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Functional testing is a quality assurance process and a type of black-box testing that bases its test cases on the specifications of the software component under test. Functions are tested by feeding them input and examining the output, and internal program structure is rarely considered
FUNCTIONAL TESTING is a type of software testing whereby the system is tested against the functional requirements/specifications.
Functions (or features) are tested by feeding them input and examining the output. Functional testing ensures that the requirements are properly satisfied by the application. This type of testing is not concerned with how processing occurs, but rather, with the results of processing. It simulates actual system usage but does not make any system structure assumptions.
During functional testing, Black Box Testing technique is used in which the internal logic of the system being tested is not known to the tester.
Functional testing is normally performed during the levels of System Testing and Acceptance Testing.
Typically, functional testing involves the following steps:
- Identify functions that the software is expected to perform.
- Create input data based on the function's specifications.
- Determine the output based on the function's specifications.
- Execute the test case.
- Compare the actual and expected outputs.
What is Functional Testing: A Complete Guide with Types and Examples
Functional Testing Tutorial with Functional Testing Types and Examples:
Definition: As the name explains, a functional test is a kind of black box testing that is performed to confirm that the functionality of an application or system is behaving as expected.
Functional testing is done to verify all the functionality of a product.
There must be something that defines what is an acceptable behavior and what is not.
This is specified in a functional or requirement specification. It is a document that describes what a user is permitted to do so that he can determine the conformance of the application or system to it. Additionally, sometimes this could also entail actual business side scenarios to be validated.
Therefore, functionality testing can be carried out via two popular techniques:
- Testing based on Requirements: Contains all the functional specifications which form a basis for all the tests to be conducted.
- Testing based on Business scenarios: Contains the information about how the system will be perceived from a business process perspective.
Testing and Quality Assurance are a huge part of the SDLC process.
As a tester, we need to be well aware of all types of testing even if we're not directly involved with them on a daily basis.
As testing is an ocean, the scope of it is so vast, we have dedicated testers who perform different kinds of testing. Most probably all of us must be familiar with most of the concepts, but it wouldn't hurt to organize it all here.
So let's get back to some basics.
Testing Classes
Widely classifying, there are two kinds or classes of testing.
#1) Black Box Testing:
Black Box testing Technique is exactly what it sounds like! Picture a black colored box as shown below.
Let's ask some basic questions to ourselves to derive a technical definition.
- Can you see the box's external characteristics?
- Can you see what lies within the box?
If you now try to answer these fundamental questions, it'll give you a perfect idea of what this entails. The answer to the above question is yes and no respectively. Therefore, black box testing can be defined as the type of testing where you view the system under test as a black box and observe how it reacts to various situations.
You don't need to get into the system's internal factors like its implementation, code or internal characteristics. The tester will derive the different inputs to this system based on the requirements, record the outputs for each of them and makes sure that they are consistent with the expectations.
Examples of Black box testing are: Functional testing (How it is affected by Cloud Automation), System testing, Acceptance testing, Regression testing, Beta testing and sometimes Integration testing also comes under this category.
#2) White Box Testing:
White box testing technique, on the other hand, is almost the opposite of the black box testing. Let us assume that the same black box is a transparent box as shown below.
Again let's ask some questions to derive its meaning:
- Can you see the box's internal characteristics?
- Should you be testing the code?
The answer to both these questions is an affirmative "yes". Commonly known synonyms for white box testing are glass box testing, transparent box testing, or structural testing.
Therefore white box testing is a mechanism where a tester has access to the internal code of the system and executes tests to check the robustness of the code. He doesn't have to get into the actual functionality of the application.
Examples of white box testing include Unit testing, API testing, Integration and Regression testing also extends into this category based on scope. Sometimes even functional tests require the usage of white box testing.
Having formed a basis and background, now the scope of this article will be to discuss the functionality testing aspect in detail.
Functional Testing Types
It has many categories and these can be used based on the scenario.
The most prominent types are discussed below in brief:
- Unit Testing: Unit testing is usually performed by the developer who writes different code units that could be related or unrelated to achieve a particular functionality.
Therefore, this usually entails writing unit tests which would call the methods in each unit and validate that when the needed parameters are passed, its return value is as expected. Code coverage is an important part of unit testing where test cases need to exist to cover the below three:
i) Line coverage
ii) Code path coverage
iii) Method coverage
ii) Code path coverage
iii) Method coverage
- Sanity Testing: Testing that is done to ensure that all the major and vital functionalities of the application/system are working correctly. This is generally done after a smoke test.
- Smoke testing: Testing that is done after each build is released to test in order to ensure build stability. It's also called build verification testing.
- Regression tests: Testing performed to ensure that adding a new code, enhancements, fixing of bugs is not breaking the existing functionality or cause instability and still works according to the specifications. Regression tests need not be as extensive as the actual functional tests but should ensure just the amount of coverage to certify that the functionality is stable.
- Integration tests: When the system relies on multiple functional modules that might individually work perfectly, but have to work coherently when clubbed together to achieve an end to end scenario, validation of such scenarios is called Integration testing.
- Beta/Usability testing: Product is exposed to the actual customer in a production like an environment and they test the product. The user's comfort is derived from this and the feedback is taken. This is similar to User Acceptance testing.
I'm again going to represent this in an easy flow-chart:
Functional System Testing:
System testing is a testing that is performed on a complete system to verify that if it works as expected once all the modules or components are integrated. End to end testing is performed to verify the functionality of the product. This testing is performed only when system integration testing is complete including both the functional & non-functional requirements.
Difference Between Unit, Functional and Integration Testing
|Tests a program by separating it into code modules or units and individually testing those modules.
|Tests a user scenario which involves two or more individual modules to work correctly
|Functional tests determine if the application is behaving according to specifications
|Not very complex in nature
|More complex than unit tests.
|More complex than unit tests and sometimes even more complex than integration tests.
|It is a white box testing technique
|It is a white box and black box testing technique
|It is a black box testing technique
|Unit testing helps in screening/uncovering bugs that might occur frequently
|Integration testing will help uncovering the error that occurs when individual modules are assembled to work together.
|Functional testing helps to uncover bugs that do not let the application serve its desired purpose.
|Unit tests should be more in number
|Integration tests should be added if it's not possible to add a unit test as they are complex and take more time to execute
|Functional tests should be less in number when compared to unit tests as they might take more time to execute.
Functional Test Process
The process has three main steps:
Approach, Techniques, and Examples
Functional or behavioral testing generates an output based on the given inputs and determines if the System is functioning correctly as per the specifications.
So the pictorial representation will look as shown below:
Entry/Exit criteria
Entry criteria:
- Requirement Specification document is defined and approved.
- Test Cases have been prepared.
- Test data has been created.
- The environment for testing is ready, all the tools that are required are available and ready.
- Complete or partial Application is developed and unit tested and is ready for testing.
Exit Criteria:
- Execution of all the functional test cases has been completed.
- No critical or P1, P2 bugs are open.
- Reported bugs have been acknowledged.
Steps Involved
The various steps involved in this testing are stated below:
- The very first step involved in Functional testing is to determine the functionality of the product that needs to be tested which includes testing the main functionalities, error condition and messages, usability testing i.e. whether the product is user-friendly or not etc.
- Next step is to create the input data for the functionality to be tested as per the requirement specification.
- Then from the requirement specification, the output is determined for the functionality under test.
- Prepared test cases are executed.
- Actual output i.e. the output after executing the test case and expected output (determined from requirement specification) are compared to find whether the functionality is working as expected or not.
Different kind of scenarios can be thought of and authored in the form of "test cases". As QA folks, we all know how the skeleton of a test case looks.
It has mostly four parts to it:
- Test summary
- Pre-requisites
- Test Steps and
- Expected results.
Obviously, attempting to author each and every kind of test is not only impossible but also time-consuming and expensive.
Typically, we would want to uncover maximum bugs without any escapes with existing tests. Therefore, the QA needs to use optimization techniques and strategize how they would approach the testing.
Let's explain this with an Example.
Functional Testing Example Use Case:
Take an online HRMS portal where the employee logs in with his user account and password. On the login page, there are two text fields for the user, password, and two buttons: Login and Cancel. Successful login takes the user to the HRMS home page and cancel will cancel the login.
Specifications are as given below:
#1 ) The user id field takes a minimum of 6 characters, a maximum of 10 characters, numbers(0-9), letters(a-z, A-z), special characters (only underscore, period, hyphen allowed) and cannot be left blank. User id must begin with a character or number and not special characters.
#2) Password field takes a minimum of 6 characters, a maximum of 8 characters, numbers (0-9), letters (a-z, A-Z), special characters (all) and cannot be blank.
The basic approach to testing this scenario can be classified into two broad categories:
- Positive testing and
- Negative testing
Of course, each of these categories has their own subsection of tests that will be carried out.
Positive tests are happy path tests which are done to ensure that the product means – at least the basic requirements that are vital to customer usage.
