Photocatalytic degradation of phenol

In this study photocatalytic degradation of phenol in thepresence of UV irradiated TiO₂ catalyst andH₂O₂was investigated. Effects of TiO₂ andH₂O₂concentrations and pH on photocatalytic degradation were examined. The rate constants for photocatalytic degradation wereevaluated as a function of TiO₂ and H₂O₂ concentrations and pH of the solution. It was found thatphotodegradation is an effective method for the removal of phenoland disappearance of phenol obeyed first order kinetics. The amount of CO₂h produced during photocatalytic degradation wascorresponding to the complete mineralization. Photodegradationcan be an alternative method for the treatment of phenol containing wastewaters.     

Almond shell activated carbon: adsorbent and catalytic support in the phenol degradation

In this work, two technologies are studied for the removal of phenol from aqueous solution: dynamic adsorption onto activated carbon and photocatalysis. Almond shell activated carbon (ASAC) was used as adsorbent and catalytic support in the phenol degradation process. The prepared catalyst by deposition of anatase TiO₂ on the surface of activated carbon was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, sorption of nitrogen, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and pH_ZPC point of zero charge. In the continuous adsorption experiments, the effects of flow rate, bed height, and solution temperature on the breakthrough curves have been studied. The breakthrough curves were favorably described by the Yoon–Nelson model. The photocatalytic degradation of phenol has been investigated at room temperature using TiO₂-coated activated carbon as photocatalyst (TiO₂/ASAC). The degradation reaction was optimized with respect to the phenol concentration and catalyst amount. The kinetics of disappearance of the organic pollutant followed an apparent first-order rate. The findings demonstrated the applicability of ASAC for the adsorptive and catalytic treatment of phenol.     

Photocatalytic degradation of NOx in a pilot street canyon configuration using TiO2-mortar panels

Titanium dioxide is the most important photocatalysts used for purifying applications. If a TiO₂- containing material is left outdoors as a form of flat panels, it is activated by sunlight to remove harmful NOx gases during the day. The photocatalytic efficiency of a TiO₂-treated mortar for removal of NOx was investigated in the frame of this work. For this purpose a fully equipped monitoring system was designed at a pilot site. This system allows the in situ evaluation of the de-polluting properties of a photocatalytic material by taking into account the climatologic phenomena in street canyons, accurate measurements of pollution level and full registration of meteorological data The pilot site involved three artificial canyon streets, a pollution source, continuous NOx measurements inside the canyons and the source as well as background and meteorological measurements. Significant differences on the NOx concentration level were observed between the TiO₂ treated and the reference canyon. NOx values in TiO₂ canyon were 36.7 to 82.0% lower than the ones observed in the reference one. Data arising from this study could be used to assess the impact of the photocatalytic material on the purification of the urban environment.     

Pathways and Kinetics on Photocatalytic Destruction of Aqueous Phenol

In this study, the TiO₂ photocatalytic decomposition process of aqueous phenol was investigated. The intermediate products generated in the elementary reaction steps in the mineralization process were experimentally identified as hydroquinone, catechol and hydroxyhydroquinone. The concentration variations of these intermediate products with time passage were traced by high performance liquid chromatograph. The pathways of the decomposition process were given. Based on Langmuir isothermal theory and Langmuir-Hinshelwood mechanism, the multi-compounds competition kinetic model was established. In this model, the observed time-dependent concentrations of phenol and the intermediate products were simulated.     

Evaluation of the effectiveness of red mud-supported catalysts in combination with ozone and TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> in the treatment of solution containing benzene,toluene, and xylene

Ozone and a Fe²⁺/TiO₂-based catalyst were examined in the degradation of a synthetic solution of benzene toluene and xylene (BTX) in an advanced oxidation process (AOP). The catalyst beads were made from the slurry waste of aluminum production process, by inserting the TiO₂ content and subsequent calcination. The reduction of the BTX concentration load was monitored by the reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and BTX concentration. Different levels were used on factors: pH, time of treatment, initial concentration of BTX, and percentage of TiO₂. The process was conducted in a bubble column reactor with the insertion of catalyst beads. A response surface methodology technique (CCD) was used to build a model based on COD reduction results. The model was optimized using the normal-boundary intersection (NBI) algorithm to maximize COD reduction and minimize the variance attributed to the process. Optimization led to COD reductions of 80% in 2 h of experiment. Correlation analysis of coefficient models from experimental data R²_adj was 0.9966, showing a good fit of model data. In the optimized conditions, the possible increase of the biodegradability ratio of the BTX solution, through the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and COD, was also analyzed. Under pre-treatment conditions, the BOD/COD ratio was 0.13. After the treatment, it increased to 0.56.

