A new BASF online tool, the so-called Ecovio® Eco-Efficiency Compass (E³C), will make this decision much
easier in the future.  The software compiles all of the relevant data for the production and disposal of selected products – the findings of many exhaustive Eco-Efficiency Analyses – in a single user-friendly interface. Various parameters that are crucial for the ecological evaluation of a given product can be quickly checked, revealing their impact on the product’s eco-efficiency right away. The uncomplicated comparison of the ecological footprint of various approaches allows the user to quickly ascertain whether, in the final analysis, a biodegradable plastic is actually more environmentally friendly.

Biodegradable is not necessarily eco-efficient
It has been more than ten years since biodegradable plastics have entered the awareness of consumers and the industry, and they continue to enjoy a growing interest on the part of the market and the public at large. A number of BASF products have contributed to this  development, too. Ecovio® F Film is commonly found in compostable shopping bags. At the end of 2009, BASF’s Ecovio product line was expanded by two new types, namely, Ecovio FS Paper, which is suitable for the production of coated paper cups and cardboard boxes, and Ecovio FS Shrink Film, which was developed explicitly with an eye towards the manufacture of shrink films.

Biodegradable plastics, however, do not automatically solve environmental problems simply because they can be composted. Their use only makes sense if they are more sustainable than nonbiodegradable materials at a performance level that is the same or even better. The biodegradability is supposed to create added value,
for instance, by allowing organic waste to be composted rather than incinerated. After all, organic waste consists primarily of water, which makes thermal utilization very inefficient. In contrast, if the film can be
composted along with its contents, this can have a positive effect on the environment.

Comprehensive life cycle assessments like the Eco-Efficiency Analysis developed by BASF have already been helping people for many years to make the right choice among different product and process alternatives. Towards this end, such analyses thoroughly and quantitatively investigate and evaluate the consumption of resources,
the environmental impact and the economic effects during the production, use and end-of-life phases of a material in a given application.

However, all of this makes these studies complex: a comprehensive Eco-Efficiency Analysis has to be performed by LCA experts and takes several months. Such individual studies do not lend themselves to being combined and specific scenarios must be prepared separately. This again affords the experts’ support. Thus it is not possible to make flexible and quick decisions from among several material alternatives.

User interface with clear layout
This is where the new Eco-Efficiency Compass springs into action. A web-based interface with an input mask is provided so that users can combine numerous parameters with each other that are of relevance for the ecological profile of their envisaged product such as, for instance, a shopping bag. These parameters include not only the selection of the packaging material – if necessary all the way down to the monomer level – but also the weight of the bag and the type of disposal technology.

Thus, the entire life cycle of the product is depicted, from the selection of the raw material all the way to disposal.
The software bases its calculations on several Eco-Efficiency Analyses and control parameters describing materials, applications and disposal scenarios. For the sake of clarity, however, they stay in the ackground. Moreover, some of the variables have been pre-set to ppropriate values.

Experience has shown, for example, that, when een over the entire life cycle of the product, the energy consumption
during the production of the film only has a relatively small impact on the eco-efficiency of a film bag.
Simple presentation of complex systems Users first receive the analysis results in the form of a radar and
portfolio diagram that clearly and logically shows the eco-efficiency of the approaches being compared. This already shows where a product variant has advantages or disadvantages, for example, in terms of its consumption of resources or its emissions.

If so desired, users can receive assistance from BASF experts who will provide them with individual diagrams showing valid and reproducible estimates of the energy and material streams involved in the production, transportation, use and final disposal. The environmentally relevant effects of the material selection and naturally also the costs of
the chosen approach are provided.

Example – shopping bag with double benefit
The calculational comparison between a shopping bag made of paper and one made of Ecovio, both of which offer double benefit since they can be used for shopping and for biowaste disposal, shows: under the boundaries chosen the Ecovio bag is more eco-efficient than the paper bag, because the latter has to be considerably thicker in order to
perform equally well. Generally speaking, this parameter plays a crucial  role. Together with trained BASF employees, users can experiment with these parameters.

Expandable concept
At the present time, the new Ecovio Eco-Efficiency Compass is still tailor-made for estimating the eco-efficiency of shopping bags and foam trays of the type found everywhere in the retail sector. Other product groups, however, can be added. Major developments on the market can be promptly incorporated; an example of this is polyethylene made
of “bio-ethanol”.

At the moment, experts are implementing models for paper coatings as well as for shrink films. These will help BASF customers to ascertain the eco-efficiency of paper cups and beverage packaging – and also to ensure that, in these sectors, biodegradable plastics are only employed where they are indeed more sustainable while performing at least
equally well.