Negative scenarios ensure that the product behaves properly even when subjected to unexpected data.
Suggested Read => What is Negative Testing and How to Write Negative Test Cases
Now let me try to structure the testing techniques using a flowchart below. We'll get into the details of each of those tests.
Testing Techniques
#1) End-user based/System Tests:
The system under test may have many components which when coupled together achieve the user scenario.
In the Example, a customer scenario would include HRMS application loading, entering the correct credentials, going to the home page, performing some actions and logging out of the system. This particular flow has to work without any errors for a basic business scenario.
Some samples are given below:
|Sl No
|Test case
|Expected results.
|Fully privileged user can make account changes
|1)User account must exist
2) User needs to have the required privileges
|1) User enters the userid and password
2) User sees edit permissions to modify account itself
3) User modifies account information and saves.
4) User logs out.
|1) User is logged into the home page
2) Edit screen is presented to the user.
3) Account information is saved
4) User is taken back to login page
|Another valid user without full privileges
|1)User account must exist
2) User needs to have the minimum privileges
|1) User enters the userid and password
2) User sees edit permissions to modify only certain fields.
3) User modifies only those fields and saves.
4) User logs out.
|1) User is logged into the home page
2) Edit screen is presented to the user only on certain fields. The account fields are grayed out.
3) Fields modified are saved
4) User is taken back to login page
This is a basic example of how test cases are authored for situations. The format above will apply to all the below tests as well. For the sake of strong conceptual grounding, I have put in only some simple tests above and below.
#2) Equivalence Tests:
In Equivalence partitioning, the test data are segregated into various partitions called equivalence data classes. Data in each partition must behave the same way therefore only one condition needs to be tested. Similarly, if one condition in a partition doesn't work, then none of the others will work.
For Example, in the above scenario the user id field can have a maximum of 10 characters, so entering data > 10 should behave the same way.
#3) Boundary Value Tests:
Boundary tests imply data limits to the application and validate how it behaves.
Therefore, if the inputs are supplied beyond the boundary values, it is considered to be negative testing. So a minimum of 6 characters for the user sets the boundary limit. Tests are written to have user id < 6 characters are boundary analysis tests.
#4) Decision-based Tests:
Decision-based tests are centered around the ideology of the possible outcomes of the system when a particular condition is met.
In the scenario given above, the following decision-based tests can be immediately derived:
- If the wrong credentials are entered, it should indicate that to the user and reload the login page.
- If the user enters the correct credentials, it should take the user to the next UI.
- If the user enters the correct credentials but wishes to cancel login, it should not take the user to the next UI and reload the login page.
#5) Alternate Flow Tests:
Alternate path tests are basically run to validate all the possible ways that exist, other than the main flow to accomplish a function.
#6) Ad-hoc Tests:
When most of the bugs are uncovered through the above techniques, ad-hoc tests are a great way to uncover any discrepancies not observed earlier. These are performed with the mindset of breaking the system and see if it responds gracefully.
Recommended Read => Ad-hoc Testing: How to Find Defects Without a Formal Testing Process
For Example, a sample test case would be:
- A user is logged in, but the admin deletes the user account while he is performing some operations. It would be interesting to see how the application handles this gracefully.
Functional vs Non-Functional Testing
Now, we had a detailed discussion about the functionality test. Let's also briefly discuss the non-functional testing concept.
Non-functional tests focus on the quality of the application/system as a whole. So it tries to deduce how well the system performs as per the customer requirements as in contrast to the function it performs.
Non-functional test types: Some more popular kinds of non-functional tests are:
- Performance: Stress, Load Testing: This testing is done to see if the application can withstand heavy stress and load when there are too many simultaneous users accessing the system at the same time.
- Security testing: Testing which is done to determine how robust the application is to malicious attacks or unwarranted users.
- Compatibility Testing: Testing is carried out to determine how well the application works in any particular environment.
- Install Testing: Testing carried out to determine that the application can be downloaded, installed from something called a "package" and setup without any issues.
- Recovery Testing: Testing done to figure out if an application is able to gracefully recover from disasters and catastrophic events such as hardware failures, system crashes, etc,
- Volume/Tenacity Testing: Tests which are done to determine the application's ability to handle a certain amount of data.
Below points specify the difference between these:
|Functional Testing
|Non functional testing
|Based on customer's requirement.
|Based on customer's expectation.
|Checks functionality of the application
|Checks the Performance i.e. responsiveness, throughput time etc of the application.
|Functional testing includes:
• Unit testing
• Integration testing
• System testing
• Sanity testing
• Smoke testing
• Interface testing
• Regression testing
• Beta/Acceptance testing
|Non functional testing includes:
• Performance Testing
• Load testing
• Stress testing
• Volume testing
• Security testing
• Compatibility testing
• Install testing
• Recovery testing
• Reliability testing
• Usability testing
• Compliance testing
• Localization testing
|Functional testing is basically what an application does.
|Non- functional testing is how the application works.
|Manual testing is easy to perform in functional testing.
|Non-functional testing is not easy for manual testing. Most of it cannot be performed.
|Example: If an email is sent to customer on clicking submit button, then in functional testing correct email is sent to customer has to be verified.
|Email should be sent in 15 minutes – has to be verified in non-functional testing.
Functional & Non-Functional Requirements
Functional Requirements define what the system is supposed to do and what it will provide to the end user. It describes the functionality or behavior of the system.
Non- functional requirements define how the system will work for the performance of the system. It considers the constraints, quality factors which may hamper the functionality's performance or their effectiveness. Non – functional requirement includes accessibility, efficiency, effectiveness, response time, throughput, reliability etc
Is User Acceptance Test Functional or Non-Functional?
User Acceptance test is performed by the customer to accept the product if it is as per their requirement and expectation.
While testing the product functionality of a product, it is verified if it is working as expected or not and this comes under functionality testing. Besides that, the performance of the application i.e. the speed, response time, throughput etc., which comes under non-functional testing can also be tested.
So, basically, UAT cannot be defined as functional or non-functional testing alone. As it's an acceptance test in which the customer can choose to test what he/she requires to give a Go live approval.
Non-Functional Test Types
The various types of Non-functional tests are explained below:
#1) Reliability Testing:
Reliability testing, as the name itself suggests, is to make sure if the system is reliable and bug-free.
This testing is done in a specific environment for a specific time period and makes sure that the application works as expected and is bug-free. The main objective of Reliability testing is to find the number of failures in the defined span of time and the root cause of that failure.
#2) Localization Testing:
Localization testing is performed to verify that if the application is as per the locale i.e. as required in the language and country. Localization focuses more on the content of the application and the user interface. This testing covers testing the usability of UI, linguistic errors, typographical errors etc.
#3) Usability Testing:
Usability testing checks whether the developed application is user-friendly or not. It verifies the display screens, messages, navigation etc. Usability testing checks the user interface to see if it meets all the user requirements.
#4) Compliance Testing:
Compliance testing verifies if the developed software has followed all the specified standards for the product or not.
Automated Functional Testing
Can this Testing be Automated?
Automation is done so that manual effort can be reduced, time can be saved, bug slippage can be avoided, and efficiency can be increased. But it is not possible to automate each and everything. This testing can be automated but the user needs to work out for test cases for the automation to be done.
It's important to find the right test cases to be automated along with the appropriate tool.
Automating functional testing can have drawbacks like if the number of test cases are much more and are regressed again and again ( which has to be done ) then the developer might face an issue in committing changes to the code.
Many times while performing defect escape analysis, the prominent and perennial cause of escapes seem to be a lack of test coverage in a particular function. Again, there are several causes for this to happen like lack of environments, lack of testers, too many functions being delivered, less time to cover all testing aspects and sometimes simply overlooking it.
While dedicated test teams might do detailed testing on each sprint or each test cycle, there will always be defects and there will always be defects that might get missed. This is one of the fundamental needs to have test automation in place, thereby having a marked improvement in efficiency of the overall test process and test cases coverage.
Although automated functional testing can never replace manual tests, having an ideal mix of the two will prove to be vital to have the desired quality in Software projects.
Automation Considerations:
#1) Select the correct Automation Tool: The number of tools available in the market, make the choice of the automation tool a real daunting task! However, you could make a list of requirements, based on which you can select what automation tool to use.
Some primary aspects to think of are:
- Select a tool that will be easy to use by all the QA members of the team, if they don't already have the needed skills.
- The tool can be used across different environments For Example: Can the scripts be created on one OS platform and run on another? Do you require CLI automation, UI automation, mobile application automation or all?
- The tool must have all the features you require. For Example: If some testers are not well-versed with a scripting language, the tool should have a record and playback feature and then support conversion of the recorded script to the desired scripting language. Likewise, if you need the tool to also support automated build tests, specific reporting, and logging, it must be able to do that as well.
- The tool must be able to support reusability of test cases in case of UI changes.
