RESUMO O presente artigo avaliou a interferência da quantidade de defasagens utilizadas no resultado do valor-p associado à estatística utilizada no teste de Dickey-Fuller aumentado (ADF), bem como identificou algumas propriedades das séries estudadas que interferem em seu resultado. Foram realizados três experimentos com séries de diferentes amplitudes, considerando estrutura do modelo em relação à presença ou não de constante e/ou tendência, e quantidade de defasagens como fatores. Modelos autorregressivos do tipo AR(1) foram considerados para a geração de dados pelo método de Monte Carlo, que poderiam apresentar diferentes intensidades para o coeficiente associado à primeira defasagem. Depois da aplicação do teste ADF, foram determinadas as proporções de rejeição da hipótese nula em cada condição experimental, sendo utilizada uma análise de variância com a estatística qui-quadrado para verificar a influência da quantidade de defasagens no valor-p. Os resultados mostram que se houver raiz unitária, o teste apresenta bons resultados, independentemente da quantidade de defasagens considerada. Entretanto, o mesmo não foi observado nos casos em que a série temporal não apresenta raiz unitária.

ABSTRACT In this paper we evaluate how much influence the number of selected lags has in the p-value obtained from the statistic considered in an augmented Dickey-Fuller test (ADF). Three experiments with different series sizes were carried out considering the presence (or not) of a constant and/or trend, and also different number of lags. Autoregressive models (AR1) are used in the data generating process through the Monte Carlo method, considering different values for the coefficient associated with the first lag. After the application of the ADF test, we calculate the proportion of times when the null hypothesis was rejected in each scenario, and perform an analysis of variance (considering chi-square statistic) to verify the influence of the number of selected lags in the p-value. Results show that if a unit root is verified, then the test presents a good performance, regardless of the number of lags. However, the same was not observed in cases where the time series does not present a unit root.

Abstract Gold mining and ore processing are activities of great economic importance. However, they are related to generation of extremely polluted effluents containing high concentrations of heavy metals and low pH. This study aims to evaluate the optimal conditions for gold mining effluent treatment by crossflow membrane filtration regarding the following variables: nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) membrane types, feed pH and permeate recovery rate. It was observed that retention efficiencies of NF90 were similar to those of RO membranes though permeate fluxes obtained were 7-fold higher. The optimum pH value was found to be 5.0, which resulted in higher permeate flux and lower fouling formation. At a recovery rate above 40% there was a significant decrease in permeate quality, so this was chosen as the maximum recovery rate for the proposed system. We conclude that NF is a suitable treatment for gold mining effluent at an estimated cost of US$ 0.83/m3.

Resumo O aproveitamento de resíduos sólidos poluentes produzidos em distintas atividades industriais (resíduo de casca de ovo galináceo e resíduo de escória de soldagem) como fonte de matérias-primas alternativas para produção de tijolos solo-cimento para construção civil foi investigado. Tijolos solo-cimento contendo até 30% em massa de resíduo sólido industrial foram preparados por prensagem uniaxial e curados durante 28 dias. Ênfase especial é dada à influência da adição dos resíduos sólidos sobre as propriedades técnicas (retração volumétrica, absorção de água, densidade aparente, durabilidade e resistência à compressão simples) e microestrutura dos tijolos solo-cimento. A evolução microestrutural foi avaliada via microscopia confocal. Os resultados experimentais mostraram que os resíduos sólidos industriais se comportam como um material de carga, bem como influenciam ambas as propriedades técnicas e microestrutura dos tijolos solo-cimento. Foi estabelecido que até 15% em massa de resíduo de escória de fluxo de soldagem e até 30% em massa de resíduo de casca de ovo galináceo poderiam ser adicionados em tijolos solo-cimento para uso como material de construção.