The development project is sponsored by a two million dollar cooperative agreement from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The award is part of the DOE’s stimulus-funded initiative focusing on energy-related research
projects.

Efficient solvents are essential for the CO2-capture. The two partners will work on novel non-aqueous solvent systems that can be recycled.

The capture process could use 40 percent less energy than conventional amine-based processes. Coal-fired power plants produce 50 percent of the electricity generated in the United States and contribute about 36 percent of all the carbon dioxide emissions in that region or 1.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide annually.

“This new process for capturing carbon dioxide would keep the United States at the forefront of advanced energy and greenhouse gas control technologies,” said Dave Myers, vice president of the Engineering and Technology Unit at RTI. “Working with BASF, a global  leader for gas treatment technologies, will also provide a path for rapid commercialization of the technology so that we can have cost competitive clean energy production from coal-fired power plants.”

“Coupling RTI’s engineering and research capabilities with BASF’s gas treatment’s technical and commercial know-how, will provide the right synergies to develop a highly effective new technology for the industrial carbon capture”, said Todd Spengemann, Business Manager, Americas  Gas Treatment Solutions within BASF’s intermediates division.
BASF is one of the world’s most successful suppliers of gas treatment  technology. Around the globe, some 200 ammonia, natural gas, syngas and liquefied petroleum gas facilities use BASF processes and products for gas sweetening, i.e. to remove acid gases like hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and CO2. The company sells these technologies under the aMDEA® brand, which is short for “activated methyldiethanolamine.”

BASF has been cooperating with RWE Power and Linde since 2007 to develop aprocess for capturing CO2 from flue gases emitted by coal-fired power plants.

It might sound funny but do we really need to clean the cleanroom after use? If yes does it mean that our machines are inadequate?

Short answer, no.

The particle concentration during a day varies. Depending on the different activities in the cleanroom, the air filters alone will not ensure that the room maintains its level of cleanliness.

Many factors influence the particle generation. It is important to understand that the contamination is a direct result of the activity which takes place inside in the cleanroom.

Example of activities:

• People moving in a cleanroom
• The equipment or tools moving during the process
• The vibration transmitted by the mechanical equipment through the walls and ceiling.

The sources of contamination resulted from the activities includes

a) People: from skin flakes and hair, clothing debris like lint and fibres, street dust from footwear, cosmetics and perfumes, coughing and sneezing.

b) Equipment and tools: Particulate from the surface friction as lubricants and oil used.

c) Facility: Particulate from walls, floors, ceilings, paint and coatings

d) Product and Material: Debris and particles.

As a result, it is crucial to define and implement the proper cleaning protocol in order to maintain the cleanliness of the cleanroom. Adequate behaviour can reduce the particle generation significantly.

The CSIR’s Dr Marten Gründlingh, who manages the data centre, says: “Marine information is key to a better understanding of issues such as climate change, weather and the impact of humans on the sea – including marine effluent, oil spills, shipping, mineral exploration and fishing. With increasing pressures on our marine environment, oceanographic data are essential to governments and other decision-makers.”

SADCO stores, retrieves and manipulates multidisciplinary marine information from the areas around southern Africa. Data are mostly collected from research vessels, vessels-of-opportunity, moored instruments or floating buoys. Much of this information is entered into global numerical models, such as those used for weather forecasting, to allow some prediction of climate events and trends, and even tracking of oil spills.

“Oceanographic data are costly,” says Gründlingh. “Considering the cost of a research vessel and the number of vertical profiles that can be collected per day, profiles cost about R10 000 each – SADCO has more than 250 000 such profiles and other data available. The centre is fully computerised, with some data sets going back to 1670!”

SADCO, which celebrates 20 years of existence this year, forms part of a global network of ocean data centres. These are all part of the UN’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, which was established 50 years ago.

“Southern Africa has a long coastline, with thousands of kilometres to the nearest continents in an easterly, southerly and westerly direction. It is exposed to the weather generated over the vast Southern Ocean, where the highest waves in the world have been observed. When these ocean conditions reach the coast of South Africa, they impact on our beaches and affect ports and shipping. The Agulhas Current, flowing southwards along the east coast, is the domain of so-called giant waves, created through interaction between storm waves and the Current. Many vessels have been severely damaged and lost because of this phenomenon,” notes Gründlingh.

“We believe the realisation of the importance and vulnerability of the sea starts at a young age. By making data and information about the oceans available to the public, and especially to schools, it could engender the sense of scientific investigation,” says Gründlingh.