Automation Tools: There are quite a few tools which are available for functional automation. Selenium is probably a hot favorite, but there are some other open source tools as well like Sahi, Watir, Robotium, AutoIt etc.
There are several functional testing tools that are available in the market. But choosing the appropriate tool is very important for the organization. It might depend on the requirement, ease of using and moreover, cost plays a major role.
Given below are few functional tools:
- Selenium
- Junit
- Loadrunner
- SoapUI
- TestComplete
=> Check the below link for more details on the above tools and other functional tools.
#2) Pick the right test cases to automate: If you want to get the best out of automation, then it is vital to be smart about the kind of tests you pick to automate. If there are tests that require some setup and configurations on and off during test execution, those are best left non-automated.
Therefore, you can automate tests which:
- Need to be run repeatedly.
- Run with different kinds of data.
- Some P1, P2 test cases which take a lot of effort and time.
- Tests which are error-prone.
- Set of tests that need to be run in different environments, browsers, etc.
#3) Dedicated Automation Team: This is probably overlooked in most organizations and automation is imposed upon all the members of the QA team.
Each team member has varying experience levels, skill sets, interest levels, bandwidth to support automation. Some individuals are possibly better skilled at executing manual tests, while some others may have the knowledge of scripting and automation tools.
In situations like this, it's a good practice to take an analysis of all the members of the team and have some members dedicated to doing only automation. Automation activity requires time, effort, knowledge and a dedicated team which will help to achieve the required results instead of overloading all the members of the team with both manual and automation testing.
#4) Data Driven tests: Automated test cases that require multiple sets of data should be well written so that they can be reusable. The data could be written in sources such as text or properties file, XML files or read from a database.
Whatever the data source is, creating well-structured automation data makes the framework easier to maintain and makes the existing test scripts used to their full potential.
#5) UI changes must not break tests: The test cases you create using the selected tool must be able to deal with potential UI changes. For instance, earlier versions of selenium used a location to identify page elements. So if the UI changed, those elements were no longer found at those locations will lead to mass failure of tests.
Therefore, it's important to understand the shortcomings of the tool beforehand and author test cases such that there are only minimal changes required in case of UI changes.
#6) Frequent testing: Once you have a basic automation test bucket ready, plan to have more frequent execution of this bucket. This has a two-way advantage: one is that you can enhance the automation framework and make it more robust; second is that you will obviously catch more bugs in the process.
There are several advantages:
- This testing reproduces or is a replica of what the actual system is i.e.it is a replica of what the product is in the live environment. Testing is focused on the specifications as per the customer usage i.e. System specifications, Operating system, browsers etc.
- It does not work on any if and buts or any assumptions about the structure of the system.
- This testing ensures to deliver a high-quality product which meets the customer requirement and makes sure that the customer is satisfied with the end results.
- It ensures to deliver a bug-free product which has all the functionalities working as per the customer requirement.
- Risk-based testing is done to decrease the chances of any kind of risk in the product.
This testing is done to make sure that the product works as expected and the entire requirement is implemented and the product is exactly as per the customer requirement.
But it does not consider the other factors such as the performance of the product i.e. responsiveness, throughput time etc., which are important and very much required to be a part of testing before releasing the product.
- There are many chances of performing redundant testing.
- Logical errors can be missed out in the product.
- This testing is based on the requirement, if in case the requirement is not complete or is complicated or is not clear, performing this testing in such a scenario becomes difficult and can be time-consuming too.
So, basically functional testing alone is not sufficient to deliver a quality product. Non-functional testing also needs to be performed to deliver a high-quality product.
This tutorial has comprehensively discussed everything that you need to know about functional testing, right from the basics.
Functional testing is one of the important testing processes as it verifies the functionality of a product which is the most required and important aspect of any product or application.
About the Author: Sanjay Zalavadia – as the VP of Client Service for Zephyr, Sanjay brings over 15 years of leadership experience in IT and Technical Support Services.
I hope that some of the techniques that we've suggested come in handy for all readers. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.


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job. We like the fact that he explained every detail patiently and was
meticulous throughout our whole selling process. We were not worried at
all about the handling of potential buyers and all paper works. Definitely a
reliable agent that one could turn to. We are glad that we have entrusted
him to do the job.
Vivien & Family
(Seller and buyer - Blk 175/167 Bishan)
Richard is a sincere and trustworthy person. We are very grateful to him for
helping us to buy our dream home. May be God has sent him to help us. Should
I require any assistance next time, will put him as my 1st choice agent.
Thank you very much.
Mr Cao & Family (Buyer-Blk 516 Hougang)
Richard Ho has an eye for both serious buyers and sellers and so deals can be
easily achieved by all parties amicably because he is very forthright.
Mdm Ng (Seller-Cavenagh Gardens)
Before Richard, I sms 2 property agents, they were not only slow to respond my
sms and also failed to give me confident answers regarding selling my flat as i
was waiting for my BTO flat. I felt that they were not interested in selling 3
Rm flat.
When I sms Richard, he responded very fast. He answered all my questions and
also advised me what things to take note. When the HDB officer failed my
window's screw, he got a contractor and got it fixed on the same day. He was
quick & efficiency, and my flat was sold in very short period. No regret to
engage Richard as my agent.
Mr Goh (Seller-Blk 100 Toa Payoh)
We are so happy that you were our sales representative. Your efficiency, your
prompt service & knowledge of the sale proceeding made everything go so
smoothly. Your smile, helpfulness & assurance of all the work was taken
care so well. You did an excellent job, never give us an opportunity to
complain. Keep up your good work. We hope you have more clients and they too
will be happy with your work.
Gerry & Ramona (Seller-Blk 226 Bishan)
A responsible and reliable person with patience to carry his duties and beyond.
Can be trusted and provides good knowledge of his work.
Mr Ong & Gwendy (Buyer-Blk 108B Mcnair Road)
We had come across several agents, but we could not compare their service
standards to one that was provided by Mr. Richard Ho.
He was diplomatic & professional. He was also knowledgeable. As we had to
be overseas, Richard constantly updated us on the progress he had made. We were
very comfortable leaving the entire process into his hands, not forgetting to
mention that he was able to sell off our flat in a short period of time.
(Chinese Ratio Filled Unit)
Albert & Angeline (Seller-Blk 226 Bishan)
- Good service and follow up.
- Will recommend to others.
Mr Gan & Family (Buyer-Blk 206 Toa Payoh)
Thank you Richard for helping us to find our dream home at such a reasonable
price especially at this current property market condition. We manage to secure
a unit with less than 50% of COV in the current market. His amicable and
promptness services are definitely somethings, we will recommend to
couple/someone that are still looking for their dream house.
James & Felicia (Buyer-Blk 511 Bukit Batok)
We truly thank Richard for being such a great help with our property sales
process. He had provided us with adequate advices. We indeed very satisfied and
pleased with his excellent service.
Stephen & May (Seller-Blk 116 Toa Payoh)
- Good Attitude, easy to communicate & to discuss.
- Good knowledge in property marketing & selling process.
- Service Oriented, provide good service & constantly provide status
- Helpful, willing to help for additional issues related to the property that
he is selling.
Herman (Seller-Blk 227 Toa Payoh)
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I faced
some difficulties in selling my house because I am a bankruptcy. But Richard is
very patience and help me to solve some HDB issues and managed to obtain a HDB
loan for my next resale flat. He patiently persist through the sales process in
the faced of obstacles. If my relatives/friends need someone to manage their
property, I will recommend him.
Ah Kwan (Not his real name)
(Seller and buyer - Blk 158/245 Toa Payoh)
Landlords and Tenants Testimonials !!!!!
I didn't expect Richard to find us a tenant in such a short time, less than 3 weeks. The time laps between the previous and the new tenant is only 4 days. Thank you.
Mr Qin (Landlord-527 Hougang)
Richard has been managing our rental unit for past 3 years. We are very grateful to him for helping us to secure a new tenant within 3 weeks in this current market, even before the current tenant lease expired. His experience and patience help us to negotiate a higher rental than previous tenant. Keep up the good work. Cheers….
Allan (Landlord-The Bencoolen)
Richard has been very helpful in finding us the
tenants, maintaining a good condition of our flat. And resolving
issues/requests coming from our tenants. We trust his professionalism would
bring the same satisfaction to any of his clients.
Mr & Mrs Shu (Landlord-143
Toa Payoh)
Richard negotiated well for my retail unit and
managed to rent out at higher rental.
Thank you
Mr & Mrs Ho (Landlord-People's
Park Complex)
Glad I had Richard to help with the rental.
Richard is very conscientious and trustworthy.
Lilian (Landlord-351
We are very happy to have worked with you on the
rental of the foresaid apartment. In general, we find you
are service-oriented, responsive, focus, flexible, friendly and a fast
worker. You also displayed sound judgement in negotiation. You know when to
stand firm and when to adjust the price. In short, you are professional and
reliable and I have no hesitation to recommend you to anyone who wants to rent
out or sell his flat.
