were considered. To avoiding penetration of contaminants to the environment, IWEM model was used to design of bottom lining system where different environmental scenarios and leakage concentrations was evaluated.
Fatemeh Rajab Nia; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Reihaneh Rasoolzadeh; Saeed Soofizadeh
Volume 13, Issue 4 , January 2016, , Pages 37-42
Abstract
Wastewater from the textile industry is one of the most polluted industrial effluents. Many different methods have been used for treatment of this type of effluents. Since ozone is a powerful oxidizing agent and attacks the double bonds of the dye molecules, it can be efficiently used for treatment of ...
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Wastewater from the textile industry is one of the most polluted industrial effluents. Many different methods have been used for treatment of this type of effluents. Since ozone is a powerful oxidizing agent and attacks the double bonds of the dye molecules, it can be efficiently used for treatment of this type of wastewater. The present study aims to determine the optimum running time and pH for removal of pollutants from the effluent. In the present research, experiments were carried out in a 4.2 l reactor with a 1393.431 mg inlet ozone. Colour and COD removal efficiencies were measured at different time periods and at pH values of 5 and 9. Results show that using the ozonation method under the optimum condition of a pH value of 9 and a running time 90 minutes reduced chemical oxygen demand (COD) by 21.6% and colour by 82.56% (Pt-Co scale), 73.63% (at 400 nm wavelength) and 90.76% (at 575 nm wavelength). Since the use of ozone alone to achieve the desired level of treatment is not .cost effective, it is recommended to use this method in combination with other methods
Yosefali Ahmadi-Mamaqani,; Nematollah Khorasani; Khalil Talebi-Jahromi,; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Fatemeh Bahadori-Khosroshahi
Volume 8, Issue 4 , July 2011
Abstract
The presence of organic chemical materials in surface water resources, besides having adverse effects on the consumer, reduces the desirability of aquatic fauna and even results in their complete annihilation. Determination of Diazinon residues in the Tajan River (TR) was traced in order to investigate ...
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The presence of organic chemical materials in surface water resources, besides having adverse effects on the consumer, reduces the desirability of aquatic fauna and even results in their complete annihilation. Determination of Diazinon residues in the Tajan River (TR) was traced in order to investigate the level of concentration of this pollutant from the agricultural activities around the river. This was accomplished by taking samples in 2008, starting in April at three-week intervals and continued up to October. After each sampling, the existing Diazinon concentration was determined in the laboratory using a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) instrument. The largest Diazinon concentration was 47 micrograms per liter found in June and at the third sampling station. Analysis of the results confirmed that the Diazinon concentration of Tajan River increases with the beginning agricultural activities in specific fields covered with rice. This Diazinon concentration appeared throughout summer at different concentrations. According to the criteria recommended by EPA for Diazinon pollutants to protect the river ecosystem, with a one-hour average concentration of 0.17 μg/lit which is not exceeded more than once every three years (acute toxicity criteria), it can be concluded that Diazinon concentration in the Tajan river affected agricultural activities and increased the risk to the river ecosystem.
