The study of groundwaters was carried out in two different forest ecosystems of Słowiński National
Park: Vaccinio uliginosi-Betuletum pubescentis and Empetro nigri-Pinetum in the period of 2002-2005. Differences were found in the position of the groundwater table and in the concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus
compounds in the investigated forest associations. In the Vaccinio uliginosi-Betuletum pubescentis association
the groundwater table was found on average at a depth of -73.3 cm, while in Empetro nigri-Pinetum at -90.2
cm. No statistically significant effect of precipitation on the position of the groundwater table was found in
this study. Statistical calculations (U Mann-Whitney test) for groundwaters in the analyzed forest associations
showed statistically significant differences in the dynamics of concentrations of total nitrogen (T-N), organic
nitrogen (Norg.), nitrate nitrogen (N-NO3
), total phosphorus (T-P), organic phosphorus (Porg.) and the level of
groundwaters.
This study shows the results of flotation concentration of mica minerals from kaolinised granite taken from the “Bašića bare” deposit – Kobaš, Srbac, The Republic of Srpska (B&H). Mineralogical composition of kaolinised granite is as follows: kaolinite, feldspar, quartz, and mica. After separating >0.630 mm, and <0.043 mm size class where kaolinite is concentrated, the rest is –0.630+0.043 mm class containing quartz, feldspar and mica. The mica concentrate was obtained by the flotation concentration, while feldspar and quartz were in the flotation underflow. According to the mineralogical analysis, the most abundant minerals are mica and chlorite/clays, while quartz and feldspar occur much less, and accessory minerals are represented in trace. The semi-quantitative mineralogical analysis obtained by the X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) method of the mica concentrate amount to: mica ≈55%, chlorite/clays ≈35%, quartz ≈5%, feldspars (plagioclase and K-feldspars combined) ≈5%.
The paper deals with the problem of the determination of the effects of temperature on the efficiency of the nitrification process of industrial wastewater, as well as its toxicity to the test organisms. The study on nitrification efficiency was performed using wastewater from one of Polish chemical factories. The chemical factory produces nitrogen fertilizers and various chemicals. The investigated wastewater was taken from the influent to the industrial mechanical-biological wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). The WWTP guaranteed high removal efficiency of organic compounds defined as chemical oxygen demand (COD) but periodical failure of nitrification performance was noted in last years of the WWTP operation. The research aim was to establish the cause of recurring failures of nitrification process in the above mentioned WWTP. The tested wastewater was not acutely toxic to activated sludge microorganisms. However, the wastewater was genotoxic to activated sludge microorganisms and the genotoxicity was greater in winter than in spring time. Analysis of almost 3 years’ period of the WWTP operation data and laboratory batch tests showed that activated sludge from the WWTP under study is very sensitive to temperature changes and the nitrification efficiency collapses rapidly under 16°C. Additionally, it was calculated that in order to provide the stable nitrification, in winter period the sludge age (SRT) in the WWTP should be higher than 35 days.
The region’s development potential is a set of endogenous features that determine the growth of the local economy. It supports the development of knowledge, innovation and eff ective competition on global markets. The publication argues that saturation with potential may not be enough to cause economic growth. The distribution of potential is also important: concentration is its catalyst. The study proposes a method for measuring the concentration of potential. It has also been shown that the size of the regional economy depends on the distribution of potential in the region.
During the cruise of the research ship r/v Oceania owned by the Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Sopot a research on mineral suspension concentration and dispersion distributions was conducted. The research area included the western part of the Baltic Sea, the Danish Straits, the Norwegian Sea, the waters around Spitsbergen and the North Atlantic Ocean. Samples of water were collected from the surface layer. They were subjected to microscopic analysis. Measurements were done with a projection microscope (magnification lOOOx) and using the Burker's table. After counting the particles dispersion distribution was determined. The largest concentration of mineral suspension was noted offshore in the Norwegian Sea and around Spitsbergen and the smallest in the central Atlantic Ocean.
The intensive agricultural use of the land affects both quantity and quality of river water in the catchment area. Such impact is visible also in the Szreniawa River catchment in the Małopolskie Voivodeship. The combination of intensive plowing and soil susceptibility to water erosion are the main causes of soil and nutrients depletion during the heavy rainfall. The aim of the study is to determine changes in the water quality in the Szreniawa River catchment compared to the agri-culture use and precipitation level.
The quality of surface water has been analysed in the river catchment area in three sampling points. The concentration of the total suspended soils in the samples collected after heavy rainfall in August 2017 reached a value of 837 mg·dm–3. The average concentrations of N-NO3 in the years of 2016–2019 ranged from 0.16 to 13.46 mg·dm–3, with the highest val-ues in the summer (up to 13.46 mg·dm–3). The concentration of N-NH4 and P-PO4 in the Szreniawa water was affected by precipitation. The highest value of average concentration of N-NH4 3.00 mg·dm–3 was recorded in the autumn of 2019 in the middle section of the river. The highest value of P-PO4 0.90 mg·dm–3 was recorded in the autumn of 2019 mostly due to water erosion of the loess areas. Erosion has been caused by the short-term heavy rainfall. As a result, suspended solids, soluble and insoluble phosphorus compounds leaked to the river.