Mr & Mrs
Ong (Landlord-Blk 307 ShunFu Road)
Richard is best agent I have ever seen. He was able to quickly
identify potential properties meeting my requirement and organize the viewing
of properties in very efficient way. This save a lot of time and efforts for
me. During the contract signing and handover, Richard studied the contract and
took photos of inventories. This provided maximum protection for the clients.
Mr Wang (Tenant-Blk 105 Bishan St
Richard is indeed an experience, helpful and diligent real estate
professional. He was with us all the way and provided seamless transactional
help and support. We will definitely look for Richard again for our next real
estate transaction. Not forgetting introducing him to our family and friends
too. Good Job, keep it up!!
Mr & Mrs Foo (Landlord-Blk 251 Kim
Keat Link)
Mr Richard
Ho is a hardworking and friendly housing agent. Over the last 5 yrs, whenever
my mum needs to find new tenant for her 3-room flat at Toa Payoh, he always
managed to get new tenants for her within 1-2 weeks. Recently, I knew that the
rental market was quiet and slow, I got 3 housing agents to look for tenants
for my AMK 5-room flat. The 2 agents totally no performance. Richard was the
only one managed to bring tenants to view my unit every week. In the 3rd
week, my unit finally rented out. Richard is also a very helpful person.
Whenever I have problems related to property, I always like to consult him. He
always take time and patience to explain to me. Really, I feel myself so lucky
to have such a good housing agent.
Kho (Landlord-Blk 552 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10)
is a very committed Sales Director. He understood our requirements very
well and able to help us to close the deal fast. We had very good experience
dealing with him.
& Mrs Lim (Landlord-Blk 465 Crawford Lane)
is a very hard working & polite agent. He is prompt in service and punctual
in meeting us for all appointments made. He help us to get a tenant within a
week. We are very thankful to his kind assistance. We will
recommend friends to him because of his good service. We wish Richard
success in his future endeavour. Many many thanks to you, Mr Richard Ho.
& Mrs Yeow (Landlord-Blk 640 Rowell Road)
Richard engaged me to understand my needs, explained current rental market to
manage my expectation on monthly rent likely to secure a tenant for my property
and he was ever so active arranging prospective tenants, never pushy and always
accommodating. In addition, he had provided good advices, had responded
promptly to queries, and had always sent reminders and informed changes ahead
of date and time of viewing. In a nutshell, Mr Richard Ho had provided
professional service.
Doris (Landlord-Balestier
A year
ago, one of those leaflets left in my mailbox was that of Mr. Richard Ho. One
year later, we met to discuss what is the best course of action for my HDB
flat. During which i was assured as his advice was well thought out,
therefore I decided to have him manage the rental of my flat. Soon after he
managed to lease and I was very pleased. Throughout the interim, he was always
punctual, conscientious and responsible. I highly recommend any one seeking his
professional service because he is true to his profession!
Thank you
Victoria (Landlord-Blk 407
Sin Ming)
efficient and effective, resourceful and professional. I will appoint him as my
agent the next time I need any housing service.
& Maryanne (Landlord-Blk 124 Bishan)
response, know the area and is able to advise us in alot of area.
prompt service.
& Family (Landlord-Blk 153A Toa Payoh)
extraordinary agent who is responsible, hardworking, diligent, careful &
meticulous. One who work hard to achieve his goals. Reliable & trustable.
Thank you for the work well done.
Loi (Landlord-Blk 51 Toa Payoh Shop)
Mr. Ho is
very professional in his job. He is very clear and detailed in his explanations
to the contract of lease and administrative process required for subletting the
HDB flat.
As it was
our first time subletting a flat, we had many concerns & queries. He was
patient in answering all the questions. I look forward to employing his service
again in the future. Thank you very much for your help.
Zhou and Family (Landlord-Blk 172 Bishan)
1) Fast
2) Polite
and good attitude.
3) Explain all in details and properly done all documents.
recommended as good housing agent !
Alex (Landlord-Blk 59 Toa Payoh)
I have
yet to see such courteous, loyal and hard working housing agent who have
the flair, the charisma to handle both owner and tenant very well.
I certainly feel that such agent should be given a sense of recognition for a
job well done. "Hats off to Mr. Ho Chee Kian"
Elankovan (Landlord-Blk 233 Toa Payoh)
Efficient, Responsible and Initiative.
Stephanie (Landlord-51 Paya Ubi Industrial Park)
Very good property agent we have came across so far. He was very nice and
effectively communicated to get the tenant quickly. He has the knowledge of the
current rental market and got good negotiation skills. He is very quick in
replying to our email queries and other matters regarding to the rental
Mr Vikram and Family (Landlord-Blk 6B Boon Tiong
Richard was able to meet my requirements. He had assisted me to meet
tenants that were within my wish. During the discussion phase with the tenants,
he had always protect my rights. Although he was given a short period of time
for marketing. He had help me to source for my ideal tenants. So far I had
rented out my house for the past 15 years, Richard is the Best Agent that I
ever come across.
Mr Lim and Gracia (Landlord-Blk 555 CCK North 6)
Efficient and fast response. Offers good suggestions and has a positive
outlook. Experience.
Fifi and Terence (Landlord-Blk 259 Kim Keat Ave)
Richard Ho is a very good property agent. He is professional and very
dedicated in his work. Just within a very short period, he could get a better
tenant to sublet my shop. I am very grateful to him.
Mr Lim CE (Landlord-Blk 407 Ang Mo Kio Shop)
Richard Ho is an attentive person. He is helpful & friendly and has way of
impressing his client. He knows his work and is out to be a successful agent.
Jeffrey and Elaine (Landlord-Pearl Bank)
1) Richard has found our ideal tenant without compromise the rental in a
week, beyond expectation.
2) His performance is excellent, second to none in my record, never ever
so far.
Mr & Ms Chia (Landlord-Blk 60 Toa Payoh)
During our very first telephone conversation, Richard was very professional and
patient. He was willing to listen to what we have to say.
On Various occasions, the tenants who are supposed to come did not turn up.
Richard would come all the way to my unit, to apologise on their behalf even
though it was not his fault.
Richard is truly professional and we are very happy to engage him. He also
proved to be hardworking and persevering when it came to finding a
favourable tenant.
We are very happy with our tenant. Great Job!
Diana and family (Landlord-Blk 44 Toa Payoh)
He is a very nice & kind hearted agent. Honest & generous in providing
excellent, outstanding services under the job scope.
Both me
& my landlord are very clear of the services provided & charges applied
accordingly. Thanks for the kind assistance provided.
(Tenant-Blk 206 Toa Payoh)
1. Courteous, humble, and smiling gestures.
2. Very responsible attitude.
3. Quick action.
4. Very detail in explanation of the contract to both landlord and tenant.
John (Landlord-Blk 240 Toa Payoh)
Richard is fast in responding to my query as and when if i have and never fail
to respond to me. He is responsible and helpful to help me all out to find
He had also shared and given information which I was not awared of as a
flat owner.
Joanne (Landlord-Blk 288 Bishan)
I have had a good working experience with Richard. I am deeply appreciative
that Richard scanned through potential clients for me before bringing them over
and his efficiency and effectiveness is his role, as my property agent, is
Cherli (Landlord-Blk 441 Sin Ming Ave)
Very hardworking. Bring in tenant to view the place quickly and tries to be
fair to both parties. He does give good advices.
Stella (Landlord-Blk 441 Sin Ming Ave)
Helpful, friendly yet professional. Closes business deals efficiently
in a short space of time and provides "after sale service" upon
Ms Chee (Landlord-Blk 153A Toa Payoh)
- Able to source wide range of suitable tenants in a short time.
- Very good presentation and communication skills.
- Good customer service.
Mr Lin (Landlord-Blk 79E Toa Payoh)
Richard is very trustworthy and patient. Willing to help when needed.
Ms Lin (Landlord-Blk 205 Bishan)
Thank you Mr Ho for his service. He managed to rent out my unit in less than a
month. I am very satisfied with his service. Thank you very much.
Ms Guo (Landlord-Blk 225 Bishan)
Hardworking to the extend that he came over & take photos. He is
punctual for his appointment. Helpful to the extend that he will explain in
details the contents of the contract.
Betty (Landlord-Blk 1 Toa Payoh)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Let's sneak out after midnight.
Meet me down the road.
We'll go running through the field.
Nobody will know.
Bring your father's bourbon
And a radio too.
We'll listen to some music,
Maybe dance a song or two.
I'll bring us a blanket
And wear my yellow dress.
The one I wore last summer,
The one you like best.
We'll lay down with each other,
Not breathe a single word.
Because we know what our hearts are saying,
Nothing that can be heard.
We'll count the stars to a million.
We'll laugh until we cry.
We'll hold each others hands,
Watch the lightening bugs make fire in the
And I can't wait to see you.
Can't wait to breathe you in.