Abstract The reuse of pollutant solid wastes produced in distinct industrial activities (avian eggshell waste and welding flux slag waste) as a source of alternative raw material for producing soil-cement bricks for civil construction was investigated. Soil-cement bricks containing up to 30 wt% of industrial solid waste were uniaxially pressed and cured for 28 days. Special emphasis is given on the influence of solid waste addition on the technical properties (as such volumetric shrinkage, water absorption, bulk density, durability, and compressive strength), microstructure and mineral phases of soil-cement bricks. Microstructural evolution was evaluated via confocal microscopy. The experimental results showed that the solid wastes behave as charge material and influenced both technical properties and microstructure of the soil-cement bricks. It was found that up to 15 wt% of welding flux slag waste and up to 30 wt% of avian eggshell waste could be added into the soil-cement bricks for use as building material.

Abstract This study evaluated the technical and economic feasibility of membrane bioreactors (MBR) followed by nanofiltration (NF) for dairy wastewater treatment in order to reuse the treated effluent. It was observed that the MBR efficiently removed the organic matter and color of the feed effluent; however, due to the high concentration of dissolved solids in the permeate, it was necessary to use nanofiltration as a polishing step. The final treated effluent could be reused in the industry for cooling, steam generation and cleaning of external areas. A preliminary economic analysis showed the feasibility of the proposed system. The internal rate of return was greater than or equal to 32% when membrane lifespan was at least 2 years and the depreciation time was 15 years. The total cost of the proposed treatment system ranged from R$ 9.99/m3 to R$ 6.82/m3, depending on membrane lifespan.

Among the food industries, the dairy industry is considered to be the most polluting one because of the large volume of wastewater generated and its high organic load. In this study, an aerobic membrane bioreactor (MBR) was used for the treatment of wastewater from a large dairy industry and two hydraulic retention times (HRT), 6 and 8 hours, were evaluated. For both HRTs removal efficiencies of organic matter of 99% were obtained. Despite high permeate flux (27.5 L/h.m²), the system operated fairly stablely. The molecular weight distribution of feed, permeate and mixed liquor showed that only the low molecular weight fraction is efficiently degraded by biomass and that the membrane has an essential role in producing a permeate of excellent quality.

O índice de condição (IC) de ostras é um índice ecofisiológico utilizado para avaliar a qualidade e a produtividade em cultivos de bivalves. No presente estudo, o IC de ostras de uma baía contaminada por metais pesados foi analisado em relação ao conteúdo de Zn e Cd nos tecidos moles, à liberação de gametas após o período reprodutivo e à infestação por poliquetas. O IC foi calculado com uma nova técnica que utiliza moldes da cavidade interna da concha para medir seu volume. Os maiores valores de IC (acima de 9 na estação seca) podem estar relacionados à disponibilidade de material particulado em suspensão rico em matéria orgânica na baía, enquanto a rápida redução do IC observada de uma temporada a outra em algumas estações é um provável efeito da liberação de gametas. A infestação por poliquetas foi considerada baixa (18,7%) e não apresenta efeitos claros no IC. Apenas Cd nos tecidos de ostras coletadas durante a estação das chuvas apresentou correlação baixa, porém significativa (r = -0,36; p < 0,05), com o IC. Todas as outras correlações entre metais e IC foram estatisticamente não significativas. As variações do IC observadas em escala espacial e temporal parecem ser causadas mais pela disponibilidade de material particulado rico em material orgânico e pela liberação de gametas do que pela infestação por poliquetas e acúmulo de metais nos tecidos.

The condition index (CI) of oysters represents an ecophysiological approach to estimate meat quality and yield in cultured bivalve mollusks. In the present study, the CI of oysters from a heavy-metal polluted bay was analyzed with respect to Zn and Cd contamination in soft tissues, spawning, and polychaete infestation. The CI was calculated through a new technique based on molds made to measure the volume of oyster-shell internal cavities. The higher CI values (over 9 in the dry season) were probably related availability of suspended particles rich in organic matter in the bay, while the rapid reduction in the CI from one season to the next at some stations suggests the effect of spawning. Polychaete infestation was considered low (18.7%) and produced no clear CI effects. The Cd in the oyster tissue collected during the rainy season was weak, although still significantly correlated with the CI (r = -0.36; p < 0.05). All other comparisons of CI and metal concentrations demonstrated a non-significant correlation. The CI variations observed on the temporal and spatial scale were likely to have been caused by availability of organic matter and spawning, rather than spionid infestation or metal body burdens.