Potential of secondary aerosol formation from Chinese gasoline engine exhaust

Light-duty gasoline vehicles have drawn public attention in China due to their significant primary emissions of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds(VOCs). However,little information on secondary aerosol formation from exhaust for Chinese vehicles and fuel conditions is available. In this study, chamber experiments were conducted to quantify the potential of secondary aerosol formation from the exhaust of a port fuel injection gasoline engine. The engine and fuel used are common in the Chinese market, and the fuel satisfies the China V gasoline fuel standard. Substantial secondary aerosol formation was observed during a 4–5 hr simulation, which was estimated to represent more than 10 days of equivalent atmospheric photo-oxidation in Beijing. As a consequence, the extreme case secondary organic aerosol(SOA) production was 426 ± 85 mg/kg-fuel, with high levels of precursors and OH exposure. The low hygroscopicity of the aerosols formed inside the chamber suggests that SOA was the dominant chemical composition. Fourteen percent of SOA measured in the chamber experiments could be explained through the oxidation of speciated single-ring aromatics. Unspeciated precursors, such as intermediate-volatility organic compounds and semi-volatile organic compounds, might be significant for SOA formation from gasoline VOCs. We concluded that reductions of emissions of aerosol precursor gases from vehicles are essential to mediate pollution in China.     

好氧颗粒污泥对有机物吸附类型的研究

为探索好氧颗粒污泥对有机物的去除机制,进行好氧颗粒污泥对有机物的吸附性能及吸附类型研究,在实验室条件下,采用动态吸附方式,利用SBAR反应器分析好氧颗粒污泥对有机物的去除情况。结果表明,好氧颗粒污泥存在初期吸附作用,最佳吸附时间为30~45 min,COD去处率60%;通过对失活前后好氧颗粒污泥对有机物吸附性能测定以及红外光谱分析,探究好氧颗粒污泥对有机物的吸附类型,表明好氧颗粒污泥对有机物的吸附是一个包含生物吸附和化学吸附的复杂过程。     

Reduction of heavy metal content in Hiroshima Bay oysters (Crassostrea gigas) by purification

Cultured oysters from Hiroshima Bay were analysed to determine the content of nine trace elements, cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), arsenic (As), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and iron (Fe) and compared with oysters treated for 48 h in both artificial sea water and a solution of 0.5% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) in artificial sea water. It was found that the values of As and Fe in both groups of treated oysters were significantly lower than in the untreated oysters and that the Pb and Mn levels tended to be lower. It was also found that oysters treated in 0.5% EDTA solution in artificial sea water had lower levels of Cd and Cu than the oysters treated only in artificial sea water.     

Development of monitoring technology for airborne particulate matter

Particulate matter suspended in the air has adverse effects onhuman health. Its level of concentration is an important parameter in evaluating the degree of hazard it poses to the atmosphere. Conventional methods used in measuring particulatematter are often filter-based, which indicates some disadvantagesbecause such a base requires labor and time. In this study, to achieve real-time measurements, a new electrical method was developed for measuring PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations. The basicprinciple is to electrically charge particles passing through thePM inlet using a corona charger and measure the currents createdby charged particles to obtain the number concentration of particulate matter. A new type inlet based on the particle cupimpactor configuration was designed and its performance was evaluated. A unipolar diffusion charger was developed and thecharger's efficiency was determined experimentally in terms ofPn, which represents the penetration through the charger,P, times the average charge number acquired by a particle,n, for different particle sizes. The correlation was constructed between the PM10 (or the PM2.5) mass concentrationsand the electrical currents due to particles, which were chargedby the diffusion charger.     

Reduction and avoidance of lubricant mist demands an integrated assessment approach