Can't wait to see your laughing eyes
And do it all again.
*originally published November 2015 @choleintodiamonds*


text:
Sunday Salon: Jewish Lives Podcast
Date: Sunday, October 27, 2019
Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Location: Adult Reading Room, RAMBAM Center (Library)
Sunday Salon Series
Join us on most Sundays as we review books, movies and art. We meet at 10:00 am in the Adult Reading Room, located in our beautiful RAMBAM Center. Enjoy a light nosh with your friends too!
No charge, but please let us know you'll be joining us so that we have enough snacks for everyone. To RSVP or for more information contact Etta Gold, 786.264.6543 or email@example.com.
Etta Gold introduces
Jewish Lives Podcast
Jewish Lives is a prize-winning book series of interpretative biography that illuminates the imprint of Jewish figures upon literature, religion, philosophy, politics, cultural and economic life, and the arts and sciences. And now there is a wonderful new way to gain access to these stories — a podcast!
The Jewish Lives Podcast is a monthly program that explores the lives of influential Jewish figures. Hosted by Stanford Storytelling Project veteran Alessandra Wollner, each episode includes an interview with an acclaimed Jewish Lives author. Whether you already subscribe to several podcasts, or have no idea what a podcast is (much less how to access one), you will surely enjoy Etta Gold's introduction to the new Jewish Lives Podcast.


text:
Previously on WHORE OF BABYLON… * I pay the cute-if-only-he-would-take-his-hygiene-more-seriously keke driver and trek the remaining distance into the God is Good Park, looking around at the people coming and
Pamela Adie talks about raising her children sans religion
In a Facebook post, LGBT rights activist and co-founder of The Equality Hub Pamela Adie penned her thoughts on how she would raise her children. And her parenting will involve
"Your Fathers And Uncles Will Pay My Bills Till I'm Tired Of Them." – Bobrisky to the women who hate on her
Bobrisky is no stranger to online hate, from Nigerians, both men and women. And a few days ago, she decided to address the haters who are female. Those women might
Actress Trace Lysette slams Scarlett Johansson for taking transgender role, gets death threats in return
Transgender actress Trace Lysette has received death threats after condemning Scarlett Johansson for playing a trans man in her new film. The Avengers star sparked outrage this week by agreeing


text:
By NEIL HARTNELL
Tribune Business Editor
A top auto dealer yesterday said he will "definitely" ensure his used vehicles undergo pre-import inspections, arguing that such processes will "take a lot of fear out of consumers".
Fred Albury, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association's (BMDA) president, told Tribune Business he will "sleep better at night" by subjecting his own vehicles to the rigorous technical tests viewed during last week's Standards Bureau-led trip to Japan.
A member of that delegation, Mr Albury said it would be "a great consumer protection exercise" should the Government accept the offer by Japanese firm, EAA Company Ltd, to conduct pre-export inspections of all used vehicles shipped from that nation to the Bahamas.
He added that these inspections, conducted to standards and specifications set by the Bahamas, would enhance local consumer safety and act as a form of "insurance and assurance" that they were receiving "value for money" on their purchase.
And, responding to fears that pre-import inspection costs will price used vehicles beyond the reach of many Bahamians, Mr Albury told "the horn blowers" that the costs involved were "nominal" rather than "astronomical".
He said that based on the numbers suggested to him, pre-import inspection costs would likely be less than the sums spent by Bahamian women on their "hair and nails".
Describing the Japan trip as beneficial, Mr Albury told Tribune Business: "Any used cars I import now I'll definitely have inspected over there.......
"This is a great consumer protection exercise out there, which hopefully will be adopted by the Government and help consumers make better decisions on what they get. I'm going to have my vehicles inspected so I can sleep better at night. I had a couple of vehicles come in last year where the engines were bad."
A report on the Japan trip, and the delegation's findings and recommendations, is now being prepared by Standards Bureau executives for the Prime Minister and minister of labour's consideration.
Dr Renae Ferguson-Bufford, the Bahamas Bureau of Standards and Quality's (BBSQ) director, and who led the delegation, declined to comment prior to the report's submission and added that the Government's next public comments would be made at the ministerial level. Mr Albury, though, said he and members of the Standards Bureau-led delegation saw "a very thorough" inspection process where vehicles were raised up on lifts and subjected to a full technical diagnosis.
The "front to back" inspection assessed areas such as brakes, suspensions, brake pads, tyre treads, electrical systems, battery and oil quality, and emissions - all of which, Mr Albury said, will help to detect vehicles that are water-damaged, have been in an accident or are stolen.
"All in all it's a very good process," he told Tribune Business," and will take a lot of fear out of the consumer from buying 'sight unseen', having the vehicle inspected and to a certain standard.
"It's an insurance programme; insurance and assurance that the consumer is getting value for money. It makes sense to have. I think it's quite thorough, and I think it could be very helpful in the consumer making a decision about getting a vehicle out there rather than a piece of junk.
"They can also confirm the mileage. There's a lot of corruption with putting back the mileage for vehicles coming in here. While the consumer thinks their getting a vehicle with 40,000 miles on when it's really 140,000.
Mr Albury added that used car vehicle exporters to the Bahamas tended to come from other Asian nations, not Japan, and "see our market as being wide open with no regulation, so they have a field day with it, exporting junk".
He said Japanese customs statistics only captured vehicle exports above a certain value or "threshold", meaning that these failed to capture a significant portion of the automobiles being sent to the Bahamas.
Feedback on the pre-import vehicle inspections, as measured by responses to Tribune Business's articles on this newspaper's website, has been overwhelmingly opposed to the Bahamas adopting such a process and measures.
Many responses have suggested the Japan trip was a 'conspiracy' between the new car dealers, banks and the Government to price used vehicles beyond affordability for many Bahamians, resulting in increased sales, auto loans and Public Treasury revenues for the three parties involved.
Mr Albury, though, said the inspection fee involved would likely be "very nominal" based on the numbers provided to him, and would be well worth the improved consumer protection and safety.
"It's nothing astronomical," he told Tribune Business. "The expression was used that some women would spend more on their hair and nails than what these inspections cost.
"I think it's a good insurance policy that the consumer can have some protection on the buying of a car sight unseen, and to eliminate the mileage being rolled back on vehicles.
"The big thing the consumer needs to be concerned about is the corruption with mileage roll-back," Mr Albury continued. "When they think they're getting a deal they're really not, and this inspection process will eliminate that fear.
"From the numbers quoted, any inspection fee will only be nominal. For the horn blowers out there claiming this will be astronomical, it's not. The consumer should be very happy if this is adopted."
Mr Albury said the Bahamas would have to determine the pre-import inspection standards that used vehicles have to meet should it accept EAA Company's offer, and added that the rest of the Caribbean was likely to follow this nation's lead.
"It would eliminate the oil-burning clunkers and vehicles coming in with bald tyres and bad batteries that end up in the landfill, and cars that have been in an accident or stolen," the BMDA and Auto Mall chief added of the inspections.
"It's going to be a good source of consumer protection to ensure consumers are getting value for money."
Of the 1.2-1.4 million used vehicle exports recorded by Japanese customs last year, Mr Albury said some 74,000 found their way to the Caribbean. Jamaica, which has imposed a five-year age limit on vehicle imports, saw these arrivals increase by almost 50 per cent in 2017 - from around 22,000 to 33,000.
More like this story
BahamasForBahamians 2 years, 5 months ago
This guy just doesn't get it.
Fred can you please FOOK OFF.. We - The Average bahamian populace do not care to hear from you!
We see through this FNM smoke screen.
You barely sell any Japanese cars - we are not interested in your opinion on Japanese car imports.
We know that your sales at the Auto Mall & Executive Motors are horrible and the only reason you're involved is to get your sales going again.
For the FNM apologists who think otherwise: http://www.tribune242.com/news/2016/j..." rel="nofollow">http://www.tribune242.com/news/2016/j...
This guy is only it for himself.
The government is allowing this because it serves the interest of sitting (a) Cabinet Member(s)
Back to 60,000 autoloans from commonwealth bank if the FNM is successful this term.
ThisIsOurs 2 years, 5 months ago
No I enter think he gets it. I've never encountered anyone who bought a car from Japan who was afraid of what they would get. They're usually very happy that they found a car for a price they could afford. Having the president of the new car dealers on this trip was a very bad move. Conflict of interest is glaring. And conflict of interest does not mean you did or will do something untoward, it simply means that you have two masters with conflicting interests, you can't do justice to both, one will ultimately become secondary to the other.