The aim of the paper is to measure and forecast concentration of regional development potential on a regional basis. The study covered 14 GUS features, which measure the development potential. The forecast, nominal values and processes’ dynamics were calculated for data from 2010 to 2020, using author made method. The study reveals that key factors determining the diversification of the distribution of the potential include the relation of large agglomerations to their regional surroundings. Therefore, we are dealing with growth poles with different impact levels. Since 2010, the process of concentrating potential in Poland has taken different directions. In poorly developed regions, we observe constant distribution values. Most regions, especially those with medium and high levels of economic development, are characterized by a dynamic increase in the level of concentration 5% to 6% annually. This means that the growth poles «move away» from their surroundings and strengthen their position. Simultaneously, they slightly reduce the distance to the strongest developed region in Poland (Mazowsze). By 2020, these trends will remain unchanged, however regions with a moderately low level of development will observe the fastest growth.
Due to the occurrence of zinc and lead ore deposits in dolomite rocks, the sphalerite concentrates obtained from these ores contain an admixture of dolomite. In practice, a substantial amount of magnesium included in zinc ores passes to the last production stage, i.e. zinc electrolysis. The magnesium present in electrolyte impairs electrical conductance and appears in the technical and economical indexes. This paper deals the attempts to remove magnesium removal from initial sphalerite concentrates by means of chemical flotation using spent electrolyte derived from zinc electrolysis. The authors attempt to substantiate the existing relationships, as well as to derermine the optimum conditions for the procedure suggested. The leaching efficiency of magnesium amounted to about 80%, and is dependent upon the stage of the leaching. Losses of zinc were below 2%, and the magnesium concentration in solution amounted to about 20%. These solution can produce magnesium and zinc, which will be presented in the following paper.
Steel and cast-iron products, due to their low price and beneficial properties, are the most widely used among metals; their consumption has become an indicator of the economic development of countries. The characteristics of iron raw materials, in relation to current metallurgical requirements, are presented in the present this article. The globalization of the trade and development of steelmaking technologies have caused significant changes in the quality of raw materials in the last half-century forcing improvements in processing technologies. In many countries, standard concentrates (at least 60% Fe) are almost twice as rich as those processed in the mid-20th century. Methods of quality assessment have been improved and quality standards tightened.
The quality requirements for the most important raw materials ‒ iron ores and concentrates, steel scrap, major alloy metals, coking coal, and coke, as well as gas and other energy media ‒ are reviewed in the present paper. Particular attention is paid to the quality testing methodology. The quality of many raw materials is evaluated multi-parametrically: both chemical and physical characteristics are important. Lower-quality parameters in raw materials equate to significantly lower prices obtained by suppliers in the market.
The markets for these raw materials are diversified and governed by separate sets of newly introduced rules. Price benchmarks (e.g. for standard Australian metallurgical coal) or indices (for iron concentrates) apply. Some raw materials are quoted within the framework of the commodity market system (certain alloying components and steel scrap). The abandonment of the long-established system of multi-annual contracts has led to wide fluctuations in prices, which have reached a scale similar to that of other metals.
All the restructuring programs that have been implemented in Polish bituminous coal mining as a primary way to reduce mining costs relied on the increased concentration of mining operations. Those efforts especially involved a significant simplification of existing or newly developed structures for accessing or cutting the deposits intended for extraction; implementation of advanced mining technologies, and upgrading of machines used in mine faces. However, in order for these to deliver the expected results, it is important to organize mining operations in such a way so that those advanced, and usually very expensive, mining-related fixed assets – machinery and equipment – are used sensibly. In order to define a reasonable production capacity of each longwall face, it is necessary to apply various criteria related to the mining and technical aspects, occupational safety, and organizational and economic aspects. Only then will it be possible to evaluate the expected effects in the field of concentration of mining in a mining company and in the mines which form part of such enterprises. Decisions in this respect should always be made at the planning stage, based on analysis results. The aim of this article is to explore the factors involved in concentration-related decision-making in mining companies, including the underlying mining/technical, organizational, and economic/ /financial aspects. A mining company is understood as a group of related mines, the primary business operations of which include bituminous coal mining, processing, and trading.
Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission data is widely used in various fields of science. GRACE explored changes of the gravity field regularly from April 2002 to June 2017. In the following research, we examine variance of signal contained in two different formats of GRACE data: standard spherical harmonics and mass concentration blocks (so-called “mascons”) solutions, both provided in the most recent releases. For spherical harmonics-based solution, we use monthly gravity field solutions provided up to degree and order (d/o) 96 by three different computing centers, i.e. the NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) and the Center for Space Research (CSR). For the mass concentration blocks, we use values of total water storage provided by the CSR, JPL and the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) computing centers, which we convert to spherical harmonic coefficients up to d/o 96. We show that using the anisotropic DDK3 filter to smooth the north-south stripes present in total wate storage obtained from standard spherical harmonics solution leaves more information than common isotropic Gaussian filter. In the case of mascons, GSFC solution contains much more information than the CSR and JPL releases, relevant for corresponding d/o. Differences in variance of signal arise from different background models as well as various shape and size of mascons used during processing of GRACE observations.