Landfill Leachate Treatment by Using Second-Hand Reverse Osmosis Membranes: Long-Term Case Study in a Full-Scale Operating Facility

Landfill leachate (LFL) has a complex inorganic, organic and microbiological composition. Although pressure-driven membrane technology contributes to reaching the discharge limits, the need for frequent membrane replacement (typically every 1-3 years) is an economical and environmental limitation. The goal of this work is to evaluate the feasibility of using second-hand reverse osmosis (RO) membranes to treat LFL in an industrially relevant environment. End-of-life RO membranes discarded from a seawater desalination plant were first tested with brackish water and directly reused or regenerated to fit with requirements for LFL treatment. A laboratory scale test of second-hand membrane reuse was carried out using ultrafiltered LFL. Then, a long-term test in an LFL full-scale facility was performed, where half of the membranes of the facility were replaced. The industrial plant was operated for 27 months with second-hand membranes. The permeate water quality fit the required standards and the process showed a trend of lower energy requirement (up to 12 bar lower transmembrane pressure and up to 9% higher recovery than the average of the previous 4 years). Direct reuse and membrane regeneration were successfully proven to be an alternative management to landfill disposal, boosting membranes towards the circular economy.

Efficacy of omalizumab in an atopic young adult with asthma and eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps

OBJECTIVE

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) presents a multifactorial etiology due to interactions between the immune host system and external agents. It can be classified into two phenotypes based on the presence or absence of polypoid neoformation (respectively CRSwNP and CRSsNP). According to EPOS2020, CRS is now classified into two endotypes, eosinophilic (ECRS) and non-eosinophilic (non-ECRS), based on eosinophil tissue count (more than 10 eosinophils per High Power Field, HPF).

CASE PRESENTATION

We present the case of a 31-year-old man affected by recalcitrant ECRSwNP and asthma.

RESULTS

He was treated with a combination of omalizumab and endoscopic sinus surgery. This combination led to a reduction in blood eosinophils, modified Lund-Kennedy endoscopic score, Lund-Mackay score, and Sino-Nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22), almost 6 months after surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

In this clinical case, omalizumab regulated nasal symptoms for more than a year and with good control of the recalcitrant pattern when combined with ESS.

Long-term residence in areas of high ozone: associations with respiratory health in a nationwide sample of nonsmoking young adults [dsee comments]

Few studies have examined the respiratory effects of multiyear ozone exposures in human populations. We examined associations between current respiratory health status and long-term ozone exposure histories in 520 Yale College (New Haven, CT) students who never smoked. Questionnaires addressed current respiratory symptoms, respiratory disease history, residential history, and other factors. The symptoms of cough, phlegm, wheeze apart from colds, and a composite respiratory symptom index (RSI) were selected as outcome measures. Forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV(1)), forced expiratory flow rate between 25 and 75% of FVC (FEF(25-75)), and forced expiratory flow rate at 75% of FVC (FEF(75)) were obtained by forced expiration into spirometers. Ozone exposure was treated as a dichotomous variable, where subjects were assigned to the high-exposure group if they lived for 4 or more years in a U.S. county with 10-year average summer-season daily 1-hr maximum ozone levels [greater/equal to] 80 ppb. Lung function and respiratory symptoms were analyzed by multiple linear and logistic regression on ozone exposure, controlling for covariates. Lung function was lower in the group with high ozone exposures: differences were statistically significant for FEV(1) [-3.1%; 95% confidence interval (CI), -0.2 to -5.9%] and FEF(25-75) (-8.1%; CI, -2.3 to -13.9%), and nearly so for FEF(75) (-6.7%; CI, 1.4 to -14.8). Gender-specific analyses revealed stronger associations for males than for females. The symptoms of chronic phlegm, wheeze apart from colds, and RSI were increased in the ozone-exposed group, with odds ratios of 1.79 (CI, 0.83-3.82), 1.97 (CI, 1.06-3.66), and 2.00 (CI, 1.15-3.46), respectively. We conclude that living for 4 or more years in regions of the country with high levels of ozone and related copollutants is associated with diminished lung function and more frequent reports of respiratory symptoms.