JohnDoe 2 years, 5 months ago
You are absolutely correct about conflict of interests but it actually is more pernicious than just conflict of interest. Individual self-interest is indeed a powerful organizing force and incentive in a free market economic, however, when self-interest is infused into public policy decision making then there is certainly the potential for conflict of interest but more importantly it almost invariably serves as the precursor for market abuse and political corruption. This government came to power as a result of the rejection of the corrupt practices and self-interest dealings of the PLP and their cronies. It is ironic that my greatest disappointment in this government to date is that they appear to be complicit in similar corrupt self-interest practices with respect to public policy formation, the only difference being that for the PLP and their cronies it was new money for them but the current FNM cronies already control most of the wealth in this country. How much is enough and why are they so afraid of competition?
realitycheck242 2 years, 5 months ago
Oh yes even the blind can see that Conflict of interest is the moral of this article. No member of the motor dealers association should have been a part of the trip. Only independent persons with knowledge of the industry who would be impartial to all who sell cars locally including the many sellers who are not apart of the association..Mr: Albury knows that the major segment of his companies sales is the brand new vehicles he imports so why would he recommending anything positive that would help used car importers. and further cause a decrease in his new car sales. Why would he want to help the smaller portion of his company pie ?(used cars sales) With the way the association have been complaining over the years the recommendations from this committee will be hitting the small man in the pocket to the tune of thousands of dollars.
proudloudandfnm 2 years, 5 months ago
The issue of lesser quality used car imports sits entirely with American used cars. This whole thing is just too damned obvious. Japanese imports are such high quality at incredibly reasonable prices they are cutting into the sales of new car dealers. Simple as that. Japanese imports are incredibly good there is no real reason to hit us with an inspection fee. This had better not be made law. Give us the ability to deny the inspections. I definitely would not pay it of I didn't have to. Every single Japanese import I owned was far superior to anything offered out of the US, in every aspect...
OMG 2 years, 5 months ago
Just another tax by a different name. Every Jap import I have seen is clean,everything working and excellent quality.
BahamasForBahamians 2 years, 5 months ago
I adominsh everyone that reads this article to mark my words - if this government continues full sleep ahead with THIS particular issue - this will be the one to sink them in the next general election
BahamasForBahamians 2 years, 5 months ago
full speed*
happyfly 2 years, 5 months ago
People in this country are finally figuring out that they should not be spending their entire life savings on a damn car but this fascist wants us to go to the bank and pay double for the double he already charging. This is how the rich f... the poor people 101.


text:
The artistic process is a fascinating one, especially when it involves precise enamel painting as the Bethan Lloyd Worthington Tableware collection did. Instead of opting for the traditional floral pattern seen on dining sets from the past, Bethan Lloyd took a different route with this collection using traditional enamel-painting methods paired with a modern concept.
Bethan Lloyd Worthington Tableware is a fun alternative to often boring dishware, and the colorful designs are a testament to the fact that dishes don't have to be mundane. According to the website Design break, each of the pieces of dishwater are hand-painted and inspired by the drawings and paintings of artist Robert MacFarlane's 'The Wild Places.'
The funky, colorful, abstract patterns are individual to each piece of tableware, which is amazing when one considers that each set has been individually hand painted!
Bethan Lloyd Worthington Tableware has a Splash of Artistic Flair
Emily Evans — June 7, 2011 — Art & Design
References: bethanlloydworthington & designbreakonline


text:
Ibanez are celebrating a huge 40 years of Tubescreamer - one of, if not the most iconic guitar pedal of all time. This is the overdrive that started the trend for gain layering and gave birth to modern tones we here in rock and metal today.
We all know what the Tubescreamer does and the best ways to use it. Put it in front of your amp on mid-gain setting, keep the overdrive dial low and hear it tighten your tone in all its glory. This provides a direct, punchy midrange and keeps the lows in check.
Alternatively, use the pedal over cleans to add a bit of growl and bite. It also helps your guitar sound cut through a thick mix - so whether you're a blues player or love modern metal, the Tubescreamer will win you over. This is all down to the legendary JRC4558D IC chip and full analog circuitry, as well as its familiar control layout.
The unique 40th anniversary ruby finish will make your TS808 stand out from the crowd.
- Centre positive/negative: Centre Negative
- Plug adapter: Barrel 2.1 mm
- Effect: Overdrive
- Variable Voltage: No
- Battery Powered: Yes
- Voltage: 9V
- Weight: 682g
- Dimensions (incl. packaging): 15.0 x 9.0 x 7.0 cm


text:
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The country is feeling the impact of foreign sanctions causing international marketplaces to reevaluate their growth plans.Download the Full Index
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- Sizeable amount of population is open to freelancing
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Growth. The Turkish ecommerce market is one of the fastest growing in Europe and at 3.5 percent penetration still has a lot of space to grow
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"The Turkish economy has been "overheating" with inflation — at 16 percent in July — way exceeding the central bank's target of 5 percent. Raising interest rates could have helped to stem such a massive increase in consumer prices: Higher rates tend to attract foreign investors, who would need the lira to buy Turkish assets."
"If an Uber vehicle is caught [by the police] a fine of 50 points and 3,006 Turkish Liras will applied. When the money is paid, the fine of 50 points will be canceled. But if a vehicle is caught a second time under any circumstances, the certificates of the related firm will be revoked and it will not be able to apply for a certificate for two years," said Istanbul Taxicab Merchants Chamber (İTEO) head Eyüp Aksu on May 29."
"In particular, Istanbul, the most populous city in Turkey and the country's economic, cultural and historic center, is quickly emerging as a global financial center, thanks to its geographical proximity to leading markets such as London and Dubai, strong Internet infrastructure and large pool of well-educated, tech-literate of talents."


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18180/tecciencia.2016.21.8
Biosolids and Biosolid Ashes as Input for Producing Brick-like Construction Materials
Biosólido y Cenizas de Biosólido como Insumo para la Fabricación de Materiales de Construcción como los Ladrillos
William Ricardo Mozo Moreno1*, Adrián Gómez2
1 Universidad Santo Tomás, Tunja, Colombia.
2 Departamento de Materiales y Minerales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Sede Medellín, Colombia.
* Corresponding Author. E-mail: email@example.com
How to cite: Mozo Moreno, W. R., Gómez, A., Biosolids and Biosolid Ashes as Input for Producing Brick-like Construction Materials, TECCIENCIA, Vol. 12 No. 21, 45-51, 2016, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18180/tecciencia.2016.21.8
Received: 21 Oct 2015 Accepted: 10 May 2016 Available Online: 31 Aug 2016.
1. Introduction
Wastewater treatment plant biosolids in two states, With No Treatment (WNT) and Ashes (A), were added to ceramic paste for brick manufacturing. The elements were cooked at three different temperatures (950°, 1000° and 1050°C) and the percentages of the content Clay-Biosolid WNT and Clay-Biosolid A, were 0, 5, 10 and 15%. Bricks manufactured with 15% ashes at 950°C were found to have a resistance to compression close to 26 MPa, meeting the Colombian Technical Norm 4205 (NTC) for structural and non-structural masonry of internal use and closing or divisory walls that support their own weight. We carried out a chemical, structural and thermic characterization of the raw materials that were used (clay and biosolid). We also performed a leaching test (TCLP) to evaluate toxicity characteristics to determine the safety values for heavy metals (Cr and Zn) in the biosolid. By meeting the requirements indicated in NTC 4205, we proved that the total percentage of biosolid that can be used as an addition in construction materials such as bricks is at least 15%, representing a substantial positive impact on the environment. These results open the path to the proposal of even larger percentages of ceramic paste replacement.
Keywords: Bricks, Biosolids, Ashes, Compression, Ceramics.
Se adicionó biosólido proveniente de una Planta de Tratamiento de Aguas Residuales (PTAR) en dos estados: Sin Tratamiento (ST) y Ceniza (C), a una pasta cerámica (arcilla) para la fabricación de ladrillos. Los elementos fueron cocidos a tres temperaturas diferentes (950 - 1000 - 1050°C) y los porcentajes de remplazo (Arcilla - ST) y (Arcilla - C) fueron de (0-5-10-15)%. Se encontró que los ladrillos fabricados hasta con un 15% de ceniza a 950 °C, tienen una resistencia a la compresióncercana a los 26 MPa, cumpliendo así con la Norma Técnica Colombiana (NTC) 4205 para mampostería estructural y no estructural de uso interior y muros de cierre o divisorios que cargan su propio peso. Se realizó una caracterización química, estructural y térmica a las materias primas utilizadas (arcilla y biosólido). Se llevó a cabo una prueba de lixiviación para evaluar las características de toxicidad (TCLP por sus siglas en inglés) que permite determinar la inocuidad de los metales pesados (Cr y Zn) en el biosólido utilizado. Con el cumplimiento de los ítems señalados en la NTC 4205, se comprueba que el porcentaje total de biosólido que puede ser utilizado como adición en un material de construcción; como los ladrillos; es de por lo menos el 15%, lo que contribuye en un porcentaje alto al medio ambiente. Los resultados obtenidos abren el camino para proponer mayores porcentajes de remplazo de material.
Palabras clave: Ladrillos, Biosólido Seco, Cenizas, Compresión, Cerámicos.
