Interfacial solar steam generation by wood-based devices to produce drinking water: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Freshwater supply is declining in the context of climate change, pollution, and soil salinization, calling for sustainable methods to produce drinking water. For...     

Novel mutation and prenatal sonographic findings of glutaric aciduria (type I) in two Taiwanese families

Glutaric aciduria type I (GA I) is an autosomal recessively inherited inborn error with a defect of the enzyme glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase (GCDH), which has never been diagnosed prenatally in Taiwanese patients. We present the prenatal sonographic findings and mutational analysis data of three children in two Taiwanese families. One patient from each family was diagnosed postnatally due to macrocephaly and neurological deterioration at 4 months and 10 months, respectively. The third child, sister of the first patient, was diagnosed prenatally at 11 weeks' gestation through chorionic villus sampling (CVS). Molecular analysis revealed that the fetus and child in Family 1 were homozygous for a common mutation, IVS10 -2A>C, which has not been reported in the Caucasian population. The patient in Family 2 was a compound heterozygote for IVS10 -2A>C and a novel mutation 749T>C (L238P). After genetic counseling, the couple decided to continue the second pregnancy. However, dilatation of quadrigeminal cistern (QC) and suspicious macrocephaly were noted at 30 weeks. Progressive dilatation of the QC associated with macrocephaly, fronto-temporal atrophy and wide space of perisylvian fissure were found in the follow-up scans. The affected girl was delivered at 37 weeks' gestation by cesarean section. Postnatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies confirmed the prenatal sonographic findings. With prenatal sonographic findings and mutational analysis presented in the present cases, the feasibility of prenatal diagnosis of GA I in high-risk pregnancy can not be overlooked. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Survey of polynuclear aromatic compounds in oil refining areas

Air samples in and around refinery areas were collected over a 3-year period. The results of the analysis for polynuclear aromatic compounds listed as priority pollutants by the United States Environmental Protection Agency are presented. The particulate matters in the air were collected on glass fiber filters using high volume samplers. These samples were later Soxhlet extracted with cyclohexane, and then extracted with DMSO/pentane for isolation of the polynuclear aromatic compounds. These extracts were then analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for specified polynuclear aromatic compounds. It was found that much higher concentrations of these aromatic compounds were found in one refinery compared to another one. In general, the number of these priority pollutants detected and their concentrations were higher in sites inside the refineries relative to a site outside the refineries.     

Comparisons of coarse and fine versions of two carbons for reducing the bioavailabilities of sediment-bound hydrophobic organic contaminants

Coarse (whole) and finely ground Ambersorb 1500 and coarse and fine coconut charcoal were compared as to their efficiencies in scavenging organic contaminants desorbed from sediment. Aqueous slurries of a test sediment spiked (1 ppm) with p,p^′-DDE (DDE), 2,2^′,5,5^′-tetrachlorobiphenyl (TCB), naphthalene (NAP), or phenanthrene (PHEN), and containing 1% levels of the test carbons were treated by shaking at 35 °C while exposed to clusters of low-density polyethylene membrane (detox spiders). Controls consisted of spiked sediments and detox spiders but no added carbon of any kind and thus represented unimpeded bioavailabilities (to the spiders). After the treatments––agitation periods from 2.5 to 60 h, depending on contaminant hydrophobicity––the exposed detox spiders were analyzed. The fine carbon of either type was more effective than its coarser variant in obstructing contaminant bioavailabilities. The finer variants of both carbons obstructed the bioavailabilities of NAP and PHEN equally well as did the coarser variants of both. Whole Ambersorb 1500 and coarse coconut charcoal were similarly ineffective in intercepting TCB and DDE. Ground Ambersorb 1500 obstructed virtually all bioavailability of all four contaminants and was far more effective than fine coconut charcoal in intercepting DDE and TCB. An additional experiment compared the effectiveness of ground Ambersorb 1500 and fine coconut charcoal in obstructing the bioavailabilities from sediment of a broad array of spiked organochlorine pesticides. The performance of ground Ambersorb 1500 was again found to be superior; the bioavailable levels of each of the 27 pesticides were markedly lower in the presence of ground Ambersorb 1500 than in the presence of fine coconut charcoal.     

