Novel Calix[4]arene‐based Amberlite XAD‐4 Modified Resin for As(III) Removal from Water

The present article describes As(III) sorption behavior of novel calix[4]arene appended TS‐4 resin. The sorption ability of TS‐4 resin has been evaluated at wide range of pH, i.e., pH 2–14. The maximum As(III) sorption efficiency (95%) was achieved at pH 2, which shows that the TS‐4 resin possesses greater affinity for As(III) at this pH. Column sorption mechanism was evaluated through various operating parameters, i.e., change in concentration, flow rate, bed heights, and pH. The experimental data were also tested against bed depth service time model and from the results; it has been observed that the data is in close agreement with the theoretically calculated values. Thus, from the data it has been revealed that TS‐4 resin has maximum column efficiency of 0.13 mmol g^?1. Application of TS‐4 to real samples indicates a slight decrease (2–3%) in extraction efficiency of TS‐4 because of high concentration of total dissolved salts. Thermal behavior was tested by differential scanning calorimetry and it has been observed that TS‐4 resin is stable up to 160°C. TS‐4 resin was found to be regenerable and best regeneration was achieved by using 4% solution of NaOH. It can be deduced from the study that the resin will find its applicability in small as well as industrial scale water purification plants.     

The Effects of Operational Parameters on a Mono-wire Cutting System: Efficiency in Marble Processing

Mono-wire block cutting machines that cut with a diamond wire can be used for squaring natural stone blocks and the slab-cutting process. The efficient use of these machines reduces operating costs by ensuring less diamond wire wear and longer wire life at high speeds. The high investment costs of these machines will lead to their efficient use and reduce production costs by increasing plant efficiency. Therefore, there is a need to investigate the cutting performance parameters of mono-wire cutting machines in terms of rock properties and operating parameters. This study aims to investigate the effects of the wire rotational speed (peripheral speed) and wire descending speed (cutting speed), which are the operating parameters of a mono-wire cutting machine, on unit wear and unit energy, which are the performance parameters in mono-wire cutting. By using the obtained results, cuttability charts for each natural stone were created on the basis of unit wear and unit energy values, cutting optimizations were performed, and the relationships between some physical and mechanical properties of rocks and the optimum cutting parameters obtained as a result of the optimization were investigated.     

Comparison of landslide susceptibility mapping methodologies for Koyulhisar,Turkey: conditional probability,logistic regression,artificial neural networks,and support vector machine

This case study presented herein compares the GIS-based landslide susceptibility mapping methods such as conditional probability (CP), logistic regression (LR), artificial neural networks (ANNs) and support vector machine (SVM) applied in Koyulhisar (Sivas, Turkey). Digital elevation model was first constructed using GIS software. Landslide-related factors such as geology, faults, drainage system, topographical elevation, slope angle, slope aspect, topographic wetness index, stream power index, normalized difference vegetation index, distance from settlements and roads were used in the landslide susceptibility analyses. In the last stage of the analyses, landslide susceptibility maps were produced from ANN, CP, LR, SVM models, and they were then compared by means of their validations. However, area under curve values obtained from all four methodologies showed that the map obtained from ANN model looks like more accurate than the other models, accuracies of all models can be evaluated relatively similar. The results also showed that the CP is a simple method in landslide susceptibility mapping and highly compatible with GIS operating features. Susceptibility maps can be easily produced using CP, because input process, calculation and output processes are very simple in CP model when compared with the other methods considered in this study.     

Thermal sensation of people performing recreational activities in shadowy environment: a case study from Turkey

The objective of this study is to determine human thermal comfort conditions in the recreational areas of the city of Erzurum using an 18-year data set of the five warmest months of the year obtained from the meteorological station established in the rural area of the city at 1400 local time and discussing the applicability of a new approach that climatic or bioclimatic comfort conditions under some tree species may be comparable to those under some cloudiness categories. It was found by concluding that the effects of cloudiness and shadows of selected tree species may not be the same on thermal comfort conditions that people can experience cold stress under dense shadows especially in spring and autumn months and heat stress under weak shadows in summer months in recreational areas. It was suggested that, in order to prevent people in recreational areas from heat and cold stress, great care must be taken in the plantation of recreational areas and deciduous tree species, rather than coniferous, which can foliate late, should be used.     

Fish assemblage structure of Koycegiz Lagoon–Estuary, Turkey: Spatial and temporal distribution patterns in relation to environmental variation

Spatial and temporal variation in fish assemblage structure of Koycegiz Lagoon–Estuarine System (KLES), located on the northwestern Turkish coast of Mediterranean, was investigated along an estuarine gradient where salinity ranged from 5 in upper reaches to 40 in lower reaches during October 1993–September 1994. Throughout the study, 42 species, consisting of marine (25), marine–estuarine-dependent (12), freshwater (3), catadromous (1), and estuarine resident (1) forms, were collected in trammel nets. Although species richness of marine species was greater than that of other groups, numerical contribution by marine species to the total catch was only 16%. Tilapia spp., the most abundant species mostly during summer and early spring at upper reaches, contributed 17% of the total samples. Among the seven species of Mugilidae, which contributed 42% of the total catch, Mugil cephalus, Liza aurata, and Liza salines contributed 10, 13, and 10% of the total catch, respectively. Consistent with findings from other studies, species richness and abundance were highest during late spring and summer and the lowest during winter and early spring. Samples from sites at or near the sea had more marine species. Samples from upper reaches had more freshwater and marine–estuarine-dependent species. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) indicated that salinity and turbidity were the most important environmental parameters affecting fishes. Sites near the sea were associated with high salinity and low turbidity, and sites in upper reaches had low salinity and high turbidity. Thus, the pattern observed in fish assemblage structure appears to be strongly influenced by species' responses to dominant salinity and turbidity gradients.     

The Erzincan (Turkey) Earthquake (Ms 6.8) of March 13, 1992 and its Aftershock Sequence

—The Erzincan strike-slip earthquake of March 13, 1992 ruptured a section of the North Anatolian fault (NAF) at the northern margin of the Erzincan basin. The focal depth of about 10 km was less than given by ISC and NEIC. Erzincan and the surrounding villages were considerably damaged. In the Erzincan basin and in the neighbouring mountains a seismic network of ten stations was installed. It was operating continuously from March 21 through June 16, 1992. More than 3,000 aftershocks were recorded of which 505 could be located. The spectral parameters of 394 and the fault-plane solutions of 53 aftershocks were determined. For the given region the frequency dependent coda Q was derived as Q _c = 122 f ^0.68. The aftershock area increased with time, reflecting the process of stress redistribution. Some events clustered in the immediate vicinity of the town of Erzincan close to the epicentre of the main event and seem to trace the NAF. Their source mechanism is similar to that of the main event (strike slip). About 150 aftershocks clustered in the southeastern part of the Erzincan basin where a concentration of the events in a small volume of 5 × 5 × 3 km³ was observed. The majority of fault-plane solutions available for these aftershocks showed a normal faulting mechanism with an east-west directed extension. Most of the aftershocks southeast of the basin clustered between two lineaments that were mapped by satellite images. The P-wave velocity below the Erzincan basin, derived from travel-time residual analysis, is lower compared to areas NE and SW of the basin. Three-dimen sional stress modelling of the Erzincan region qualitatively explains the occurrence of the aftershocks southeast of the basin. The calculated displacement distribution which exhibits the north-westward motion of the basin and tension at its southeastern margin, caused by the Erzincan earthquake, is in agreement with derived fault-plane solutions.