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Comparison of Numerical and Experimental Results for the Evaluation of the Depollution Effectiveness of Photocatalytic Coverings in Street Canyons

Towards the aim of improving the air quality in the urban environment via the application of innovative TiO₂ based photocatalytic coverings, a field campaign took place within the frame of the EU PICADA project () to asses the expected depollution efficiency of such materials under realistic conditions. Furthermore, extensive numerical modeling was performed via the application of the RANS CFD code for microscale applications MIMO, in an effort to asses the sensitivity of the developing flow field and the corresponding dispersion mechanism and hence of the depollution efficiency of the PICADA products on a wide range of factors, with most notably the length of the street canyon, the thermal exchange between the heated street canyon walls and the air and the approaching wind direction. For the needs of the PICADA project a new, simple module had to be implemented into MIMO to be able to model the removal of NO_x from a street canyon whose walls have been treated with a photocatalytic product. The model simulations results presented in this paper, show that MIMO is indeed capable of predicting the effectiveness of the photocatalytic products in question. At the same time, they reveal a strong dependence of the developing flow and concentration fields inside the field site street canyon configuration on most of the aforementioned factors with most notably the direction of the approaching wind.

电力跨区域调配隐含的污染转移效应

为研究中国30个省/自治区/直辖市之间电力区域调配的污染物转移效应,构建了电力传输的污染转移模型,并以SO_2和NO_x为例对2006、2015年数据进行测算。结果表明,2015年电力行业SO_2、NO_x排放强度分别由2006年的4.03、2.18 g/(kW·h)下降到0.69、0.77 g/(kW·h)。2015年,16个电力净输入区通过电力跨区域传输的SO_2、NO_x转移量分别为47.8×10~4、53.0×10~4t,占这些地区电力行业SO_2、NO_x排放量的24.1%、24.2%;14个电力净输出区通过电力跨区域传输的SO_2、NO_x转移量分别为-54.6×10~4、-52.1×10~4t,占这些地区电力行业SO_2、NO_x排放量的26.5%、22.8%。研究结果对于分析区域物质流动所隐含的污染流动,全面认识区域污染物排放格局,制定合理的区域污染减排目标具有一定借鉴意义。     

Atmosphic pollutants study of particles ionic species during high wind speed (>7 m s-1) near Taiwan strait in central Taiwan from 2004 to 2005

This study monitored atmospheric pollutants during high wind speed (> 7 m s⁻¹) at two sampling sites: Taichung Harbor (TH) and Wuci traffic (WT) during March 2004 to January 2005 in central Taiwan. The correlation coefficient (R ²) between TSP, PM_2.5, PM_2.5−10 particle concentration vs. wind speed at the TH and WT sampling site during high wind speed (< 7 m s⁻¹) were also displayed in this study. In addition, the correlation coefficients between TSP, PM_2.5 and PM_2.5−10 of ionic species vs. high wind speed were also observed. The results indicated that the correlation coefficient order was TSP > PM_2.5−10 > PM_2.5 for particle at both sampling sites near Taiwan strait. In addition, the concentration of Cl⁻, NO₃ ⁻, SO₄ ²⁻, NH₄ ⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺ and Na⁺ were also analyzed in this study.     