A case study to identify major factors for lubricant mist exposure covered 15 metal machining sites. The investigation included milling, turning, drilling and grinding applications. Systematic analysis considered all relevant data concerning the machine tool, the lubricant and the suction plant. The efficiency of the implemented maintenance program at the installed filter systems was checked by concentration measurements immediately before and after service. All performed measurements of lubricant aerosol and vapor loads upstream and downstream of the installed filter systems were carried out according to VDI 2066 and BIA 3110, respectively. The selection criteria for the sites to be investigated, the systematic nature of the data acquisition and the procedure of the analysis are demonstrated in detail by performing comparisons between selected applications using emulsions and those employing straight oil for lubrication. The results of the study identify recirculation of ventilated air as the major source of workplace exposure to airborne lubricant emissions. More than 60% of the demisters investigated emit air at total lubricant loads (aerosols and vapor) above the limit of 20 mg m-3 at any time of operation; which also means immediately after service. A common reason for exceeded aerosol loads in recirculated air is e.g. the fact that the type of filter system applied is often not suitable for the separation problem. Loads of lubricant vapor are usually higher at the processes which use water emulsions as lubricant. In a quarter of the cases the limits were exceeded solely due to high vapor loads even immediately after service. The exposure can be reduced by replacing the lubricant, installation of a vapor separation plant or avoiding air recirculation. Maintenance time of the demisting system and aerosol separation efficiency of state-of-the-art demisting systems can be expanded by implementation of enhanced preliminary filter stages. This study confirms that appropriate service measures lower both aerosol emissions and lubricant vapor concentrations due to the reduction of exposed oil-wetted surfaces. The performed measurements show no significant relationship between loads of airborne lubricants and the type of machining process. Therefore, investigations at a much more detailed level have to be performed. However, the individual assessment of any workplace due to the complex situation remains essential.     

Analysis of pollutant levels in central Hong Kong applying neural network method with particle swarm optimization

Air pollution has emerged as an imminent issue in modernsociety. Prediction of pollutant levels is an importantresearch topic in atmospheric environment today. For fulfillingsuch prediction, the use of neural network (NN), and inparticular the multi-layer perceptrons, has presented to be acost-effective technique superior to traditional statisticalmethods. But their training, usually with back-propagation (BP)algorithm or other gradient algorithms, is often with certaindrawbacks, such as: 1) very slow convergence, and 2) easilygetting stuck in a local minimum. In this paper, a newlydeveloped method, particle swarm optimization (PSO) model, isadopted to train perceptrons, to predict pollutant levels, andas a result, a PSO-based neural network approach is presented. The approach is demonstrated to be feasible and effective bypredicting some real air-quality problems.     

Arsenic speciation in human hair: a new perspective for epidemiological assessment in chronic arsenicism

The analysis for arsenic in hair is commonly used in epidemiological studies to assess exposure to this toxic element. However, poor correlation between total arsenic concentration in hair and water sources have been found in previous studies. Exclusive determination of endogenous arsenic in the hair, excluding external contamination has become an analytical challenge. Arsenic speciation in hair appears as a new possibility for analytical assessing in As-exposure studies. This study applied a relative simple method for arsenic speciation in human hair based on water extraction and HPLC-HG-ICP-MS. The concentration of arsenic species in human hair was assessed in chronically As(V)-exposed populations from two villages (Esqui?a and Illapata) of the Atacama Desert, Chile. The arsenic concentrations in drinking water are 0.075 and 1.25 mg L(-1), respectively, where As(V) represented between 92 and 99.5% of the total arsenic of the consumed waters. On average, the total arsenic concentrations in hair from individuals of Esqui?a and Illapata were 0.7 and 6.1 microg g(-1), respectively. Four arsenic species, As(III), DMA(V), MMA(V) and As(V), were detected and quantified in the hair extracts. Assuming the found species in extracts represent the species in hair, more than 98% of the total arsenic in hair corresponded to inorganic As. On average, As(III) concentrations in hair were 0.25 and 3.75 microg g(-1) in Esqui?a and Illapata, respectively; while, the As(V) average concentrations were 0.15 and 0.45 microg g(-1) in Esqui?a and Illapata, respectively. Methylated species represent less than 2% of the extracted As (DMA(V)+ MMA(V)) in both populations. As(III) in hair shows the best correlation with chronic exposure to As(V) in comparison to other species and total arsenic. In fact, concentrations of As(total), As(III) and As(V) in hair samples are correlated with the age of the exposed individuals from Illapata (R= 0.65, 0.69, 0.57, respectively) and with the time of residence in this village (R= 0.54, 0.71 and 0.58, respectively).     

