In vitro agonistic and antagonistic endocrine disrupting effects of organic extracts from waste water of different treatment processes

Effluents from wastewater treatment plant （WWTP） have been reported to have a broad spectrum of endocrine disrupting compounds （EDCs）. The majority of studies have focused on the occurrence of estrogenic activity, while ignoring nuclear hormone receptors （NRs） pathways. In the present study, a battery of in vitro yeast bioassays and a cell bioassay, including antagonistic and agonistic effects on estrogen receptor （ER）, androgen receptor （AR）, progesterone receptor （PR）, estrogen- related receptor （ERR） and aryl hydrocarbon receptor （AHR）, were conducted to evaluate the removal efficien- cies of EDCs by different treatment processes of a WWTP located in Beijing. Estrogenic, anti-estrogenic, anti- androgenic, anti-progesteronic, anti-ERR and the activa- tion of AHR activities were detected in samples from all treatment processes and the receiving water. The concen- tration of estrogenic contaminants with estradiol （E2） equivalent concentrations ranged from 0.82 x 10-9 to 3.54 x 10 9g Ee_EQ.L-1. The concentration of anti-estrogenic contaminants with 4-hydroxytamoxifen （4-OHT） equiva- lent concentrations ranged from 1.24 × 10-6 to 2.36 x 10-6 g 4-OHT-EQ.L-1. The concentration of anti-androgenic contaminants ranged from 2.21 x 10-s to 3.52 × 10-6g flutamide-EQ. L-1. The concentration of anti-progesteronic contaminants ranged from 3.15 x 10^-5 to 2.71 x 10^-4g RU486-EQ. L-1. The concentration of anti-ERR contami- nants ranged from 7.09 x 10-5 to 6.50 x 104 g 4-OHT-EQ × L^-10. The concentration of AHR activators ranged from 1.7 × 10-10 to 3.4 × 10^-10g TCDD-EQ-L-1. These processes including secondary clarifier, coagulation, as well as coal and sand filtration could eliminated 67.2% of estrogenic contaminants, 47.0% of anti-estrogenic contaminants, 98.3% of anti-androgenic contaminants, 88.4% of anti- progesteronic contaminants, 65.4% of anti-ERR contami- nants and 46.9% of AHR activators. WWTP effluents contain multiple receptor disruptors may have very complex adverse effects on exposed organisms.     

Using crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol polymer membrane as a separator in the microbial fuel cell

Separator between anode and cathode is an essential part of the microbial fuel cell （MFC） and its property could significantly influence the system perfor- mance. In this study we used polyvinyl alcohol （PVA） polymer membrane crosslinked with sulfosuccinic acid （SSA） as a new separator for the MFC. The highest power density of 7594-4 mW-m-2 was obtained when MFC using the PVA membrane crosslinked with 15% of SSA due to its desirable proton conductivity （5.16 x 10-2 S.cml）. The power density significantly increased to 11064- 30 mW.m-2 with a separator-electrode-assembly config- uration, which was comparable with glass fiber （11704- 46 mW.m-2）. The coulombic efficiencies of the MFCs with crosslinked PVA membranes ranged from 36.3% to 45.7% at a fix external resistance of lO00f2. The crosslinked PVA membrane could be a promising alter- native to separator materials for constructing practical MFC system.     

2019年秋季三亚市一次典型臭氧污染个例气象成因解析

三亚市位于海南岛最南端,旅游资源丰富,生态环境良好,是海南建设国际旅游岛和国家生态文明试验区的重要城市之一.2019年秋季三亚市出现的一次臭氧(Ozone,O3)污染过程,为科学认识三亚市此次O3污染特征及气象学成因,也为进一步开展O3污染预警预报和科学治理提供技术支撑,利用2019年11月1—6日三亚市生态环境局对外...     