Study of urban atmospheric pollution in Navarre (Northern Spain)

An ambient air quality study was undertaken in two cities (Pamplona and Alsasua) of the Province of Navarre in northern Spain from July 2001 to June 2004. The data were obtained from two urban monitoring sites. At both monitoring sites, ambient levels of ozone, NO_x, and SO₂ were measured. Simultaneously with levels of PM₁₀ measured at Alsasua (using a laser particle counter), PM₁₀ levels were also determined at Pamplona (using a beta attenuation monitor). Mean annual PM₁₀ concentrations in Pamplona and Alsasua reached 30 and 28 μg m⁻³, respectively. These concentrations are typical for urban background sites in Northern Spain. By using meteorological information and back trajectories, it was found that the number of exceedances of the daily PM₁₀ limit as well as the PM₁₀ temporal variation was highly influenced by air masses from North Africa. Although North African transport was observed on only 9% of the days, it contributed the highest observed PM₁₀ levels. Transport from the Atlantic Ocean was observed on 68% of the days; transport from Europe on 13%; low transport and local influences on 7%; and transport from the Mediterranean region on 3% of the days. The mean O₃ concentrations were 45 and 55 μg m⁻³ in Pamplona and Alsasua, respectively, which were above the values reported for the main Spanish cities. The mean NO and NO₂ levels were very similar in both sites (12 and 26 μg m⁻³, respectively). Mean SO₂ levels were 8 μg m⁻³ in Pamplona and 5 μg m⁻³ in Alsasua. Hourly levels of PM₁₀, NO and NO₂ showed similar variations with the typically two coincident maximums during traffic rush hours demonstrating a major anthropogenic origin of PM₁₀, in spite of the sporadic dust outbreaks.     

Influence of Meteorological Parameters on Particulates and Atmospheric Pollutants at Taichung Harbor Sampling Site

Atmospheric aerosol particles and metallic concentrations, ionic species were monitored at the Experimental harbor of Taichung sampling site in this study. This work attempted to characterize metallic elements and ionic species associated with meteorological conditions variation on atmospheric particulate matter in TSP, PM_2.5, PM_2.5–10. The concentration distribution trend between TSP, PM_2.5, PM_2.5–10 particle concentration at the TH (Taichung harbor) sampling site were also displayed in this study. Besides, the meteorological conditions variation of metallic elements (Fe, Mg, Cr, Cu, Zn, Mn and Pb) and ions species (Cl⁻, NO₃ ⁻, SO₄ ²⁻, NH₄ ⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺ and Na⁺) concentrations attached with those particulate were also analyzed in this study. On non-parametric (Spearman) correlation analysis, the results indicated that the meteorological conditions have high correlation at largest particulate concentrations for TSP at TH sampling site in this study. In addition, the temperature and relative humidity of meteorological conditions that played a key role to affect particulate matter (PM) and have higher correlations then other meteorological conditions such as wind speed and atmospheric pressure. The parameter temperature and relative humidity also have high correlations with atmospheric pollutants compared with those of the other meteorological variables (wind speed, atmospheric pressure and prevalent wind direction). In addition, relative statistical equations between pollutants and meteorological variables were also characterized in this study.     

Synthesis of magnetic carbon nanotube and photocatalytic dye degradation ability

In this paper, magnetic carbon nanotube (M-CNT) was synthesized. The photocatalytic dye degradation ability of M-CNT in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) from colored wastewater was studied. Manganese ferrite (MnFe₂O₄) was synthesized in the presence of multiwalled carbon nanotube. Direct Red 23 (DR23), Direct Red 31 (DR31), and Direct Red 81 (DR81) were used as anionic dyes. The characteristics of M-CNT were investigated using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The photocatalytic dye degradation using M-CNT was studied by UV–vis spectrophotometer and ion chromatography (IC). The effects of M-CNT dosage, initial dye concentration, and salt on the degradation of dye were evaluated. Formate, acetate, and oxalate anions were detected as dominant aliphatic intermediates. Inorganic anions (nitrate and sulfate anions) were detected and quantified as the mineralization products of dyes during the degradation process. The results indicated that the M-CNT could be used as a magnetic catalyst to degrade anionic dyes from colored wastewater.     

