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Curran, Thomas P.
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Curran, Thomas P.
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Curran, Thomas P.
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Now showing 1 - 10 of 65
- Publicationअमोनिया के बारे में कुछ है(University College Dublin, 2021-12-07)
; ; ; This is a comic aimed at children from the age of eight upwards. It highlights impacts from ammonia in agriculture, plus sources and solutions to the problem.84 - PublicationThere's something about ammoniaThis is a comic aimed at children from the age of eight upwards. It highlights impacts from ammonia in agriculture, plus sources and solutions to the problem.
1320 - PublicationAssessment of the Impact of Ammonia Emissions from Intensive Agriculture Installations on Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas(Environmental Protection Agency, 2020-10-06)
; ; ; Atmospheric ammonia poses a significant threat to biodiversity and human health around the world. A high concentration can result in significant changes to the structure of ecosystems, as atmospheric ammonia is particularly harmful to a number of nitrogen-sensitive habitats (bogs, heath, semi-natural grasslands, etc.). In addition, ammonia reacts with other pollutants in the air to form particulate matter, which disperses over great distances. Atmospheric particulate matter has been linked to a range of pulmonary and cardiac issues in humans. Concentrations of ammonia in the air downwind of hotspot sources, such as pig and poultry farms, are likely to negatively affect the environment. The contribution of multiple sources of ammonia to cumulative impacts in Ireland is currently poorly understood. The AmmoniaN2K project aimed to assist the EPA licensing of intensive agriculture installations (pig and poultry farms) in Ireland. This work is particularly relevant to appropriate assessments on Natura 2000 sites under the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), where modelling of contributions from agricultural sources is required. Emission rates generated and recommendations from detailed monitoring will support future assessments. The identification of farms below the Industrial Emission Directive (2010/75/EU) threshold will also assist the required cumulative impact assessments under appropriate assessment. This information has also aided the spatial reporting of emissions, which has benefited European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme concentration and deposition modelling. The emission rates generated can be used to validate and inform the Pollutant Release and Transfer Register reporting of national emissions in Ireland. Improving inventory reporting is a vital step to ensure compliance with limits set under the National Emissions Ceilings Directive (2016/2284/EU) –Ireland currently exceeds its ammonia emission limit under this directive. Monitoring on Natura 2000 sites has highlighted the need for alternative agricultural practices to reduce this impact. The AmmoniaN2K project quantified and assessed the impact of ammonia emissions from intensive pig and poultry units on Natura 2000 sites in Ireland. This was done by monitoring detailed ammonia emissions from 17 animal production houses across four farms. These rates are compared with best available techniques-ammonia emission levels (BAT-AELs), past monitoring in Ireland and recommended rates by Simple Calculation of Atmospheric Impact Limits (SCAIL-Agriculture). Dispersion modelling of all farms was conducted using monitored rates to identify distance downwind from where both impacts and estimated minimum contributions occurred. An approach to identify farms below the Industrial Emission Directive (2010/75/EU) threshold was developed, in order to identify the total number of intensive agriculture units that are proximal to Natura 2000 sites. The Mapping Ammonia Risk on Sensitive Habitats (MARSH) model, developed as part of this study, assigned a risk of impacts from all sources of ammonia (including cattle and sheep) to Natura 2000 sites in Ireland. This model was checked against monitoring on Natura 2000 sites, which also identified potential impacts at these locations.729 - PublicationFinding Beo(University College Dublin. Institute of Food and Health, 2022-11-18)
; ; ; 434 - PublicationHydrogen sulphide gas production from spent mushroom compost under field and laboratory conditionsHydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas production was monitored during the disturbance of four heaps of Spent Mushroom Compost (SMC) that were stored for up to 12 months either outdoors or under cover (indoors). QRAE (www.raesystems.eu) and ITX (www.indsci.com) gas monitors with data logging facilities were used to measure the 10-second average concentration of H2S released into the air above the heaps of SMC as they were being disturbed. The highest concentrations of up to 2083 ppm were detected for the outdoor stored material in comparison to concentrations of up to 687 ppm detected for indoor stored material. Outdoor stored SMC had higher moisture contents (66-72%) compared to indoor