Transport of Sewage Sludge in a Mixed Water Column

Sewage sludge from four publicly-owned treatment works was sampled and characterized in terms of parameters affecting transport at the 106-mile deep ocean disposal site as part of the US Environmental Protection Agency's site monitoring programme. Samples from treatment plants in Passaic Valley, Rahway, and Elizabeth, New Jersey and New York City were characterized in terms of dynamic size distribution, suspended solids and density. the transport characteristics of sludge particles were measured using a 2 metre computer-interfaced laboratory settling column. Experiments were conducted at constant salinity (35 ppt) while varying hydrodynamic mixing, sludge type and concentration using a modified factorial experimental design. Hydrodynamic power dissipation was varied so that the vertical dispersion and rms fluid shear rate ranged between 0-6 cm²S^-1 and 0-30s^-1 respectively. Results indicate that at least 80% of suspended sludge particles will eventually settle under mixed conditions. the average settling velocities ranged between 0.05-4.05 × 10^-3 cm ^s-1. Shear rates above 15 s^-1 inhibited sludge settling due to aggregate breakup and boundary effects, but at a lower shear rate, differential settling and fluid shear were the dominant transport mechanisms. Sludge dilution (1/500-1/5000) had a limited effect on the settling rate. Results from this study can be used to calibrate particle transport models to determine the fate of sludge disposed at an ocean disposal site.     

Rapid method for on-site determination of phenolic contaminants in water using a disposable biosensor

A disposable biosensor was fabricated using single-walled carbon nanotubes, gold nanoparticles and tyrosinase (SWCNTs-AuNPs-Tyr) modified screen-printed electrodes. The prepared biosensor was applied to the rapid determination of phenolic contaminants within 15 minutes. The SWCNTs-AuNPs-Tyr bionanocomposite sensing layer was characterized with scanning electron microscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry methods. The characterization results revealed that SWCNTs could lead to a high loading of tyrosinase (Tyr) with the large surface area and the porous morphology, while AuNPs could retain the bioactivity of Tyr and enhance the sensitivity. The detection conditions, including working potential, pH of supporting electrolyte and the amount of Tyr were optimumed. As an example, the biosensor for catechol determination displayed a linear range of 8.0 × 10^-8 to 2.0 × 10^-5 mol·L^-1 with a detection limit of 4.5 × 10^-8 mol·L^-1 (S/N = 3). This method has a rapid response time within 10 s, and shows excellent repeatability and stability. Moreover, the resulting biosensor could be disposable, low-cost, reliable and easy to carry. This kind of new Tyr biosensor provides great potential for rapid, on-site and cost-effective analysis of phenolic contaminants in environmental water samples.     

Effects of shear force on formation and properties of anoxic granular sludge in SBR

This paper reports the effects of shear force on anoxic granular sludge in sequencing batch reactors （SBR）. The study was carried out in two SBRs （SBR1 and SBR2） in which sodium acetate （200mg COD·L^-1） was used as the sole substrate and sodium nitrate （40 mgNO3-N·L^-1） was employed as the electron acceptor. The preliminary objective of this study was to cultivate anoxic granules in the SBR in order to investigate the effects of shear force on the formation of anoxic granular sludge and to compare the properties of anoxic sludge in the SBR. This study reports new results for the values of average velocity gradient, a measure of the applied shear force, which was varied in the two SBRs （3.79 s^-1 and 9.76 s^-1 for SBR1 and SBR2 respectively）. The important findings of this research highlight the dual effects of shear force on anoxic granules. A low shear force can produce large anoxic granules with high activity and poor settling ability, whereas higher shear forces produce smaller granules with better settling ability and lower activity. The results of this study show that the anoxic granulation is closely related to the strength of the shear force. For high shear force, this research demonstrated that： 1） granules with smaller diameters, high density and good settling ability were formed in the reactor, and 2） granular sludge formed faster than it did in the low shear force reactor （41days versus 76 days）. Once a steady-state has been achieved, the nitrate and COD removal rates were found to be 98% and 80%, respectively. For low shear force, such as was applied in SBR1, this research demonstrated that： 1） the activity of anoxic granular sludge in low shear force was higher than that in high shear force, 2） higher amount of soluble microbial products （SMPs） were produced, and 3） large pores were observed inside the larger granules,which are beneficial for nitrogen gas diffusion. Electron microscopic examination of the anoxic granules in both reactors showed that the morphology of the granules was ellipsoidal with a clear outline. Coccus and rod-shaped bacteria were wrapped by filamentous bacteria on the surface of granule.     

