Sequential concentration of bacteria and viruses from marine waters using a dual membrane system

The ability to rapidly and effectively concentrate diverse microbes is an essential component for monitoring water quality at recreational beaches. The purpose of this study was to develop a 0.45 microm pore size dual membrane system, which can sequentially concentrate both viruses and bacteria. The top PVDF membrane was used to filter bacteria by physical straining while the bottom HA membrane retained viruses through adsorption. The recovery of this system was assessed using test organisms: enterococci and somatic coliphage. Volumes of 100 to 400 mL of unspiked and sewage-spiked beach water were filtered through both types of membranes. The PVDF membrane recovered statistically equivalent amounts of enterococci when compared to traditional membranes. All of the coliphage passed through the PVDF membrane, while 22% passed through the HA membrane. Increasing the volume from 100 to 400 mL did not significantly influence recoveries. Up to 35% of coliphage was eluted from the bottom membrane using beef extract solution. Rinsing bottom membranes with 0.5 mmol L(-1) H(2)S0(4) was found to deactivate somatic coliphage. This research demonstrates the potential of using a dual membrane adsorption system for the concentration of both bacteria and viruses from recreational beaches. A proposed bi-layer filtration system can be designed for simultaneous bacteria and virus filtration. Future experiments should focus on measurements utilizing additional bacteria and viruses.     

Preservative leaching from weathered CCA-treated wood

Disposal of discarded chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated wood in landfills raises concerns with respect to leaching of preservative compounds. When unweathered CCA-treated wood is leached using the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP), arsenic concentrations exceed the toxicity characteristic (TC) limit of 5mg/L in most cases. The majority of discarded CCA-treated wood, however, results from demolition activities, where the wood has typically been subjected to weathering. Since preservatives do migrate from the wood during its normal use, leaching characteristics of weathered and aged CCA-treated wood may differ from unweathered wood. To evaluate this, CCA-treated wood removed from service after various degrees of weathering was collected from multiple sources and leached with the TCLP, the synthetic precipitation leaching procedure (SPLP) and California's waste extraction test (WET). Five to seven individual pieces of wood were analyzed from each source. The average TCLP arsenic concentration for the 14 sources ranged from 3.2 to 13 mg/L. The average TCLP concentrations of the 100 wood pieces tested were 6.4, 5.9 and 3.2 mg/L for arsenic, copper and chromium, respectively. Overall, in 60 out of 100 samples tested by the TCLP, arsenic concentrations exceeded 5 mg/L (the TC regulatory value). SPLP leachate concentrations were similar to TCLP concentrations, although copper leached somewhat more with the TCLP. WET leachate concentrations were approximately a factor of 10 higher than TCLP concentrations. Discarded CCA-treated wood, even after exposure to years of weathering, often exceeds the TC limit for arsenic and without the current regulatory exemption would possibly require management as a TC hazardous waste in the US.     

CCA-treated wood disposed in landfills and life-cycle trade-offs with waste-to-energy and MSW landfill disposal

Chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated wood is a preservative treated wood construction product that grew in use in the 1970s for both residential and industrial applications. Although some countries have banned the use of the product for some applications, others have not, and the product continues to enter the waste stream from construction, demolition and remodeling projects. CCA-treated wood as a solid waste is managed in various ways throughout the world. In the US, CCA-treated wood is disposed primarily within landfills; however some of the wood is combusted in waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities. In other countries, the predominant disposal option for wood, sometimes including CCA-treated wood, is combustion for the production of energy. This paper presents an estimate of the quantity of CCA-treated wood entering the disposal stream in the US, as well as an examination of the trade-offs between landfilling and WTE combustion of CCA-treated wood through a life-cycle assessment and decision support tool (MSW DST). Based upon production statistics, the estimated life span and the phaseout of CCA-treated wood, recent disposal projections estimate the peak US disposal rate to occur in 2008, at 9.7 million m(3). CCA-treated wood, when disposed with construction and demolition (C&D) debris and municipal solid waste (MSW), has been found to increase arsenic and chromium concentrations in leachate. For this reason, and because MSW landfills are lined, MSW landfills have been recommended as a preferred disposal option over unlined C&D debris landfills. Between landfilling and WTE for the same mass of CCA-treated wood, WTE is more expensive (nearly twice the cost), but when operated in accordance with US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) regulations, it produces energy and does not emit fossil carbon emissions. If the wood is managed via WTE, less landfill area is required, which could be an influential trade-off in some countries. Although metals are concentrated in the ash in the WTE scenario, the MSW landfill scenario releases a greater amount of arsenic from leachate in a more dilute form. The WTE scenario releases more chromium from the ash on an annual basis. The WTE facility and subsequent ash disposal greatly concentrates the chromium, often oxidizing it to the more toxic and mobile Cr(VI) form. Elevated arsenic and chromium concentrations in the ash leachate may increase leachate management costs.