Biosorption study of potential fungi for copper remediation from Peninsular Malaysia

The ability to grow in heavy metal contaminated areas and absorb heavy metals from the environment make fungi a potentially viable biological‐based technology for remediating hazardous heavy metals in soil. In this study, 10 fungi from a copper (Cu)‐polluted area in Malaysia were isolated, with the four highest growth fungi identified as Simplicillium subtropicum, Fusarium solani, Aspergillus tamari, and Aspergillus niger. Results from toxicity and biosorption testing showed that A. niger and F. solani grew the fastest in the presence of Cu, but exhibited lower Cu uptake per unit of biomoass. In contrast, A. tamarii and S. subtropicum had lower growth rates, but showed better uptake of Cu per unit of biomass. S. subtropicum was identified as the best species for bioremediation because it had the highest Cu uptake and positive growth measured in the presence of Cu at concentrations below 100 mg/L. A niger proved to be most suitable for bioremediation if the concentration of Cu exceeds 100 mg/L.     

Decreasing the knowledge gap among different socioeconomic status groups on the issue of climate change

Climate change is causing severe negative consequences to small low-lying islands. To mitigate and adapt to climate change, it is important to improve public knowledge on its causes and consequences. As a social issue that needs collective action to address, the knowledge gap among different segments of population would be a barrier to people’s behaviors toward mitigation and adaption to climate change. This study aims to investigate public knowledge acquisition of climate change by revisiting the knowledge gap hypothesis. A nationally representative random computer-assisted telephone interview survey (N?=?1093) was conducted in Singapore. Quantitative analyses revealed that both newspaper reading and television viewing could reduce the knowledge gap between high and low socioeconomic status individuals. We recommend that governments and relevant authorities should utilize mass media to disseminate information and cultivate public understanding of climate change.     

Risk management for outsourcing biomedical waste disposal – Using the failure mode and effects analysis

Using the failure mode and effects analysis, this study examined biomedical waste companies through risk assessment. Moreover, it evaluated the supervisors of biomedical waste units in hospitals, and factors relating to the outsourcing risk assessment of biomedical waste in hospitals by referring to waste disposal acts. An expert questionnaire survey was conducted on the personnel involved in waste disposal units in hospitals, in order to identify important factors relating to the outsourcing risk of biomedical waste in hospitals. This study calculated the risk priority number (RPN) and selected items with an RPN value higher than 80 for improvement. These items included “availability of freezing devices”, “availability of containers for sharp items”, “disposal frequency”, “disposal volume”, “disposal method”, “vehicles meeting the regulations”, and “declaration of three lists”. This study also aimed to identify important selection factors of biomedical waste disposal companies by hospitals in terms of risk. These findings can serve as references for hospitals in the selection of outsourcing companies for biomedical waste disposal.     

Revisiting nitrous acid (HONO) emission from on-road vehicles: A tunnel study with a mixed fleet

Nitrous acid (HONO) is an important precursor of OH radicals in the atmosphere. In urban areas, emissions from vehicles are the main source of air pollutants, including reactive nitrogen. Previously reported emission ratios of HONO (HONO/NO_x) from vehicles were measured in the late 1990s and need to be updated due to the significant changes in emission control technologies. We measured the emission ratio of a fleet of vehicles (38% diesel on average) from March 11 to 21, 2015, in a road tunnel in Hong Kong. The emission ratio of 1.24% (±0.35%) obtained is greater than the commonly adopted 0.8% or 0.3%. The elevated emission ratio is found to be related to the presence of vehicles equipped with diesel particle filters (DPFs). Positive correlation between HONO and black carbon (BC) shows that HONO and BC were emitted together, while the lack of correlation or even anticorrelation between HONO/NO_x and BC indicates that the BC-mediated conversion of NO₂ to HONO in the dark was insignificant in the immediate vicinity of the emission sources.

Implications: Vehicular emission is a key source for HONO in the urban atmosphere. However, the most commonly used emission ratio HONO/NO_x in modeling studies was measured more than 15 years ago. Our tunnel study suggests that a mixed fleet nowadays has a higher emission ratio, possibly because of the diesel particle filter (DPF) retrofit program and the growing share of Euro IV or more advanced diesel vehicles. Our study also provides new insight into the role of black carbon in HONO formation from vehicles.