stored material (53-65%). Laboratory studies were conducted to study the effects of moisture content (69 – 85%) and temperature (35ºC or 45ºC) on H2S production from fresh un-steamed and steamed samples of SMC. The H2S gas concentration in the head space of the incubation vessels was measured every 24 hours for 3 days. Un-steamed SMC produced higher levels of H2S than steamed SMC and in general the higher the moisture content the higher the H2S concentration. Higher concentrations of H2S were also produced with the higher incubation temperature of 45 ºC. These results suggest that the high levels of H2S detected during disturbance of stored SMC are heavily influenced by moisture content. The higher rates of H2S production at 45 ºC also suggest that thermophilic microorganisms are involved in the process. Health and Safety aspects of H2S production from stored SMC are discussed
256 - PublicationAmóinia? Amóinia? Cad faoi Amóinia?(University College Dublin, 2021-12-07)
; ; ; ; This is a comic aimed at children from the age of eight upwards. It highlights impacts from ammonia in agriculture, plus sources and solutions to the problem.163 - PublicationAlgo pasa con ele amoníaco(University College Dublin, 2021-12-07)
; ; ; ; This is a comic aimed at children from the age of eight upwards. It highlights impacts from ammonia in agriculture, plus sources and solutions to the problem.175 - PublicationTelling the story of sewer fatbergs using creative approaches(2019-12-03)
; ; ; The word ‘fatberg’ entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2015 and is defined as ‘a very large mass of solid waste in a sewerage system, consisting especially of congealed fat and personal hygiene products that have been flushed down toilets’. While the occurrence of fatbergs is a global problem, it is particularly prevalent in the UK with about 300,000 sewer blockages every year, costing about £100 million. A key approach to addressing the issue is to raise awareness among the public and business community in order to reduce the amount of fat, oil and grease (FOG) and sanitary items such as wet wipes that are discharged into the sewer. Engagement by water utilities or companies such as SwiftComply typically takes place directly with food service establishments while public events are also organised. Fatbergs have been highlighted many times in the media, most notably the Whitechapel fatberg, which was found in London in 2017, weighing 130 tonnes (equivalent to 19 African elephants) and measuring 250 metres in length (as long as two football pitches). The research results from Barry Orr (a.k.a. Captain FOG) on so-called ‘flushable’ wet wipes gained widespread publicity and the “Your Turn” FOG cup is effective for residents. Creative approaches have also been used to get the message across. Nathan T. Wright created a ‘Fatberg’ character for an illustrated book ‘Adventures of Fatberg’; this highlighted how fatbergs could be converted into biofuels. Tom Curran (a.k.a. Dr. Fatberg) performed a stand-up comedy set at Bright Club Dublin, which is available on YouTube. More recently, Nathan T. Wright created a follow on comic book ‘Attack of the Fatbergs’ in collaboration with SwiftComply; it is a tale of time travel with ‘Fatberg’, ‘Captain FOG’, ‘Dr. Fatberg’ and ‘Dr. Sophie Quinn’ trying to save Christmas from the menace of fatbergs. There appears to be significant interest in all these initiatives.206 - PublicationProduction of medicated bedding straw: challenges and perspectives(American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE), 2011-08)
; ; ; ; ; ; Previous bacteriological findings have reported that animal disease outbreaks are associated with the quality of the animal environment. Animal bedding straw is a good source of bacteria and fungi, typically contaminated with (mycelia) yeasts and filamentous fungi species such as Aspergillus, Fusarium, Alternaria, Cladosporium, Epicoccum, Penicillium, Verticillium and Enterobacteria. The objective of this work was to assess the efficacy of different technologies on the production of medicated bedding straw. Four critical control points of an industrial straw disinfection processing line were identified. The levels of fungi and bacteria present in the straw during an industrially applied mechanical – chemical process were quantified. The plate counting revealed that propionic acid and formaldehyde chemicals reduced the microbial levels from the raw material and that they were more efficient on moulds than on bacteria. The potential use of ozone gas as an alternative greener technology to the current liquid chemical treatments was also evaluated. Trials conducted on ozone treatments (flow rates: 0.031, 0.125, 0.5 L/min, concentrations: 36, 99, 150 μg/mL, treatment time: 0, 5, 15, 30 mins, and residual times of 0 to 18 hrs) indicated that ozone successfully reduces the microbial counts and the fungi levels by more than 1.5 logs (cfu/g).279 - PublicationΚάτι Τρέχει µε την Αμμωνία(University College Dublin, 2021-12-07)
; ; ; This is a comic aimed at children from the age of eight upwards. It highlights impacts from ammonia in agriculture, plus sources and solutions to the problem.191