Persistence and Dissipation Kinetics of Spiromesifen in Chili and Cotton

In a field study carried out at three different locations, the dissipation of spiromesifen on cotton and chili was studied and its DT₅₀, and DT₉₉ were estimated at each location. Spiromesifen was sprayed on chili at 96 and 192 g a.i. ha⁻¹ and cotton at 120 and 240 g a.i. ha⁻¹. Samples of chili fruits were drawn at 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, 21, 30 days after treatment and that of cotton seed and lint at first picking and harvest. Soil samples were drawn 30 days after treatment from 0 to 15 and 15 to 30 cm layer. Quantification of residues was done on GC–MS in Selected Ion Monitoring (SIM) mode in mass range 271–274 m/z. The LOQ of this method was found 0.033 μg g⁻¹, LOD being 0.01 μg g⁻¹. The DT₅₀ of spiromesifen when applied at recommended doses in chili fruits was found to be 2.18–2.40 days. Ninety-nine percent degradation was found to occur within 14.5–16.3 days after application. Residues of spiromesifen were not detected in cotton seed and lint samples at the first picking. In soil, no residues of spiromesifen were detectable 15 days after treatment.     

Monitoring of Criteria Air Pollutants in Bursa, Turkey

The concentrations of criteria air pollutants such as CO, NO_x (NO + NO₂), SO₂ and PM were measured in the period of May 2001 and April 2003 in the city of Bursa, Turkey. The average concentrations for this period were 1115±1600 μg/m³, 29±50 μg/m³, 51±24 μg/m³, 79±65 μg/m³, 40±35 μg/m³, 98±220 μg/m³, for CO, NO, NO₂, NO_x, SO₂ and PM, respectively. Temporal changes in concentrations were analyzed using meteorological factors. Correlations among pollutant concentrations and meteorological parameters showed weak relations nearly in all data. Lower concentrations were observed in the summer months while higher concentrations were measured in the winter months. The increase in winter concentrations was probably due to residential heating. Pollutants were associated with each other in order to have information about their origin. NO_x/SO₂ ratio was also examined to bring out the source origin contributing on air pollution (i.e., traffic or stationary).     

Air Pollution Concentrations of PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 at Ambient and Kerbsite and Their Correlation in Metro City – Mumbai

Ambient concentrations of PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ are of concern with respect to effects on human health and environment. Increased levels of mortality and morbidity have been associated with respirable particulate air pollution. In India, it is not yet mandatory to monitor PM_2.5 levels therefore very limited information is available on PM_2.5 levels. To understand the fine particle pollution and also correlate with PM₁₀ which are monitored regularly in compliance with ambient air quality standards. This study was carried out to monitor PM_2.5, PM₁₀, and NO₂ for about one year in a residential cum commercial area of Mumbai city with a view to understand their correlation. The average PM_2.5 concentration at ambient and Kerbsite was 43 and 69 μg/m³. The correlation coefficients between PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ at ambient and Kerbsite were 0.83 and 0.85 respectively thus indicating that most of the PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ are from similar sources. TSP, PM₁₀ levels exceeded Central Pollution Control Board(CPCB) standard during winter season. PM_2.5 levels also exceeded 24 hourly average USEPA standard during winter season indicating unhealthy air quality.     

Identifying the European Fossil Fuel Plumes in the Atmosphere Over the Northeast Atlantic Region Through Isotopic Observations and Numerical Modelling

As part of the Danish NEAREX project the origin and variability of anthropogenic atmospheric CO₂ over the Northeast Atlantic Region (NEAR) has been studied. The project consisted of a combination of experimental and modelling activities. Local volunteers operated CO₂ sampling stations, built at University of Copenhagen, for ¹⁴C analysis at four locations (East Denmark, Shetland Isles, Faroe Isles and Iceland). The samples were only collected during winter periods of south-easterly winds in an attempt to trace air enriched in fossil-fuel derived CO₂ due to combustion of fossil fuels within European countries. In order to study the transport and concentration fields over the region in detail, a three-dimensional Eulerian hemispheric air pollution model has been extended to include the main anthropogenic sources for atmospheric CO₂. During the project period (1998–2001) only a few episodes of transport from Central Europe towards NEAR arose, which makes the data set for the evaluation of the method sparse. The analysed samples indicate that the signal for fossil CO₂, as expected, is largest (up to 3.7±0.4% fossil CO₂) at the Danish location closest to the European emissions areas and much weaker (up to ∼1.5±0.6% fossil CO₂) at the most remote location. As the anthropogenic signal is weak in the clean atmosphere over NEAR these numbers will, however, be very sensitive to the assumed background ¹⁴CO₂ activity and the precision of the measurements. The model simulations include the interplay between the driving processes from the emission into the boundary layer and the following horizontal/vertical mixing and atmospheric transport and are used to analyse the meteorological conditions leading to the observed events of high fossil CO₂ over NEAR. This information about the history of the air masses is essential if an observed signal is to be utilised for identifying and quantifying sources for fossil CO₂.     