1. Introduction
The function of wastewater treatment plants is to clean the water used in homes, factories, supermarkets, etc., before discharging it into water sources that are part of the ecosystem to which they belong. Through physical, chemical and biological processes, the decontamination of the residual liquid is achieved and as a byproduct of this process biosolids are obtained. Biosolids are defined in Colombia in Decree 1287 of 2014 [1] as:
"The product of the stabilization of the organic fraction of the sludge generated in the treatment of municipal wastewater with physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics that allow their use." (Translation from the Spanish original).
Large quantities of this material are produced, and due to the quantity of nutrients and organic matter it possesses, one of its most common uses is as fertilizer in agriculture or as soil improvement. Despite the potential benefits that could be generated, the process is being abandoned due to the health and environmental problems that the toxins in sludge can generate [2]. Landfills are an easy and common alternative for disposing of sludge or biosolids. However, they can result in technical and environmental problems due to the characteristics of the material. First, its high hydrogen content is absorbed by plants and easily leached and mobilized, thus generating eutrophication and pollution in aquifers [3]. In addition, a landfill requires large areas for disposal or the occupation of available land.
These biosolids are creating environmental problems due to 4 basic types of pollutants: 1) Metals, because of their potential to accumulate in human tissues and their biomagnification; 2) Nutrients and organic matter, due to their eutrophication potential in groundwater and surface waters; 3) Organic contaminants, because of their lack of clarity in the ecotoxicology role on soil-plant-water systems; and 4) Pathogens, due to the presence of bacteria, viruses, protozoa, flukes, tapeworms and nematodes [4].
Currently, Colombian government policies are promoting the increase of discharge treatment levels in municipal sewerage systems. This translates into an increase in the waste or byproducts (sludge or biosolids). Colombian Decree 1287 of 2014 [1] considered some alternative uses for biosolids, based on their category and classification. Among the suggested uses, the decree suggests their use as an input in the manufacturing of building materials. In this study, we evaluate the use of biosolid and biosolid ashes from the El Salitre wastewater treatment plant in Bogotá as raw material for brickmaking. As evidence justifying the choice of our source material we should mention the following: the wastewater treatment plant treats 4 m3/s of wastewater, approximately 4,950 tons of biosolids are generated per month [5] and there has not been an evaluation on its alternative uses in construction materials [6].
The field of construction materials may be a viable alternative in order to give more value to sludge or biosolids. Much prior research has been conducted, for example [7] incorporated ashes from burning sewage sludge to ceramic slurry to produce bricks. Among the results that stand out we find a lower rate of plasticity and drying shrinkage, which results in better-quality elements. Elements with up to 50% ash inclusion meet the required resistance to compression. The authors in [8] made bricks by incorporating dried mud from a wastewater treatment plant as raw material; the goal was the technical and environmental evaluation of the manufactured items. From the results obtained, we can observe an inverse relationship between the resistance to compression and the percentage of incorporation of sludge. The values obtained in the study allowed the classification of bricks as building material suitable for use in engineering. Regarding the environmental evaluation, the TCLP test was performed, which showed that the level of leaching of metals is low, and the amounts of Cr (total).
The authors in [9] evaluated the technical feasibility of using biosolids from wastewater treatment plants in a metropolitan area of Chile as a partial replacement for clay used for brick manufactoring. The authors proposed 3 biosolid states for such replacement: 1) biosolids from zone 1, 2) biodrying biosolids and 3) solar-drying biosolids. The manufactured items are cooked between 950° and 970°C. The results show that the use of biosolids in brickmaking is technically feasible. They obtained items with a resistance to compression of up to 9.2 MPa, meeting the standards for norm NCh 169 of 2001 for a category 3 brick. Finally, in order to obtain better results the study suggests the adjustment and control of key process variables such as cooking curves.
In their research, [10] present a characterization of ashes produced from the incineration of sewage sludge, and evaluate the alternative of recycling them for construction materials such as bricks (as partial replacement for clay). The research results show benefits such as the increase in resistance to compression of the elements made of ash in comparison with those not containing ashes. The aforementioned brought about the research that led to this article, the main objective of which was to evaluate from a technical point of view the alternative of using biosolids With No Treatment (WNT) and Ashes biosolids (A) as input materials in manufacturing construction materials.
such as bricks. To achieve this purpose, we prepared the Clay-WNT and Clay-A mixtures with replacement percentages as follows: 100% Clay - 0% WNT (A), 95% Clay - 5% WNT (A), 90% Clay - 10% WNT (A), 85% Clay - 15% WNT (A). For each group we manufactured 5 elements for testing resistance to compression, and manufactured a total of 40 bricks. The characterization of the mechanical properties was carried out under the guidelines of the NTC 4205 and NTC 4017 standards.
2. Materials and Methods
2.1 Raw Materials
For brickmaking we used clay (Cl) from the company El Oasis, a brick company located in Boyaca, Colombia. The biosolid was collected from the El Salitre wastewater treatment plant (in Bogotá) and the ash was obtained by burning the biosolids to temperatures of over 550°C in a furnace for manufacturing ceramic elements.
2.2 Characterization of raw materials
The particle size of the biosolids was obtained from historical monitoring records conducted in the El Salitre wastewater treatment plant and supplied by the plant under an agreement with Santo Tomás University. The clay was physically characterized by determining its granulometric composition, specific gravity and natural moisture.
Additionally, we used the following test on Clay-Biosolids: Chemical composition (OXFORD Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy test - EDS), probe connected to a JEOL Scanning Electron Microscope Reference 5910 JSM, Mineral composition (X-ray diffraction - XRD) in a PANalytical X-ray diffractometer, reference X'Pert PRO MPD with a PixCell detector and a Cu tube with a wavelength of 1.5406 Å.
2.3 Process Variables
2.3.1 Size and Dosage
The properties of the ceramic elements depend heavily on the size and distribution of the particles of the raw materials. The particle size affects properties such as plasticity, porosity, specific gravity, homogeneity, permeability and penetrability [11] [12]. The raw materials (Cl - WNT - A) were subjected to a grinding process or downsizing by selecting particles between 70 µm to 1 mm (material that goes through any sieve No. 18 to No. 200). The dosage of the materials was performed on the mixtures by weight and their homogenization was done manually.
2.3.2 Molding
The ceramic elements were molded based on NTC standard 296 (modular dimensions of ceramic bricks), at a rectangular shape with a length of 100 mm, a width of 50 mm and a height of 50 [13]. We also used the uniaxial pressing technique, applying an effort of 60 kgf / cm2.
The humidity content in the mixture is a control variable in the brickmaking process. For fixation, we performed the standard proctor compaction test with the biosolids [14] Table 1 shows the average of the humidity obtained for each of the mixtures. Finally, all ceramic elements were manufactured with a humidity of 19%.
2.3.3 Drying
Bigot curves were constructed in order to demonstrate the effect that including biosolids in the ceramic mixture had and in order to control the drying process. For mixtures of clay and biosolids, we evaluated the evolution of shrinkage and weight loss during the drying phase at 60°C.
2.3.4 Cooking
For the cooking process we applied the curve shown in Figure 1 [15], with 3 temperature ramps and a rate of increase of 5°C/min each. The first ramp goes up to 105°C and was maintained for 120min in order to evaporate the remaining humidity of the drying process. The second ramp reaches 600°C, and was maintained for 120min. In this phase the organic matter in the ceramic paste decomposes. Finally, we reached the cooking temperature (950-1000-1050°C) and kept it for 180 min. Afterwards we allowed the muffle to cool down to reach room temperature.
2.3.5 Quality of the items manufactured
The quality of the manufactured items was determined based on technical standard NTC 4205 [16] Resistance to compression was evaluated according to the methodology established in technical standard NTC 4017 [17].
3. Methods
3.1 Characterization of Raw Materials
3.1.1 Particle Size Analysis
The particle distribution of the fine fractions of the clay was determined by the hydrometer method of particle size analysis according to the standard [18] With these results we established the percentages shown in Table 2.
With the percentage of fines obtained (clay, silt and sand), clay is classified as a clayey material rich in fine particles (colloids) of plastic behavior in wet states and as a hard and tough material in dry states. The content of sand, silt and clay in the biosolid can be seen in Table 3. This information was provided by the El Salitre wastewater treatment plant, the entity that performs tests on agronomic parameters with the purpose of use in soils [5]. According to the soil classification system of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), biosolids is a sandy loam material in texture, with a high sand content, but with enough silt and clay to have some cohesion [19].The result reveals that the biosolid is a material with degreaser potential within the mixture or the ceramic paste, which would translate into a decrease in plasticity.
3.1.2 Chemical composition
The clay selected for the mixture has the chemical composition shown in Table 4, which makes it suitable for use as raw material for the manufacture of ceramic materials. The high silicon dioxide content (74%) in the clay is an indication of a low percentage of shrinkage in the elements. The chemical composition of biosolids is typical of its origin; it is a material with high organic content (high A - 46.02%).
