ObjectivesThis study sought to increase government, civil society and media attention to the tobacco–poverty connection in Bangladesh, particularly as it relates to bidi-dependent livelihoods.Data sourcesThis study consisted of a literature review that examined the socioeconomic impacts of tobacco farming, the working conditions of tobacco workers and the impact of tobacco on consumers, and a primary research study among bidi workers and users. The research included in-depth and semistructured interviews and focus group discussions among bidi workers and a closed-ended quantitative survey among bidi users.Data synthesisMost bidi worker families earn about $6.40 per 7-day work week, leaving them below the poverty line. The majority of bidi workers are women and children, classified as unpaid assistants, who toil long hours in toxic environments. Bidi users are primarily low-income earners who spend up to 10% of their daily income on bidis; the average proportion of income spent on bidis decreased as income increased. If bidi expenditures were reduced and spent instead on food or local transportation, many higher value jobs could be created. This could also mean better health and nutrition for those currently engaged in bidi work.ConclusionsThe results of this study illustrate the linkages between tobacco and poverty. Tobacco control is not simply about health and the environment, but also about the living conditions of the poorest of the poor. If we are to improve the lives of the poor, we must address the root causes of poverty, which include the production and use of tobacco.

No abstract

The design elements considered during the construction of a thermochemical reactor determine its thermal performance. This current study investigated the effect of design elements, such as boundary layer thickness, insulating materials for the outlet tube design and fluid inlet locations of the frustum, on the thermal performance of a proposed syngas production reactor with incident radiation heat transfer through quartz glass. The P1 radiation approximation model and fluid flow in the shallow path were integrated into a proposed radiation model. The result indicated that inlet mass flow rates from 5 × 10−4 to 14 × 10−4 kg/s increased the temperature in the cavity and the outlet. The fluid inlet located at the top of the quartz glass edges was found to have better thermal performance and maximum average outlet temperature. Insulation for fluid inlets tube above the quartz glass edges of the frustum was very important for the prevention of radiation loss through quartz glass and sedimentation of fluid particles around the quartz glass edge, and the facilitation of fast heat transfer towards the internal part of the reactor. The outlet that was a tube designed using an aluminum oxide-type insulator with a 50 mm boundary layer thickness was found to increase the average outlet temperature of the reactor. This study revealed that fluid entry and exit locations on the frustum and proper fluid outlet design were critical for the thermal performance analysis of the solar thermochemical reactor for heat transfer with quartz glass. Findings from this study will be of relevance to chemical and power engineering sectors, as well as academia.

In this study, angular resolved elastic light scattering signals are employed to retrieve the spheroidal and cylindrical particle size distribution (PSD) using the T-matrix method. The interesting features of this simulation are that, to retrieve the size distribution of the particles, simulation does not need any initial information about the number density of the particles per unit volume. Moreover, both cylindrical and spheroidal PSD can be retrieved by using this same simulation. A probability density function -based ant colony optimization (PDF-ACO) algorithm is used to solve the inverse problem to retrieve the target parameters. For the direct problem, intensity of the scattering particles is measured at seven different angular positions and the ratio of the sum of this scattering intensity to the scattering intensity at a reference angle is used to fit the objective function of the inverse problem. In regards to retrieving parameters, the robustness of the PDF-ACO algorithm shows good agreement with the true parameters. Even with 5% measurement noise, the retrieval accuracy can be achieved within the tolerable error limit of less than 10%.

Solar energy is a sustainable and low-cost renewable energy of enormous importance, especially at this time where non-renewable energy sources are unsustainable and costly. However, improving the thermal performance of a solar energy storage reactor poses some challenges. In this study, the location of fluid inlets and outlets in the given reactor design and its impact on the thermal performance were investigated. A P1 approximation radiation model coupled with shallow channel approximation of fluid flow was developed. By taking the frustum base as a reference, four fluid inlets along the edges of the frustum and two outlet locations at the base and side of the reactor were computed. Inlets located 4.81 cm from the base of the frustum and an outlet located at the side of the reactor were found to have a better thermal performance with a short conveyer energy flow system. It was also deduced that radiation applied at the edges of the frustum had better thermal performance than that applied at a quartz edge. Furthermore, increasing the laminar inflow rate from 0.36 (L/h) to 3.6 (L/h) increased the temperature distribution in the reactor. This study provides noteworthy insights of relevance to the power engineering industry and academia.