Floristics, performance and prognosis of historical trees in the urban forest of Guangzhou City (China)

Outstanding historical trees embedded in cities constitute pertinent environmental assets, yet they are widely threatened in third-world cities. Inadequate understanding of this valuable natural-cum-cultural heritage hinders proper conservation. A case study of Guangzhou in south China evaluated floristic composition, age profile and biomass structure of historical trees, assessed their performance in major habitats (institutional, park and roadside), and established a prognosis for future growth and management. The 348 historical trees examined belonged to only 25 species, vis-à -vis 254 trees in the entire urban forest, dominated by five species and native members. Roadside had more trees, followed by institutional and park, with merely the most common four species shared by all habitats. The limited commonality reflected tree-performance differentiation by habitats exerting selection pressure on species. The institutional growth-regime was more conducive to nurturing high-caliber specimens, whereas park is less capable. Individual species achievement by habitats, derived from tree-count ranking and relative-abundance indices, could inform species choice and tree conservation. Few trees exceeded 300 years of age in the millennium-old city, echoing a history of intense tree—city conflicts. Potential life-span, trunk and crown diameters indicated ample opportunities for further expansion of biomass and landscape impacts, which would be straitjacketed by the tightening urban fabric.     

Environmental and biological monitoring of methyl ethyl ketone (MEK)

This study was conducted to evaluate the usefulness of various biological parameters for monitoring of workers exposed to methyl ethyl ketone (MEK). Fifty male workers from a large magnetic videotape factory participated in this study. Personal air samples were collected using 3M organic vapor monitors and analysed for MEK by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detector (FID). 10 mL of urine; blood (1 mL) and exhaled air were also collected at the end of an 8-hour workshift. The headspace GC method was applied for measurement of urinary and blood MEK. MEK in expired air was analysed directly by using a GC/FID.The correlation coefficients (r) between environmental MEK and all other biological parameters measured show significant positive relationships. The r for environmental MEK and urine MEK was 0.84; for blood 0.73 and for breath 0.64. The correlation coefficients between blood and urine was 0.72; blood and breath was 0.88 and urine and breath 0.60. These findings suggest that measurements of unmetabolised MEK in blood, exhaled air and urine can be used for biological monitoring of MEK exposure. Nevertheless, laboratory methodological assessment is in favour of measuring urinary MEK as it is non-invasive and does not have to be analysed immediately after collection.     

Suggested protocol for collecting, handling and preparing peat cores and peat samples for physical, chemical, mineralogical and isotopic analyses

For detailed reconstructions of atmospheric metal deposition using peat cores from bogs, a comprehensive protocol for working with peat cores is proposed. The first step is to locate and determine suitable sampling sites in accordance with the principal goal of the study, the period of time of interest and the precision required. Using the state of the art procedures and field equipment, peat cores are collected in such a way as to provide high quality records for paleoenvironmental study. Pertinent field observations gathered during the fieldwork are recorded in a field report. Cores are kept frozen at -18 degree C until they can be prepared in the laboratory. Frozen peat cores are precisely cut into 1 cm slices using a stainless steel band saw with stainless steel blades. The outside edges of each slice are removed using a titanium knife to avoid any possible contamination which might have occurred during the sampling and handling stage. Each slice is split, with one-half kept frozen for future studies (archived), and the other half further subdivided for physical, chemical, and mineralogical analyses. Physical parameters such as ash and water contents, the bulk density and the degree of decomposition of the peat are determined using established methods. A subsample is dried overnight at 105 degree C in a drying oven and milled in a centrifugal mill with titanium sieve. Prior to any expensive and time consuming chemical procedures and analyses, the resulting powdered samples, after manual homogenisation, are measured for more than twenty-two major and trace elements using non-destructive X-Ray fluorescence (XRF) methods. This approach provides lots of valuable geochemical data which documents the natural geochemical processes which occur in the peat profiles and their possible effect on the trace metal profiles. The development, evaluation and use of peat cores from bogs as archives of high-resolution records of atmospheric deposition of mineral dust and trace elements have led to the development of many analytical procedures which now permit the measurement of a wide range of elements in peat samples such as lead and lead isotope ratios, mercury, arsenic, antimony, silver, molybdenum, thorium, uranium, rare earth elements. Radiometric methods (the carbon bomb pulse of (14)C, (210)Pb and conventional (14)C dating) are combined to allow reliable age-depth models to be reconstructed for each peat profile.