3.1.3 Mineral Composition
Table 5 shows a comparison table of the different mineral phases identified in the samples with their respective percentages. The results found in the mineral characterization are in the same line as those found in the chemical characterization of raw materials. There is a high quartz content in the clay and biosolids.
The clay used corresponds with a material high in quartz and kaolinite mineral content, which makes it suitable clayey material for the manufacture of traditional ceramic parts and construction materials with medium to high specifications (bricks, tiles, masonry, among others). With the low iron oxide content (Goethite), light brown coloring elements can be obtained.
Biosolids can then be said to be a favorable material with positive cementation features for the construction industry. This is based on the content of mineral phases like gibbsite and Calcite (≈20%).
The percentage of quartz (SiO2) found confirms the hypothesis for its use as a degreaser material, and finally, the presence of kaolinite at 9.9% suggests possible applications in ceramic bricks, since it promotes sintering by being thermally activated [20].
If the chemical and mineral composition of the two materials (clay and biosolids) are observed, enough aluminum-silicate phases are detected to, at high temperatures (higher than 1000°C), potentially form phases such as corundum or mullite, which are very stable and hard ceramic products (compact).
3.1.4 Drying
In order to have greater control in the drying phase of the brick manufacturing process, we created items with different percentages of biosolid inclusion. The purpose of this procedure was to demonstrate the evolution of drying shrinkage and to propose a suitable method for achieving this. Figure 1 shows the Bigot curves. Here we observe that the maximum contraction was 7.1% and it appeared in items that were manufactured with 100% clay - 0% biosolids. Minimal shrinkage was obtained for the elements made from 85% clay and 15% biosolids, at 3.5%. The results show that the incorporation of biosolids into the ceramic paste decreases the drying shrinkage of the ceramic elements, which reinforces the hypothesis regarding the non-plastic and degreaser nature of biosolids.
The results demonstrate that biosolids reduce the plasticity of ceramic pastes and thus the contraction that can be generated in the drying process. This is a very positive effect because it reduces the risk of the occurrence of cracks and deformations in the ceramic prism.
Regarding the weight loss of the elements, the results reveal that in the drying process the water used in forming the ceramic paste is eliminated. All elements made with different percentages of biosolids lose between 17% and 18% in weight, while the remaining 1% belongs to the crystallographic water, chemically bound to the mineral crystals that shape the clay body.
By looking at the Bigot curves, the minimum amount of time to achieve the critical humidity point was determined to be approximately 240 minutes (4 hours), time in which the contraction of the elements reaches its maximum value.
Based on the results described above, the drying of the elements was performed in three stages. In the first stage, we aim for the partial removal of the surface humidity by drying the atmosphere for a period of 12 hours. The second stage took place in an oven for 12h at 60°C. Subsequently, the third drying stage is reached by increasing the temperature up to 105°C in order to achieve a suitable item, ready for being subjected to the different cooking temperatures.
3.1.5 Quality of the manufactured items
Fired clay masonry units must comply with the minimum resistance to compression specified in the NTC 4205, when being tested according to standard NTC 4017. The standard NTC 4205 requires a resistance to compression of 14 MPa for nonstructural masonry units and of 20 MPa for structural masonry units. In Table 6 we see the average values of 5 units of each experimental group (WNT- A).
Figure 2 shows that the ratio percentage of incorporation of WNT - RC is inversely proportional; items manufactured at 15% show the lowest resistance values. Only the group (1050°C - 5%) meets the requirements for use as structural masonry. Elements made with more than 5% of WNT do not meet any of the limits established in the standard for use in structural and non-structural masonry.
The results in Table 6 indicate that resistance depends mainly on the amount of ashes in the brick and the cooking temperature. The optimum amount of ash that can be mixed with clay to make good-quality bricks is 15% by weight at a cooking temperature of 900°C. With this configuration we achieved resistance near 27 MPa. These elements can be used as structural and non-structural masonry, according to the NTC 4205.
The behavior of elements made from ash (A) in Figure 3 is in line with [21]. In this case the ash acts as a fluxing agent, reducing the sintering temperature and it improves the resistance to compression due to its iron and calcium content.
4. Conclusions
The results of this study have shown that biosolid ash can be included as a substitute for clay in making quality bricks. Biosolids (WNT or A) can be used as degreaser material in the production of bricks, thus helping to minimize the risk of generating cracks and deformations in the brick during the drying process.
The content of gibbsite and calcite found in biosolids make this residue a cementation material suitable for possible inclusion as a raw material in obtaining materials in the construction sector. Ash acts as a fluxing agent, reducing the sintering temperature, and improves the resistance to compression due to its iron and calcium content.
The results of the compression resistance tests indicate that resistance depends on the amount and form of replacement material inclusion and its cooking temperature. The replacement of WNT biosolids does not allow for obtaining quality elements that satisfy the requirements of the standards.
The optimum amount of ash that can be mixed with clay to make good quality bricks is 15% by weight at a cooking temperature of 900°C. With this configuration we reached resistance close to 27 MPa.
The increase in resistance values are explained in the transformations experienced in the ceramic matrix when it reaches the maximum cooking temperature established at (950°C - 1000°C - 1050°C), possibly the formation of new mineral phases (corundum or mullite).
We demonstrated that with a good combination of the cooking temperature and the percentage of addition of biosolid ash, the property of resistance to compression increases compared to elements made with 0% of A. It is thus possible to conclude that biosolid ash can be used as an input for the manufacture of construction materials that meet the requirements in NTC 4205 for structural and non-structural masonry.
[1] Ministerio De Vivienda, Decree No. 1287, Criterios Para El Uso De Biosólidos Generados En Plantas De Tratamiento De Aguas Residuales, Colombia, 2014.
[2] Dean, R., & Suess, M., The risk to health of chemicals in sewage sludge applied to land. Waste Management Resources, 251-278, 1985.
[3] Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua, Manejo de Sólidos residuales o biosólidos, Chihuahua, México, 2012. http://www.oocities.org/edrochac/residuales/biosolidos9.pdf.
[4] Vélez Zuluaga, J. A., Los biosólidos: ¿Una solución o un problema? Producción + Limpia, 57-71, 2007.
[5] PTAR el Salitre, Plegable técnico, Acueducto Agua y Alcantarillado de Bogotá, Bogotá, Colombia, 2011. http://www.acueducto.com.co/wpsv61/wps/html/resources/PTAR/Plegable_tecnico.pdf.
[6] PTAR el Salitre, Acueducto, Agua, Alcantarillado y Aseo de Bogotá, Bogotá, Colombia, 2013. http://www.acueducto.com.co/wpsv61/wps/portal/!ut/p/c5/hY7LDoIwEEW_hS-YofQBS1QEEqBqo1I2pDEEMTxcGBP-XogbN8jM8tx7ZqCAaXvzbmrzaobetJBDwUvXVqkSEUEpyA5jPwhc7tANPdGJa15uQz-iIkGU5IJIMqaOeFYOxs5K-zrf-0mEbO9hLJmXyDS0EdmX__PPHBfGR8iioavgvGLRHuQcNBRi8Vthg26r2txGeHY5.
[7] Lin, D.-F., & Weng, C.-H., Use of sewage ash as brick material. Journal of environmental engineering, 127 (10), 2001.
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[9] Navarro Navarro, C. R., Corvalán G., S., & Contreras B., S., Evaluación de la potencialidad del uso de biosólidos originados en las plantas de tratamiento de aguas servidas en la fabricación de ladrillos, Memorias del 8° Congreso Internacional de metalurgia y materiales (pp. 1-9) CONAMET/SAM, Santiago de Chile, Chile, 2008.
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[16] Instituto Colombiano De Normas Técnicas Y Certificación - NTC 4205, Ingeniería civil y arquitectura. Unidades de mampostería de arcilla cocida. Ladrillos y bloques cerámicos, Bogotá, Colombia, 2000.
[17] Instituto Colombiano De Normas Técnicas Y Certificación - NTC 4017, Ingeniería civil y arquitectura. Métodos de muestreo y ensayos de unidades de mampostería de arcilla, Bogotá, Colombia, 2000.
[18] Instituto Nacional De Vias - I.N.V. E -124-14, Análisis granulométrico por medio del hidrómetro, Colombia, 2014.
[19] Castro Franco, H. E., Fundamentos para el conocimiento manejo de suelos agrícolas, Instituto Universitario Juan de Castellanos, Tunja, Colombia, 1998.
[20] Cerdeño Del Castillo, F., & Lorenzo P, A., Viabilidad técnica de uso de lodos de estaciones de tratamiento de aguas potables (ETAP) en la fabricación de materiales cerámicos para la construcción. (pp. 89-92.). Conarquitectura, Colombia, 2006.
[21] Wiebusch, B., & C.F. Seyfried, Utilization of sewage sludge ashes in the brick and tile industry. Water Science and Technology, 36 (11), 251-258, 1997.
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