Scaling up a novel denitrifying microbial fuel cell with an oxic-anoxic two stage biocathode

A scaled up microbial fuel cell （MFC） of a 50 L volume was set up with an oxic-anoxic two-stage biocathode and activated semicoke packed electrodes to achieve simultaneous power generation and nitrogen and organic matter removals. An average maximum power density of 43.1 W·m^-3 was obtained in batch operating mode. By adjusting the two extemal resistances, the denitrification in the A-MFC and power production in the O-MFC could be enhanced. In continuous mode, when the hydraulic retention times were set at 6 h, 8 h and 12 h, the removal efficiencies of COD, NHf-N and total nitrogen （TN） were higher than 95%, 97%, and 84%, respectively. Meanwhile the removal loads for COD, NH4^＋-N and TN were10, 0.37 and 0.4 kg·（m^3·d）^-1, respectively.     

Selective recovery of Cu2+ and Ni2+ from wastewater using bioelectrochemical system

As the bioelectrochemical system, the microbial fuel cell (MFC) and the microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) were developed to selectively recover Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions from wastewater. The wastewater was treated in the cathode chambers of the system, in which Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions were removed by using the MFC and the MEC, respectively. At an initial Cu²⁺ concentration of 500 mg·L^-1, removal efficiencies of Cu²⁺ increased from 97.0%±1.8% to 99.0%±0.3% with the initial Ni²⁺ concentrations from 250 to 1000 mg·L^-1, and maximum power densities increased from 3.1±0.5 to 5.4±0.6 W·m^-3. The Ni²⁺ removal mass in the MEC increased from 6.8±0.2 to 20.5±1.5 mg with the increase of Ni²⁺ concentrations. At an initial Ni²⁺ concentration of 500 mg·L^-1, Cu²⁺ removal efficiencies decreased from 99.1%±0.3% to 74.2%±3.8% with the initial Cu²⁺ concentrations from 250 to 1000 mg·L^-1, and maximum power densities increased from 3.0±0.1 to 6.3±1.2 W·m^-3. Subsequently, the Ni²⁺ removal efficiencies decreased from 96.9%±3.1% to 73.3%±5.4%. The results clearly demonstrated the feasibility of selective recovery of Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ from the wastewater using the bioelectrochemical system.     

Technical feasibility study of an onshore ballast water treatment system

To fulfill the requirements of Guidelines for approval of ballast water management system (G8), a set of onshore ballast water treatment equipment utilizing micro-pore ceramic filtration (MPCF) and UV radiation (MPCF&UV) system was designed and set up with a maximum flow rate of 80 m³·h^-1. Technical feasibilities of MPCF&UV system were evaluated in three areas: removal efficiencies of indicator organism and oceanic bacteria, perdurability of a ceramic filter, and application on native seawater. The results showed that no indicator organism (Dunaliella) or oceanic bacteria was detected after treatment of 20 L MPCF and UV radiation at 1.3× 10⁴ μW·s·cm^-2. A 20 L ceramic filter can run continuously for 5.3 h at the flow rate of 15 m³·h^-1 before its pressure drop up to 0.195 MPa. The removal percentage of total plankton amounts were 91.9% at a flow rate of 70 m³·h^-1 by 80 L MPCF and UV radiation at 1.3× 10⁴ μW·s·cm^-2.     

