Source identification and characterization of the accumulating non-biodegradable organics in Korean reservoirs

An increase in the chemical oxygen demand (COD) has been noticed in most Korean reservoirs. Therefore, this research systematically investigated the causes of organic accumulation. Samples of soil affecting the quality of water of reservoirs were collected at various sources and analyzed for their organic characteristics. The COD to biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) ratio was used as the key parameter in the evaluation of non-biodegradable (NBD) organic accumulation in the reservoirs. Soil samples containing plant roots were agitated, with the supernatant showing COD/BOD ratios of less than 2.8, while those of the composted tree leaves were greater than 5.0, suggesting that humic substances produced in forest areas are a major cause of NBD organic accumulation in reservoirs. In addition, the organic fractionation of the leachate from leaching tests showed that of the various types of hydrophobic natural organic matter (NOM), the larger molecular weight humic acid makes a greater contribution than fulvic acid to the increase in the NBD COD in Korean reservoirs.     

Analysis of the nitrifying bacterial community in BioCube sponge media using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) and microelectrodes

There is growing interest in the development of more cost-effective and retrofit technologies for the upgrade and expansion of existing wastewater treatment plants with extreme space constraints. A free-floating sponge media (BioCube) process, using a 24L lab scale reactor, was operated to study the nitrification profiles and microbial community. The COD removal efficiencies were maintained, at an average of 95%, with the mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) inside the BioCube sponge media maintained at 12,688mg/L. The nitrification removal efficiencies were between 92% and 100%, with an average value of 99%. From the results of microelectrode measurements, the ammonium ion concentration was found to rapidly decrease from the surface of the BioCube sponge media to a depth of 2mm due to chemical reactions carried out by ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) species. Multi-fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) has been used to investigate the spatial distributions of various microbial activities within reactors. Microbial communities were targeted using different oligonucleotide probes specific to AOB and nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB). There were a large number of AOB populations, but these were not uniformly distributed in the biofilm compared to the NOB populations.     

Habitat and Biodiversity of On-Farm Water Storages: A Case Study in Southeast Queensland, Australia

On-farm water storages (locally known as farm dams or farm ponds) are an important part of many agricultural landscapes, as they provide a reliable source of water for irrigation and stock. Although these waterbodies are artificially constructed and morphologically simple, there is increasing interest in their potential role as habitat for native flora and fauna. In this article, we present results from a case study which examined the habitat characteristics (such as water physical and chemical parameters, benthic metabolism, and macrophyte cover) and the macrophyte and macroinvertebrate biodiversity of eight farm ponds on four properties in the Stanley Catchment, Southeast Queensland, Australia. Each landowner was interviewed to allow a comparison of the management of the ponds with measured habitat and biodiversity characteristics, and to understand landowners’ motivations in making farm pond management decisions. The physical and chemical water characteristics of the study ponds were comparable to the limited number of Australian farm ponds described in published literature. Littoral zones supported forty-five macroinvertebrate families, with most belonging to the orders Hemiptera, Coleoptera, Odonata, and Diptera. Invertebrate community composition was strongly influenced by littoral zone macrophyte structure, with significant differences between ponds with high macrophyte cover compared to those with bare littoral zones. The importance of littoral zone macrophytes was also suggested by a significant positive relationship between invertebrate taxonomic richness and macrophyte cover. The landowners in this study demonstrated sound ecological knowledge of their farm ponds, but many had not previously acknowledged them as having high habitat value for native flora and fauna. If managed for aquatic organisms as well as reliable water sources, these artificial habitats may help to maintain regional biodiversity, particularly given the large number of farm ponds across the landscape.     

昌黎黄金海岸自然保护区海域所面临的环境压力与对策

海洋环境压力是海洋生态监测中的一个重要方面,是指对海洋生态环境造成影响的各方面因素.正确掌握海洋环境压力是保护好海洋的基础.本文根据昌黎黄金海岸国家级自然护区近些年来的海洋生态监测结果,在对保护区海域现在所面临的环境压力及给海洋生态系统造成的影响的基础上,提出了相应的缓解对策.     

高职教育考试方法改革的探索与实践

根据高职教育教学的要求和课程特点,尤其是为适应培养应用型人才的教学模式,打破“高分低能”的现象,充分发挥考试在高职教育中的指导性作用,本文以食品质量与安全专业的课程为例,对考试考核方法的改革进行了探索与实践。高职教育的考试应突出应用能力考核,加强实践技能检验,坚持在实践中学习、在实践中考核,全面推行操作技能考核,施行“考教分离”,考试形式多样化的原则。     

农药水环境化学行为研究进展

农药在水中的环境化学行为包括农药的光化学降解、水化学降解和农药对水生生物的毒性。结合国内外在农药水环境化学行为的研究进展,讨论了农药在水中的直接光解和间接光解行为;农药水化学降解的机理以及pH、温度对农药水化学降解的影响,并以藻类、鱼类等为例阐述了农药对水生动植物及水生生物群落的毒性。     

Generation of Monthly Precipitation Under Climate Change for the Upper Blue Nile River Basin,Ethiopia1