Sensitivity analysis of water quality for Delhi stretch of the River Yamuna,India

Simulation models are used to aid the decision makers about water pollution control and management in river systems. However, uncertainty of model parameters affects the model predictions and hence the pollution control decision. Therefore, it often is necessary to identify the model parameters that significantly affect the model output uncertainty prior to or as a supplement to model application to water pollution control and planning problems. In this study, sensitivity analysis, as a tool for uncertainty analysis was carried out to assess the sensitivity of water quality to (a) model parameters (b) pollution abatement measures such as wastewater treatment, waste discharge and flow augmentation from upstream reservoir. In addition, sensitivity analysis for the “best practical solution” was carried out to help the decision makers in choosing an appropriate option. The Delhi stretch of the river Yamuna was considered as a case study. The QUAL2E model is used for water quality simulation. The results obtained indicate that parameters K ₁ (deoxygenation constant) and K ₃ (settling oxygen demand), which is the rate of biochemical decomposition of organic matter and rate of BOD removal by settling, respectively, are the most sensitive parameters for the considered river stretch. Different combinations of variations in K ₁ and K ₂ also revealed similar results for better understanding of inter-dependability of K ₁ and K ₂. Also, among the pollution abatement methods, the change (perturbation) in wastewater treatment level at primary, secondary, tertiary, and advanced has the greatest effect on the uncertainty of the simulated dissolved oxygen and biochemical oxygen demand concentrations.     

Application of the UAM-V and Use of Indicator Species to Assess Control Strategies for Ozone Reduction in the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia

Modelled and measured indicator species ratios of O₃/NOz, O₃/NOy, H₂O₂/HNO₃, HCNO/NOy for the Lower Fraser Valley were compared with VOC-NO_x-O₃ sensitivity threshold values reported in previous studies. Modelled region - specific indicator ratio thresholds derived from 50% NOx and 50% VOC reduction scenarios are provided. They show strongest agreement with the H₂O₂/HNO₃ ratio values found elsewhere. A clear transition region for the LFV from VOC to NOx sensitivity could not be identified, but there is evidence that O₃ concentrations in the western valley, dominated by metropolitan Vancouver, are VOC sensitive, and the more rural eastern valley O₃ concentrations exhibit greater NO_x sensitivity. The UAM-V Process Analysis utility was used to identify physical and chemical mechanisms which contributed to O₃ formation and destruction and indicate the key importance of entrainment from elevated layers generated by the highly complex meteorological conditions in determining near surface O₃ concentrations.     

Toxicity assessment of textile effluents treated by advanced oxidative process (UV/TiO2 and UV/TiO2/H2O2) in the species Artemia salina L.

Textile industry wastes raise a great concern due to their strong coloration and toxicity. The objective of the present work was to characterize the degradation and mineralization of textile effluents by advanced oxidative processes using either TiO₂ or TiO₂/H₂O₂ and to monitor the toxicity of the products formed during 6-h irradiation in relation to that of the in natura effluent. The results demonstrated that the TiO₂/H₂O₂ association was more efficient in the mineralization of textile effluents than TiO₂, with high mineralized ion concentrations (NH ₄ ⁺ , NO ₃ ^? , and SO ₄ ^2? ) and significantly decreased organic matter ratios (represented by the chemical oxygen demand and total organic carbon). The toxicity of the degradation products after 4-h irradiation to Artemia salina L. was not significant (below 10 %). However, the TiO₂/H₂O₂ association produced more toxicity under irradiation than the TiO₂ system, which was attributed to the increased presence of oxidants in the first group. Comparatively, the photogenerated products of both TiO₂ and the TiO₂/H₂O₂ association were less toxic than the in natura effluent.     