Modeling of Ce（IV） transport through a dispersion flat combined liquid membrane with carrier P507

A mathematical model for the transport of Ce （IV） from hydrochloric acid solutions through dispersion flat combined liquid membrane （DFCLM） with contain 2- ethyl hexyl phosphonic acid-mono-2-ethyl hexyl ester （P507） as the carrier, dissolved in kerosene as the membrane solution have been studied. This process of facilitated transport, based on membrane technology, is a variation on the conventional technique of solvent extraction and may be described mathematically using Fick＇s second law. The equations for transport velocity are derived considering the diffusion of P507 and its metallic complexes through the liquid membrane. In this work, the system is considered to be in a transient state, and chemical reaction between Ce（IV） and the carrier to take place only at the solvent-aqueous interfaces. Model concentration profiles are obtained for the Ce（IV）, from which extraction velocities are predicted. The experimental and simulated Ce（IV） extractions showed similar tendencies for a high Ce （IV） concentration and acidity case.The model results indicate that high initial Ce（IV） concentrations and acidity both have detrimental effects on Ce（IV） extraction and stripping. The diffusion coefficient of Ce（IV） in the membrane and the thickness of diffusion layer between feed phase and membrane phase are obtained and the values are 6.31 × 10-8m2·s-1 and 31.2 μm, respectively. The results are in good agreement with experimental results.     

Kinetics and mechanisms of reactions for hydrated electron with chlorinated benzenes in aqueous solution

The reactions between chlorinated benzenes (CBzs) and hydrated electron (eaq-) were investigated by the electron beam (EB) and laser flash photolysis (LFP) experiments. Under the EB irradiation, the effects of irradiation dose, initial concentration and the number of Cl atoms on the removal efficiencies were further examined. At 10 kGy, the removal efficiencies of mono-CB, 1,3-diCB, 1,2-diCB and 1,4-diCB were 41.2%, 87.2%, 84.0%, and 84.1%, respectively. While irradiation dose was 50 kGy, the removal efficiencies increased to 47.4%, 95.8%, 95.0%, and 95.2%, respectively. Irradiation of CBzs solutions has shown that the higher the initial concentration, the lower the percentage of CBzs removal. In addition to this, the dechlorination efficiencies of 1,2-dichlorobenzene (1,2-diCB), 1,3-dichlorobenzene (1,3-diCB) and 1,4-dichlorobenzene (1,4-diCB) were much higher than that of chlorobenzene (mono-CB). The kinetics of the reactions was achieved with nanosecond LFP. The rate constants of second-order reaction between eaq- with mono-CB, 1,2-diCB, 1,3-diCB and 1,4-diCB were (5.3±0.4) × 10⁸, (4.76±0.1) × 10⁹, (1.01±0.1) × 10¹⁰ and (3.29±0.2) × 10⁹ L·mol^-1·s^-1, respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to determine the optical properties of unstable CBzs anion radicals, and the main absorption peaks lied in the range of 300–550 nm. The primary reaction pathway of CBzs with eaq- was gradual dechlorination, and the major products were Cl^- and benzene (CBzs(-Cl^-)). Furthermore, biphenyl (or chlorobiphenyl) was observed during the LFP, which was probably formed by recombination of benzene radicals.     

球磨零价镁/石墨(ZVMg/C)降解水中三氯乙烯

利用机械球磨法制备了零价镁/石墨(ZVMg/C)材料,并将其用于水溶液中三氯乙烯(TCE)的降解.研究通过SEM、BET和XRD等分析手段解析了ZVMg/C的表面形态结构和成分组成;采用正交实验方法优化了ZVMg/C的制备参数,比较了石墨含量对材料性能的影响;并考察了ZVMg/C投加量、溶液初始pH和地下水中常见阴(C...     

Effect of current density on groundwater arsenite removal performance using air cathode electrocoagulation

