Oxidative removal of acetaminophen using zero valent aluminum-acid system: Efficacy, influencing factors, and reaction mechanism

Commercial available zero valent aluminum under air-equilibrated acidic conditions (ZVAl/H⁺/air system) demonstrated an excellent capacity to remove aqueous organic compounds. Acetaminophen (ACTM), the active ingredient of the over-the-counter drug Tylenol^®, is widely present in the aquatic environment and therefore the treatment of ACTM-contaminated water calls for further research. Herein we investigated the oxidative removal of ACTM by ZVAl/H⁺/air system and the reaction mechanism. In acidic solutions (pH < 3.5), ZVAl displayed an excellent capacity to remove ACTM. More than 99% of ACTM was eliminated within 16 hr in pH 1.5 reaction solutions initially containing 2.0 g/L aluminum and 2.0 mg/L ACTM at 25 ± 1\textcelsius. Higher temperature and lower pH facilitated ACTM removal. The addition of different iron species Fe⁰, Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ into ZVAl/H⁺/air system dramatically accelerated the reaction likely due to the enhancing transformation of H₂O₂ to HO. via Fenton's reaction. Furthermore, the primary intermediate hydroquinone and the anions formate, acetate and nitrate, were identified and a possible reaction scheme was proposed. This work suggested that ZVAl/H⁺/air system may be potentially employed to treat ACTM-contaminated water.     

Removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from different soil fractions by persulfate oxidation

Removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from different soil fractions of contaminated soil was investigated by using activated persulfate oxidation remediation in our research. The results showed that the light fraction, which accounted for only 10% of the soil, contained 30% of the PAHs at a concentration of 4352?mg/kg. The heavy fraction contained more high-molecular-weight PAHs, and the total PAH concentration was 625?mg/kg. After being oxidized, the removal rate of PAHs was 39% in the light fraction and nearly 90% in the heavy fraction. Among the different fractions of the heavy fraction, humic acid contained the highest concentration of PAHs, and consequently, the highest removal efficiency of PAHs was also in humic acid. Compared with the light fraction, the heavy fraction has more aromatic compounds and those compounds were broken down during the oxidation process, which may be the removal mechanism involved in the oxidation of high-ring PAHs. Similarly, the enhancement of C = C bonds after oxidation can also explain the poor removal of high-ring PAHs in the light fraction. These results imply that different fractions of soil vary in composition and structure, leading to differences in the distribution and oxidation efficiencies of PAHs.     

The thermal transformation mechanism of chlorinated paraffins: An experimental and density functional theory study

The increasing production and usage of chlorinated paraffins(CPs) correspondently increase the amount of CPs that experience thermal processes. Our previous study revealed that a significant amount of medium-chain chlorinated paraffins(MCCPs), short-chain chlorinated paraffins(SCCPs) as well as aromatic and chlorinated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(Cl-PAHs) were formed synergistically during the thermal decomposition of CP-52(a class of CP products).However, the transformation mechanisms of CP-52 to these compounds are still not very clear.This article presents a mechanistic analysis on the decomposition of CP-52 experimentally and theoretically. It was found that CP-52 initially undergoes dehydrochlorination and carbon chain cleavage and it transformed into chlorinated and unsaturated hydrocarbons. Cyclization and aromatization were the most accessible pathways at low temperatures(200–400°C), both of which produce mostly aromatic hydrocarbons. As the temperature exceeds 400°C, the hydrocarbons could decompose into small molecules, and the subsequent radical-induced reactions become the predominant pathways, leading to the formation of Cl-PAHs. The decomposition of CP-52 was investigated by using density functional theory and calculations demonstrating the feasibility and rationality of PCB and PCN formation from chlorobenzene. The results improve the understanding of the transformation processes from CP-52 to SCCPs and Cl-PAHs as well as provide data for reducing their emissions during thermal-related processes.     

Water incubation-induced fluctuating release of heavy metals in two smelter-contaminated soils

The soil moisture regime can affect the release of heavy metals in soil. In the previous studies, slightly polluted soils or artificially contaminated soil samples were considered to investigate the effect of soil moisture. We used highly smelter-contaminated and aged soils to study the release of typical heavy metals(Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb) induced by water incubation in batch experiments with characterization via speciation and X-ray diffraction analyses(XRD). The results show that the leachable concentrations of the heavy metals increased slightly in the first 30 days, decreased drastically between 30 and 90 days, and immobilized relatively constant thereafter. The fluctuation was ascribed to the changes of soil Eh and pH, the reductive dissolution of crystalline iron oxides, the formation of new amorphous iron oxides, the absorption of dissolved organic matter and the precipitation of metal sulfide. Speciation analysis indicated that a proportion of the soil heavy metals was transformed from an exchangeable fraction to a less labile fraction after water incubation. And the presence of a lead iron oxide phase and the peak increasing of zinc sulfide were observed via XRD analyses. Finally, water incubation restrained the release of heavy metals after 180 days of incubation, and reduced the leachability of Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb by as much as 1.61%–7.21% for soil A and 0.43%–3.36% for soil B, respectively. The study findings have implications for the formulation of risk control and management strategies for heavy metals in smelter-contaminated soils.     