SADCO is funded by a consortium comprising the CSIR, the Department of Environmental Affairs, the SA Navy, the South African Environmental Observation Network of the National Research Foundation and the Namibian Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources.

Gründlingh believes data management requires a long-term commitment – “Only in this way can we ensure that valuable data will remain viable for generations to come. By using this information responsibly, we can harmonise our existence with the sustainable involvement of the oceans.”

SADCO can be accessed at http://sadco.csir.co.za

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The new LECO Pegasus 4 GCxGC-TOFMS (comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatograph combined with a time-of-flight mass spectrometer) has been commissioned at UP’s Separation Science Laboratory in the Department of Chemistry to gain better insight into the influence of trace components in synthetic diesel, and the application of such fuels in engines, turbines, and other devices.

The acquisition of this expensive equipment was made possible by financial support from Sasol Technology through joint research interest in the chemistry that underpins the physical properties of diesel fuels. The ability to obtain such chemical insight has only become feasible through the extreme analytical power of the GCxGC-TOFMS instrument, allowing for the identification and classification of literally thousands of compounds.

The initiative forms part of Sasol’s University collaboration initiative, a long term programme that supports the core objectives of world-class teaching and research capacity in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at selected South African Universities. This programme was initiated a few years ago and is already successfully established, using the framework of a hub-and-spoke collaboration philosophy, at several SA Universities.

Although primarily designed to protect Sasol’s competitive advantage of doing R&D in SA, this programme will have significant spin-offs benefiting South Africa in general. An important area related to Sasol’s fuels and lubricants research, is the rheological (study of the flow of substances under various conditions) and physical behavior of its synthetic fuels. The LECO Pegasus 4 GCxGC-TOFMS will enable scientists to make much more detailed analyses of how the more than 100 compounds that make up synthetic diesel fuel contribute to the likes of performance, viscosity, and lubricity of these fuels. This area of research is known as tribology.

With the rapid changes in engine technologies globally, it is important to fully characterize the composition of these fuels in order to exploit their unique benefits. Such academic expertise in South Africa exists at the University of Pretoria’s Department of Chemical Engineering under the leadership of Professor Philip de Vaal.

In-depth chemical characterization of fuels and lubricants is absolutely essential in understanding their rheological behavior. Analytical chemistry support (separation science), under the leadership of Professor Egmont Rohwer, is therefore another vital pillar in the sustainability of this programme. The support of this research area at UP hence involves both the disciplines of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry.

The ability to identify specific chemical compounds in extremely complicated mixtures will also help the University of Pretoria in other non-petrochemical research fields, including air and water pollution, forensic toxicology, and aroma analysis. In all these areas the LECO GCxGC-TOFMS will be used in combination with other unique analytical instrumentation and techniques developed at the UP Separation Science laboratories.

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The Network for the Coordination and Advancement of Sub-Saharan Africa-EU Science and Technology Cooperation (CAAST-Net) will take place at the Hilton Hotel in Durban on 17 May.

CAAST-Net is a five-year initiative, financed by the European Union, with the purpose of improving the quantity and quality of science and technology (S&T) cooperation between the two regions in areas of mutual interest and for mutual benefit.

Speakers will include delegates from the DST, the African Union Commission, the European Commission, the NEPAD Office for Science and Technology, the SADC Secretariat and UNESCO, among others.

Topics to be discussed range from the status of current bi-regional S&T cooperation, to the EU’s new S&T cooperation projects with Africa, worth €63 million, in the areas of health, the environment and food security research.

The meeting’s programme can be downloaded from the CAAST-Net website (http://www.caast-net.org, “Annual Assembly III”).

About CAAST-Net

CAAST-Net was formed against the background of a global consensus that capacity in science and technology is an essential pre-requisite to economic competitiveness, sustainable development and poverty reduction.

In support of its goal, the network has a range of activity clusters aimed at supporting and informing existing Europe-Africa S&T policy dialogue and cooperation processes.

Activities include the identification and prioritisation of research areas and topics of mutual interest and benefit, thereby harnessing cooperation to address specific problems faced locally and regionally within Africa, as well as common problems of a global nature.

Subject areas of current interest for cooperation between Europe and Africa include energy research, information and communication technologies, the social sciences and humanities, health and transport, among others.

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Reliable and efficient disinfection of cleanrooms

Cleanroom disinfection is a routine procedure in industries dependent on microbiologically clean areas for production and R&D. This would include companies in the pharmaceutical, biotech, cosmetic, and other microbiology industries.

Surface disinfection is an integral part of this process, with a diverse range of techniques being used. Standard techniques used include:

• Wiping disinfection
• Fogging
• Thermal processes
• Gassing and UV light.