• With the same charge, current density had little effect on As(III) removal in ACEC. • ACEC had the lowest energy consumption compared with EC/O₂ or EC/N₂. • There was a trade-off relationship between energy consumption and removal time. • The ·OH concentration in ACEC was 1.5 times of that in the EC/O₂ system. Naturally occurring arsenic enrichment in groundwater poses a huge threat to human health. Air cathode electrocoagulation (ACEC) has recently been proposed to enhance As(III) oxidation and lower energy consumption. In this study, ACEC, EC/O₂ and EC/N₂ were evaluated with different current densities from 1 to 8 mA/cm² to investigate the effect on As(III) removal in different redox environments. Current density had no appreciable effect on arsenic removal efficiency given the same charge in ACEC because the concentration ratio of Fe/H₂O₂ under different current densities remained stable. However, in EC/O₂ and EC/N₂, As(III) removal was inhibited at higher current densities (4–8 mA/cm²), likely because more Fe(II) competed with As(III) for the oxidant, leading to less effective oxidation of As(III). In all EC systems, the ·OH units generated per power consumption reached the highest value at the lowest current density. Compared with other EC systems, the ACEC system showed lower energy consumption at all current densities due to the low energy consumption of the electrode reaction and more free radical generation. A lower current density saved more energy at the expense of time, showing the trade-off relationship between energy consumption and removal time. The operation costs for As(III) removal under optimal conditions were calculated as 0.028 $/m³ for ACEC, 0.030 $/m³ for EC/O₂, and 0.085 $/m³ for EC/N₂     

中国典型沿海城市冬季PM2.5中碳组分的污染特征及来源解析

为研究中国典型沿海城市冬季PM_2.5中碳组分的污染特征及来源,于2018年12月5日—2019年1月30日分别在天津(TJ)、上海(SH)和青岛(QD)同步采集PM_2.5样品。结果表明,天津、上海和青岛PM_2.5的平均浓度分别为(116.96±66.93)、(31.21±25.62)、(74.93±54.60)μg·m^-3,OC和EC的空间分布均为天津(18.69±7.95)μg·m^-3和(4.98±2.08)μg·m^-3>青岛(16.45±8.94)μg·m^-3和(2.01±1.04)μg·m^-3>上海(7.28±3.11)μg·m^-3和(1.05±1.25)μg·m^-3。3个站点的OC和EC均呈现较好的相关性,表明OC和EC具有相似的来源;OC/EC比值范围在2.37—7.53、5.47—46.41和4.77—13.36之间,证明各采样点均存在二次有机碳(SOC)的生成;采用最小R²法(MRS)估算SOC浓度,得到3个采样点SOC的平均质量浓度为(5.09±4.68)、(3.90±1.65)、(4.21±4.31)μg·m^-3,分别占OC总量的27.2%、55.8%和19.5%,其中上海的SOC在OC中的占比最大,说明上海二次有机碳污染较为严重,这主要归因于冬季严重污染源排放和有利的二次转化气象条件,而天津和青岛的碳组分主要来自污染源的直接排放。主成分分析(PCA)结果发现,天津PM_2.5中碳组分主要来源于道路尘、生物质燃烧和机动车尾气,上海PM_2.5中碳组分主要来源于生物质燃烧、道路扬尘和机动车尾气。青岛PM_2.5中碳组分主要来源于道路扬尘、机动车尾气。后向轨迹聚类分析表明,来自西北方向的气团对天津的影响较大,PM_2.5和碳组分的浓度值最大;而对上海而言,主要受北方气溶胶经过海面又传输回上海的气团的影响;青岛站点主要受华北地区污染物和本地排放源的影响。     

龙凤山大气气溶胶散射特性观测分析

利用2018年龙凤山区域大气本底站(简称龙凤山站)气溶胶散射系数、PM₁₀质量浓度及常规气象观测资料,研究了东北本底地区气溶胶散射系数的变化特征.结果表明,2018年龙凤山站3个波长下气溶胶散射系数的均值为(194.1±202.4)Mm^-1(450 nm)、(133.4±139.2)Mm^-1(550 nm)、(81.8±85.3)Mm^-1(700 nm).龙凤山地区散射系数具有明显的日变化特征,且不同季节的日变化特征具有较大区别.龙凤山地区地处相对洁净的背景地区,气溶胶散射系数水平相对较低,春季受局地及长距离风沙的影响散射系数均值较高,冬季东北地区采暖燃烧排放量比较大,大气层相对稳定,不利于气溶胶污染物的扩散,冬季气溶胶散射系数最高.夏秋季受湿沉降与植被条件的影响气溶胶散射系数最低.散射系数与PM₁₀质量浓度相关性较好,相关系数r为0.82.龙凤山PM₁₀的质量散射效率为3.6 m²·g^-1(550 nm).2018年龙凤山PM₁₀气溶胶的散射Angstrom指数(SAE)平均值为1.96±0.25,表明在观测期间气溶胶主要是以较小的粒子主导,夏季的SAE最大,秋季的SAE最低,春季和冬季居中.     