Abstract: This work develops a methodology to project the future precipitation in large river basins under limited data and climate change while preserving the historical temporal and spatial characteristics. The computationally simple and reliable conditional generation method (CGM) is presented and applied to generate reliable monthly precipitation data in the upper Blue Nile River Basin of Ethiopia where rain‐fed agriculture is prevalent. The results showed that the temporal analysis with the CGM performs better to reproduce the historical long‐term characteristics than other methods, and the spatial analysis with the CGM reproduced the historical spatial structure accurately. A 100‐year time series analysis using the outcomes of the six general circulation models showed that precipitation changes by the 2050s (2040 through 2069) can be ?7 to 28% with a mean increase of about 11%. The seasonal results showed increasing wet conditions in all seasons with changes of mean precipitation of 5, 47, and 6% for wet, dry, and mild seasons, respectively.     

Estrogen equivalent concentration of 13 branched para-nonylphenols in three technical mixtures by isomer-specific determination using their synthetic standards in SIM mode with GC-MS and two new diasteromeric isomers

Thirteen isomers of branched para-nonylphenols (para-NP) in three technical mixtures were isomer-specifically determined using their synthesized standards by SIM of structurally specific ions, m/z 135, 149 or 163 with GC–MS. Of the 13 isomers, four isomers, 4-(2,4-dimethylheptan-4-yl)phenol, 4-(4-methyloctan-4-yl)phenol, 4-(3-ethyl-2-methylhexan-2-yl)phenol (3E22NP) and 4-(2,3-dimethylheptan-2-yl)phenol synthesized for their determinations were first used as standard substances. The 13 isomers in the technical mixtures individually occurred at mass percent portion of more than 2%. The total mass percent portions in the mixtures from Tokyo Chemical Industry (TCI), Aldrich, and Fluka covered with 89 ± 2%, 75 ± 4% and 77 ± 2%, respectively. The abundance of 4-(3,6-dimethylheptan-3-yl)phenol in the three mixtures was the largest with 11.1 ± 2% to 9.9 ± 0.3%, while that of 4-(2-methyloctan-2-yl)phenol was the smallest with 2.9 ± 0.3% to 3.0 ± 0.2%. Additionally, structures of four new isomers of more than 1% portion present in a technical mixture were elucidated as two pairs of diastereomeric isomers: two types of 4-(3,4-dimethylheptan-4-yl)phenol (344NP) and those of 4-(3,4-dimethylheptan-3-yl)phenol (343NP). By estrogenic assay of 13 isomers with yeast estrogen screen system, the activity of 3E22NP was the highest, while that of 4-(3-methyloctan-3-yl)phenol was the least. Their relative activities to that of 3E22NP were individually calculated. Estrogenic equivalent concentrations of the three technical mixtures were predictively evaluated. The ratio of the EEC to the conventional concentration, total mass percent portions of the 13 isomers in technical mixtures were 0.208 for TCI, 0.206 for Aldrich and 0.205 for Fluka. The predicted estrogenic activity of measured concentration of para-NP in technical mixtures was approximately 5-fold greater than the measured estrogen agonist activity.     

Development and application of kinetic model on biological anoxic/aerobic filter

An up-flow biological anoxic filter (BANF) has been developed to achieve high removal performance of suspended solids and BOD removal as well as nitrogen. With a view to understand treatment mechanisms, we developed a filtration model that incorporates filtration, deposit scoring and biological reactions simultaneously. The biological reactions consist of four types of reaction; dissolution of organic particles; utilization of dissolved organic matter; denitrification; and self-degradation of bacteria. Whereas the reactor is generally assumed to be a plug flow reactor in the filtration model, it is assumed a continuous-flow stirred tank reactor (CSTR) in the model of biological reactions. The hydrodynamics is supposed that the filter bottom (the portion sludge settled) is a CSTR and the filter bed (the portion filled with filter media) consists of number of CSTR of equal size arranged in series. The model obtained in this study was verified and simulated using experimental results taken from a pilot-scale plant and predicted the experimental data well, applying to design and operate BANF.     

Anaerobic degradation behavior of nonylphenol polyethoxylates in sludge

Anaerobic biodegradation behavior of nonylphenol polyethoxylates (NPEOs) was investigated. Results showed that terminal electron acceptors, organic matters, initial concentration, and temperature had great influence on the anaerobic biodegradation of NPEOs. Anaerobic biodegradation of NPEOs could be enhanced by adding sulfate or nitrate while this process could be inhibited by adding organic matters. The maximum removal rate increased 1.24 microM d(-1) for each ten micromoles increase in initial concentration. The decrease in temperature caused a sharp decrease in the removal efficiency of NPEOs. The temperature coefficient (PHI) for the anaerobic biodegradation of NPEOs was 0.01 degrees C(-1). Nonylphenol (NP), the typical intermediate of NPEOs, could inhibit the anaerobic biodegradation of NPEOs only at high concentration. However, these environmental factors had no effect on the anaerobic biodegradation pathway of NPEOs. The accumulation of NP and short-chain NPEOs during NPEO biodegradation led to a significant increase in the estrogenic activity during the biodegradation period.