The techniques favoured by different

companies can be internally elected, based on effort and efficiency, or externally imposed, by regulatory bodies.

Regulatory standards for microbiological cleanliness set requirements for regular, certified bio-decontamination of specific areas. A company may have one or several areas that require regular disinfection in order to provide a microbiologically clean environment.

The use of a dry fog system based on hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid offers a reliable, highly effective (6 logreduction) and environmental friendly solution.

What is Dry Fog?

As its name indicates, Dry Fog is a biocide aerosol which is released into the air’ Small super-lightweight dry fog particlesdistribute evenly across a large area.

Dry fog is defined as an aerosol particle which is less then 10µm big. It is also referred to as ‘Ultra Fine Atomization’.

The dry fog system generates aerosols of the size of 7.5µm. Due to the light-weight drifting nature of the particle, top, side and bottom surfaces will be covered.

What is the advantage?

Comprehensive bio-decontamination: Dry fog disperses better then wet fog. This leads to considerably more surface contact and even difficult to reach surfaces will be decontaminated.

Portability: The Dry Fog is easy to assemble

Safety: As a ‘dry’ material, there is less chance of reaction to electronic components that with traditional wet-fog products. There is no need to cover or to remove electronic components.

Durability: The aerosol particles do not collapse and bind when coming into contact with other particles or the target surface. As a result there is little or no condensation, resulting in a larger surface area being evenly covered.

The Minncare Dry Fog system

The Minncare dry fog system consists of a dry fog machine and a biocide. The biocide is a stable mixture of hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid, to which water is added. The dry fog machine relies on 5 bar (or higher) compressed and clean air or a nitrogen connection.

After fogging a cleanroom, the residuals that can remain are oxygen and acetic acid.

Procedure

With all four nozzles operating it is possible to disinfect up to 1000 m³ from one point. Several inter-connecting rooms can even be decontaminated from just one position. The biocide will be diluted with either de-ionised water or water for injection. The dilution factor depends on the relative humidity and room temperature.

The HVAC needs to be off during the fogging phase otherwise the fog can’t disperse evenly.

The optimal relative humidity should be prior to fogging less then 60% and during the fogging phase it shouldn’t exceed 80 –85%. Best sporicidal activity is between 70% – 80%. The dry fog systems allows to disinfectant rooms from 20m³ to 1,000m³.

The mini Dry Fog is for smaller environments useful like laminar flows, biohazard cabinets from 1m³ to 20m³.

In the example was a 6log reduction in spore B. Stearothermophylus ATCC 7953 achieved.

What about residuals?
In a worst case scenario the maximum of acetic acid would be <0,00002ml per m².

Whilst some pharmaceutical companies still use formaldehyde which is very toxic and highly corrosive compared to Minncare, which is biodegradable.

Budget and Environmentally friendly

Compared to normal surface disinfection, DryFog has a huge cost saving potential. For 1 m³ of room only 1,5 ml of concentrate

is required. If one combines it with reduced downtime and high efficiency it offers a reliable solution.

This article prepared by Basan South Africa focuses on a simple and cost effective way to control contamination using so-called sticky mats or polymeric floorings. Neglecting the particulate contamination from operators’ feet and trolley wheels may critically affect the quality, reliability, human security, cost and productivity.

Most people know that humans are the greatest source of contamination in a controlled environment or cleanroom. To maintain or optimize the level of cleanliness there are various options. At the top of this is the permanent training of personnel to build up an appropriate level of understanding and encourage the correct behaviour shouldn’t be an option, but rather a permanent process.

Optimizing the filters and the right usage of proper consumables including, wipers, gloves, swabs, garments etc cannot be underestimated.

Product safety should have the highest priority. The principles of good manufacturing practice (GMP) and quality assurance demand manufacturers minimise or prevent viable or non-viable particles entering the product.

Polymeric flooring

The smooth surface creates natural tack and a high degree of short-range electromagnetic forces (Van der Waals). This enables it to attract, collect and retain over 99% of particles, ranging from over 100 microns to less than 0.2 microns. This contamination is held on the surface until cleaned off. To reduce viable contamination, polymer floorings contain an integral anti-microbial additive.

The durability and efficiency depends on the number of staff which passes over, the size, the cleaning method and frequency, the cleaning detergent and heavy loadings. The life circle is between three to five years. There are different colours available to alert personnel that they are about to enter a critical area.

Peel-off mats

These have thin layers of adhesive coated polyethylene film, usually 30 or 60 numbered layers. Peel-off mats can be easy installed or removed at any entrance or crossover to the next critical area.