Simultaneous quantification of fifty-one odor-causing compounds in drinking water using gas chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry

A wide range of compounds with various structural features can cause taste and odor(TO)problems in drinking water. It would be desirable to determine all of these compounds using a simple analytical method. In this paper, a sensitive method combining liquid–liquid extraction(LLE) with gas chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry(GC–MS/MS)was established to simultaneously analyze 51 odor-causing compounds in drinking water,including organic sulfides, aldehydes, benzenes, phenols, ethers, esters, ketones, nitrogenous heterocyclic compounds, 2-methylisoborneol and geosmin. Three deuterated analogs of target analytes, dimethyl disulfide-d6, benzaldehyde-d6 and o-cresol-3,4,5,6-d4,were used to correct the variations in recovery, and five isotope-labeled internal standards(4-chlorotoluene-d4, 1, 4-dichlorobenzene-d4, naphthalene-d8, acenaphthene-d10, phenanthrene-d10 respectively) were used prior to analysis to correct the variations arising from instrument fluctuations and injection errors. The calibration curves of the target compounds showed good linearity(R2 0.99, level = 7),and method detection limits(MDLs) below 1/10 of the odor threshold concentrations were achieved for most of the odorants(0.10–20.55 ng/L). The average recoveries of most of the analytes in tap water samples were between 70% and 120%, and the method was reproducible(RSD 20%, n = 7). Additionally, concentrations of odor-causing compounds in water samples collected from three drinking water treatment plants(DWTPs) were analyzed by this method.According to the results, dimethyl trisulfide, dimethyl disulfide and indole were considered to be the key odorants responsible for the swampy/septic odor. 2-Methylisoborneol and geosmin were detected as the main odor-causing compounds for musty/earthy odor in DWTP B.     

Scarce water resources and priority irrigation schemes from agronomic crops

Global environmental change places unavoidable pressure on water resources and agronomic crop production systems. Irrigation development is a credible measure to alleviate the challenge of food safety under water shortages, but it needs sufficient basis. The aim of this study is to address the problem of balancing water scarcity with food requirements, which are the key components of water security in regions with population growth. Marginal water productivity (MWP) indices for irrigation water performance and productivity evaluation were established in the current study. Based on the analysis of the regional water-crop relationship and spatial differences of MWP in China, the priorities for developing irrigation areas in different types of regions are discussed in this study. The results show that high MWPs are mainly in semi-arid regions with precipitation (P) between 500 and 1000 mm, while low MWPs mostly occur in areas with P more than 1000 and less than 500 mm. The significance and spatial distribution patterns of MWP are different than those of conventional irrigation water use efficiency evaluation indices, so its role cannot be replaced for the real production capacity of irrigation water evaluation. The strategies for global environmental change adaptation suggested in this study are taking MWP for irrigation water productivity evaluation and the priority irrigation schemes for agronomic crop determination; increasing MWP by means of irrigation efficiency and crop variety improvement worldwide; and raising global food production through the expansion of irrigation area in the regions hold high MWP and abundant water resources.

     

SIL评估技术在柴油加氢装置的应用

介绍了安全仪表系统安全完整性等级(SIL)评估方法,并将SIL评估技术在柴油加氢装置进行应用,系统全面分析了装置安全仪表系统的可靠性,并提出合理可行的建议措施,对于提高装置安全稳定运行水平具有重要作用。     

The legal frameworks that govern fetal surgery in the United Kingdom,European Union,and the United States

The specialty of fetal surgery or fetal intervention is one of the most exciting emerging fields of modern medicine. It is made possible by decades of major developments in antenatal imaging, obstetric anaesthesia, fetal medicine, paediatric surgery, and of course by the bold and novel practitioners willing to take new steps to advance the field. Beginning in the 1970s, it has now reached a stage of maturity where there are several established in utero procedures and countless clinical trials and studies to develop more. But what is the legal situation that fetal surgeons find themselves in? What are the rights and legal protections for the fetus and the mother, both of which are arguably the patient? This article will address this question, discussing and summarising the current legal frameworks governing fetal surgery in the jurisdictions of the United Kingdom, European Court of Human Rights, and the United States of America as well as discuss what the future may hold and how researchers and physicians in the specialty can best navigate the legal environment.     

Development of an ELISA for the detection of bromoxynil in water

For development of an indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the nitrile herbicide bromoxynil, the polyclonal antibodies raised against 2,6-dibromo-4-cyano-phenoxyacetic acid (hapten) conjugated to bovine serum albumin (BSA) by the N-hydroxysuccinimide-activated ester method. Antiserum with a sufficiently high titer to provide the determinations of targeted compounds was obtained only 77 days after the primary immunization. Antiserum A2 was applied to the residual analysis of some water samples, under optimized ELISA condition, the quantitative working range was from 10 to 500 ppb with a limit of detection of 5 ppb. Cross-reactivity to structurally similar agrochemicals and related chemicals was determined. The antiserum showed little cross-reactivity with 2,6-dibromophenol and bromoxynil octanoate ester which have a dibromophenol group as common structure, but showed no cross-reactivity with other herbicides. Each water sample (river water, tap water, purified water, and bottled water) had a matrix effect and was investigated by adding Tween20 in the assay buffer. These four kinds of water samples were fortified with bromoxynil at several concentration levels and were directly analyzed with only dilution with an equal volume of antiserum solution, the mean recovery was 102.3%, and the mean coefficient of variation was 5.96%. The proposed ELISA turned out to be a powerful tool for monitoring of residual bromoxynil in water samples at trace level.     

蒙城地震台地磁绝对观测数据处理分析软件

蒙城地震台地磁绝对观测数据主要通过手工方式计算处理,由于内容多而繁琐,很容易出现人为错误,而且工作效率不高。本文介绍了“蒙城地震台地磁绝对观测数据处理分析软件”,该软件将绝对观测日常数据处理工作有效整合,形成了流程,提高了数据处理效率。并能够对数据进行误差统计、趋势分析等,以了解观测资料的实际状况。