Enhanced dewatering characteristics of waste activated sludge with Fenton pretreatment: effectiveness and statistical optimization

In this work, the enhanced dewaterabing characteristics of waste activated sludge using Fenton pretreatment was investigated in terms of effectiveness and statistical optimization. Response surface method （RSM） and central composite design （CCD） were applied to evaluate and optimize the effectiveness of important operational parameters, i.e., H202 concentrations, Fe2＋ concentrations and initial pH values. A significant quadratic polynomial model was obtained （R2= 0.9189） with capillary suction time （CST） reduction efficiency as the response. Numerical optimization based on desirability function was carried out. The optimum values for H202, Fe2, and initial pH were found to be 178 mg-g-1 VSS （volatile suspended solids）, 211mg.gI VSS and 3.8, respectively, at which CST reduction efficiency of 98.25% could be achieved. This complied well with those predicted by the established polynomial model. The results indicate that Fenton pretreatment is an effective technique for advanced waste activated sludge dewatering. The enhancement of sludge dewaterability by Fenton＇s reagent lies in the migration of sludge bound water due to the disintegration of sludge flocs and microbial cells lysis.     

生物炭对土壤中阿特拉津吸附特征的影响

为探究生物炭对土壤中阿特拉津的吸附特征及影响因素,采用批处理实验研究了灭菌(T1)、5%秸秆生物炭+灭菌(T2)、未灭菌(T3)和5%秸秆生物炭+未灭菌(T4)条件下对土壤中阿特拉津吸附特征及土壤理化性质的影响.结果表明,在最初0—12 h内,不同处理下阿特拉津吸附量均随时间的延长而快速增加,而在12—96 h内增加较为缓慢并逐渐趋于平衡.在96 h时,T2和T4处理下阿特拉津最大吸附量分别达到46.22 mg·kg^-1和46.43 mg·kg^-1,而未添加生物炭的T1和T3处理则有所降低,分别为44.20 mg·kg^-1和43.09 mg·kg^-1.准二级动力学模型更好地拟合不同处理下土壤对阿特拉津吸附特征,T2和T4处理下吸附速率常数K分别为0.257 kg·mg^-1·h^-1和0.339 kg·mg^-1·h^-1,显著高于未添加生物炭处理的T1和T3处理(K分别为-0.083 kg·mg^-1·h^-1和-0.261 kg·mg^-1·h^-1).内扩散模型显示添加生物炭后,土壤对阿特拉津的吸附是一个由边界扩散、内部孔隙扩散等多因素控制的复杂化学过程.添加生物炭可显著提高土壤pH、有机碳、碱解氮、速效磷和速效钾含量,其中土壤有机碳含量与阿特拉津最大吸附量之间存在显著的正相关关系(P<0.05).由此可见,添加生物炭可以提高土壤对阿特拉津的固持能力,减少其淋溶迁移风险,从而达到修复阿特拉津污染土壤的目的.     