The non-transferring adhesive requires at least two steps or two complete wheel rotations to capture the dust and dirt. In areas with high contamination it is not unusual to use two mats in a row.

The traffic of cleanroom personnel and the cleanliness level determines how often a contaminated layer has to be peeled off and how often the mat has to be replaced.

If the contamination or traffic is low, it is easy to implement a procedure into the standard cleaning procedures. At higher contamination the mats get dirty quicker and the risk of particles entering the cleanroom is higher. In order to achieve effective contamination control it is advisable to have a specific individual responsible for the control of the mat.

The higher price and the installation of a polymeric mat are easily amortised if the consumption of peel-off mats is very high.

This consideration must also include that the peel-off mats need to be purchased, stored and replaced. In contrast cleaning of the polymeric flooring, if the contamination is not too high, can be easily implemented in the normal cleaning procedure.

Preference to a mat depends on the environment and surrounding factors. The mats can be used in pharmaceutical, medical device, food, biotechnology companies and hospitals.

A peel-off mat is an easy and effective way to prevent contamination and in big manufacturing areas or high frequented critical points the saving by installing a flooring mat can be massive

Grey-water from showers, baths, hand basins, laundry tubs and washing machines can provide a solution to our water scarcity challenges. A joint pilot study, conducted by the Universities of Witwatersrand (WITS), Johannesburg (UJ) and Cape Town (UCT), and funded by the Water Research Commission (WRC), is proving that the use of grey-water can be an effective way of saving our high quality water.

A Wits student working on the WRC project

A dual grey- and drinking water reticulation system is a system consisting of separate pipes that supply grey-water (for only toilet flushing in this project) and drinking water, respectively, to the end user. This is the first dual grey- and drinking water reticulation system for high-density urban buildings currently piloted in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (Hillman Block) at WITS, collects its grey-water from 13 hand-basins and conveys it to a 200 litre tank.

Prior to the grey-water tank are two 2 mm sieves that collect any solid materials which find their way from the hand-basins. These sieves are cleaned once a week. Prior to the sieves are two chlorinators that disinfect the grey-water to kill any micro-organisms. “The grey-water tank had to be kept small so that water is used immediately” says Dr Adesola Ilemobade, project leader at the WITS School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The tank has two submersible pumps for directing water to the toilet when the toilet is flushed, using a switch within the toilet cubicle. Necessary measures were also put in place to avoid backflows.

The first phase of the pilot project is currently used to flush one female and one male toilet at the WITS Hillman Block. “If accepted by South African municipalities, the project will be beneficial to many water-scarce communities” says Dr Ilemobade. “At this stage the reuse of black water (sewage) is not considered due to the potentially higher public health risks” he adds.

A survey that was followed by a massive user awareness campaign at WITS, UJ and UCT indicated a high level of optimism amongst staff and students with the installation of a dual grey- and drinking water reticulation system on their campuses.

Dr Adesola maintains that the unit will offer several advantages including: the reduction in participating households’/institutions’ drinking water bills; in areas without waterborne sewerage, grey-water reuse may improve the performance of septic tanks; grey-water reuse supports the growth in greener water strategies; and water conservation.
“The next installation is in progress at a 16-room unit of the Student Village residence at the University of Johannesburg Kingsway Campus where the collection of grey-water will be extended to showers and baths within the unit” says Dr Ilemobade.

“Municipalities constrained by finance will be better empowered to provide unserved communities with drinking water systems since the costs of the system will be reduced as a result of the reduced demand for drinking water due to grey-water reuse” says Mr Jay Bhagwan, a Director managing the study at the WRC. It will further cause reduced effluent discharges to the environment, leaving streams to their natural flow regime.

The facility, a waste glass processing plant, accommodates state-of-the-art technology and equipment from Austrian supplier Binder + Co, and is expected to meet all Nampak Wiegand Glass’s processing and supply needs in the future.

Using a high-resolution camera system, which is able to recognise a wide colour spectrum, the innovative new plant will separate waste glass shards according to colour – drastically speeding up the process when compared to sorting different colour glass waste by hand. Furthermore, the new plant will separate the waste glass from other material as well as clean the sorted waste glass and deliver material that is ready for use in the manufacture of new glass products.

The plant, in which Nampak Wiegand Glass has invested over R160-million, has been a year in the making and will see the glass packaging company meet its commitment to increase glass recycling rates in South Africa – a major benefit for the environment as well as the network of agents and informal collectors from which the post-industrial and post-consumer glass is sourced.

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