Inter-Laboratory Comparison of No2 and SO2 Generated by Dynamic Dilution System Under Laboratory Conditions: A Technical Discussion

A workshop on analytical quality control (AQC) of ambient air quality measurement methods for nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and sulphur dioxide (SO₂) was conducted by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for officials involved in National Ambient Air Quality Monitoring (NAAQM) in India. Concentrations of NO₂ and SO₂ were generated by dynamic dilution system under laboratory conditions at low and high levels and measured using static dilution system and wet chemical methods laid down by CPCB under section 16(2)(h) of the air act 1981. CPCB provided the measured values as reference values for comparing the means obtained by the officials participated from thirteen organizations. A tolerance limit of ±15% of the reference values was specified to accept the results. Generated concentrations, which were unknown to the participants, were measured using gaseous sampling assembly (Envirotech APM 411, New Delhi, India), and wet chemical methods laid down by CPCB i.e. the same methodology which is used by the organizations to generate the data of NO₂ and SO₂ in ambient air. Simultaneously, concentrations were checked by CPCB using automatic analyzers as a check on reference concentration. It is observed that results of automatic analyzers for NO₂ and SO₂ were within a tolerance of ±5% with %RSD below 3. On the other hand, results of most of the participants showed variability in the measurements with %RSD ranging between ±0.8 and ±88.6 and exceedences of means from the tolerance limit with bias ranging between 1.4 and −59%. To check the cause of high variability in the measurements obtained under identical conditions, duplicate sampling was performed by one of the participants for SO₂ at low concentration level. In this study, results of wet chemical methods, automatic analyzers and results of duplicate sampling are analysed statistically to assess the cause of high variability in the measurements. Analysis of t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed highly significant results for NO₂ and SO₂ at high concentration levels (α 0.05) and for SO₂ at both the levels (α 0.01) respectively indicating some bias is existing either in the sampling or in analytical technique. Duplicate sampling performed to check precision in parallel measurements showed high %RSD indicating the presence of systematic error in sampling technique as the same calibration factor (CF) was used to measure the concentration of duplicate samples. Statistical analysis of flow rates of duplicate sampling showed that the sampling assembly could not maintain the constant flow rate within the ±10% with that measured at the start of the sampling. This resulted in high %RSD and deviation from the reference values for the results of most of the participants, even after accepting ±15% tolerance limit. There is a need to improve and evaluate this gaseous sample collection device under laboratory conditions to generate reliable database of NO₂ and SO₂ in ambient air.     

湿法脱硫烟气中多形态颗粒物的测量方法及组分特征

为全面测量固定源湿法脱硫烟气中多形态颗粒物的排放浓度及其离子组成特征，提出了一种基于一级冷凝、二级过滤和一级冲击吸收的多形态烟气颗粒物的同步测量方法，外场实测了3种湿法脱硫和除尘工艺的排放水平。现场测试表明：简易湿法除尘脱硫（NaOH法）一体化装置烟气中可过滤颗粒物（FPM）浓度为（36±11）mg/m³，可逃逸颗粒物（EPM）浓度为（33±7）mg/m³；氧化镁法+布袋除尘工艺烟气中FPM浓度为（14±5）mg/m³，EPM浓度为（13±6）mg/m³；石灰石-石膏脱硫+电袋除尘工艺烟气中FPM浓度低，小于3 mg/m³，EPM浓度为（6±1）mg/m³；烟气中EPM是传统滤膜法检测FPM浓度的0.7~5.7倍，EPM的主要存在形态为冷凝液中的可溶解颗粒物（DPM），颗粒物的组分与脱硫方法密切相关，各形态颗粒物的主要组分是SO₄^2-、SO₃^2-、NO₃^-、NO₂^-、NH₄⁺、Cl^-、Na⁺、Mg²⁺和Ca²⁺等离子。