天津市夏季PM2.5中碳组分时空变化特征及来源解析

为研究天津市夏季PM_2.5中碳组分的时空变化特征及来源,于2019年7—8月设立2个点位分昼夜采集天津市PM_2.5样品,并测定了其中有机碳(OC)和元素碳(EC)的含量。结果表明,城区PM_2.5、OC和EC浓度日均值分别为(53.4±20.8)μg·m^-3、(8.72±2.56)μg·m^-3和(1.67±0.90)μg·m^-3,郊区PM_2.5、OC和EC浓度日均值分别为(54.2±24.5)μg·m^-3、(7.54±2.50)μg·m^-3和(1.82±1.06)μg·m^-3;白天PM_2.5、OC、EC的平均浓度分别为(47.3±16.1)μg·m^-3、(8.7±2.1)μg·m^-3和(1.5±0.6)μg·m^-3,夜间PM_2.5、OC、EC的平均浓度分别为(60.2±26.2)μg·m^-3、(7.5±2.9)μg·m^-3和(2.0±1.2)μg·m^-3。OC浓度表现为城区高于郊区,白天高于夜间;EC及PM_2.5浓度表现为郊区高于城区,夜间高于白天。OC/EC比值分析得,城区(6.04)高于郊区(5.08);白天(6.58)高于夜间(4.54)。城区OC与EC相关性弱于郊区,白天OC与EC相关性弱于夜间。采用EC示踪法与MRS模型对SOC含量进行估算,得到白天与夜间SOC浓度分别为(5.71±1.35)μg·m^-3和(3.81±1.20)μg·m^-3,白天SOC污染比夜间严重。丰度分析与主成分分析的结果表明,天津市夏季城郊区PM_2.5中碳组分均主要来源于燃煤和机动车尾气排放。     

Efficient production of hydrogen peroxide in microbial reverse-electrodialysis cells coupled with thermolytic solutions

● Appreciable H₂O₂ production rate was achieved in MRCs utilizing NH₄HCO₃ solutions. ● Carbon black outperformed activated carbon as the catalyst for H₂O₂ production. ● The optimum carbon black loading for H₂O₂ production on air-cathode was 10 mg/cm². ● The optimum number of cell pairs was determined to be three. ● A maximum power density of 980 mW/m² was produced by MRCs with 5 cell pairs. H₂O₂ was produced at an appreciable rate in microbial reverse-electrodialysis cells (MRCs) coupled with thermolytic solutions, which can simultaneously capture waste heat as electrical energy. To determine the optimal cathode and membrane stack configurations for H₂O₂ production, different catalysts, catalyst loadings and numbers of membrane cell pairs were tested. Carbon black (CB) outperformed activated carbon (AC) for H₂O₂ production, although AC showed higher catalytic activity for oxygen reduction. The optimum CB loading was 10 mg/cm² in terms of both the H₂O₂ production rate and power production. The optimum number of cell pairs was determined to be three based on a tradeoff between H₂O₂ production and capital costs. A H₂O₂ production rate as high as 0.99 ± 0.10 mmol/(L·h) was achieved with 10 mg/cm² CB loading and 3 cell pairs, where the H₂O₂ recovery efficiency was 52 ± 2% and the maximum power density was 780 ± 37 mW/m². Increasing the number of cell pairs to five resulted in an increase in maximum power density (980 ± 21 mW/m²) but showed limited effects on H₂O₂ production. These results indicated that MRCs can be an efficient method for sustainable H₂O₂ production.     

Preparation of hapten-specific monoclonal antibody for cadmium and its ELISA application to aqueous samples

High-affinity and specific monoclonal antibodies against cadmium-ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) complex have been produced using the hybridoma technique. A hapten was synthesized and characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and UV-Vis. Competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for quantitative detection of cadmium in aqueous sample was developed. The monoclonal antibody with high level of binding affinity for Cd-IEDTA-BSA and high specificity for soluble Cd-EDTA complex showed less than 0.99% cross-reactivity with other 11 metals. The limit of detection was 0.10 μg·L^-1, and the effective linear range was 10^-1–10³ μg·L^-1. The intra- and inter-assay coefficient variations were 1.5%–6.3% and 3.2%–7.4%, respectively. The spike recovery in different water samples were between 98.5% and 110.3%. The detection limit of this assay was well below the allowable concentration of cadmium (3 μg·L^-1), and the working range was wider than that of other methods which showed the range of 2.19–86.38 and 0–10³ μg·L^-1. The competitive ELISA established in this paper was sensitive and accurate in the screening of cadmium in aqueous samples. The results will lay a solid foundation for construction of an immunoassay kit for cadmium.