Browsing by Subject "Salts"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Investigating Wastewater Reuse at MnDOT Truck Stations
    (Minnesota Department of Transportation., 2019-05) Heger, Sara; Doro, Jessica; Rutter, Melissa C; Gustafson, Dave; Larson, Sondra
    The University of Minnesota (UMN) and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) conducted a study to determine whether implementing a wastewater reuse program would be a feasible option for MnDOT-owned truck washing stations. MnDOT has 137 truck stations in the state, where trucks are frequently washed to remove road salt build-up. MnDOT recognized an opportunity to potentially reuse the wastewater for appropriate greywater uses and recapture the salt for road use. Sampling was done to assess the wastewater contaminants in truck wash water at 11 truck-washing stations in Minnesota. Then technologies suited to removing organics and total suspended solids (TSS) but not chlorides were reviewed. The recommendation is that either a recirculating sand filter (RSF) or a membrane bioreactor (MBR) would be feasible technologies to use for this purpose. Using the MnDOT truck station in Arden Hills, Minnesota, an economic evaluation was done. Both systems could be used to effectively treat wastewater and produce brine for reuse, but the most economical solution for MnDOT would be to invest in a MBR. Compared with a RSF, an MBR is one-third less expensive over time, primarily due to low material and installation cost as well as a lower annual maintenance costs.
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    Regional Optimization of Roadside Turfgrass Seed Mixtures
    (Minnesota Department of Transportation, 2019-12) Watkins, Eric; Sessoms, Florence; Hollman, Andrew; Laskowski, Michael; Moncada, Kristine
    Current MnDOT specifications for roadside turfgrasses suggest statewide planting of mixtures that are grouped into five broad categories such as low maintenance turf and high maintenance turf. The objective of this research was to identify turfgrasses that possess traits necessary to survive in the harsh roadside environments found throughout Minnesota. We investigated the impacts of possibly the three most limiting environmental conditions (heat, salt and ice cover) on multiple cultivars from up to fifteen individual turfgrass species. Salt stress screening revealed several species with good levels of adaptation including alkaligrass and tall fescue. In the heat stress trial, we found cultivars and selections of Canada bluegrass, tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, strong creeping red fescue and slender creeping red fescue were among the top performers. Finally, in our ice cover screening, tall fescue and Chewings fescue did well; however, these results did not correlate well with our typical field observations. For each of these stresses, we identified top-performing cultivars that will be evaluated in field studies with the goal of identifying optimized mixtures for stakeholders in Minnesota.
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    Supporting Data for Salt-Dependent Structure in Methylcellulose Fibrillar Gels
    (2022-06-09) Liberman, Lucy; Schmidt, Peter W; Coughlin, McKenzie L; Matatyaho Ya'akobi, Asia; Davidovich, Irina; Edmund, Jerrick; Ertem, Sedef P; Morozova, Svetlana; Talmon, Yeshayahu; Bates, Frank S; Lodge, Timothy P; lodge@umn.edu; Lodge, Timothy P; Materials Research Science & Engineering Center (MRSEC)
    Data files used to generate all figures in the manuscript "Salt-Dependent Structure in Methylcellulose Fibrillar Gels" and its supplementary information.