The photochemical behavior of mercury ore (cinnabar) in water was studied using a blacklight lamp as a substitute of sunlight. The mercury ore was photosolubilized in water as mercuric ion, and metallic mercury was then volatilized from the aqueous suspension of mercury ore by photoirradiation. The photosolubilization of the mercury ore and the mercury volatilization were enhanced by the presence of an electrolyte in suspension. From the results of chemical analysis of the aqueous suspension after the photoirradiation, it appears that the mercury sulfide in the ore is dissociated into mercuric ions and free sulfur in water by photoexcitation, and hence mercury ore is solubilized into water. Furthermore, the oxidation of the free sulfur into sulfate ions via polythionic acid results in the reduction of mercuric ions to metallic mercury; hence, the metallic mercury is volatilized. 相似文献
A new type of waste gasification and smelting system using oxygen blowing based on high-temperature metallurgy, was developed by Sumitomo Metals, Japan. This system can steadily gasify and melt not only municipal waste, but also plastic waste and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) waste by using a top-blow oxygen lance together with sideways-blow oxygen lances. As a result of gasification in the high-temperature reducing atmosphere and rapid gas cooling, dioxin-free, high-calorie purified gas was produced. Ash components in the wastes were smelted in a high-temperature reducing atmosphere, and high-quality slag free of heavy metals was produced. Most of the chlorine in the wastes was converted into hydrogen chloride in the off gas. The hydrogen chloride can be recovered as hydrochloric acid or chlorine, which are recyclable to PVC manufacturing. 相似文献
Summary Biological effects of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF-EMF) on microcirculation were investigated in vivo by monitoring arteriole diameters in conscious mice. Measurements of blood vessel diameter were monitored 33 min non-stop
before during and after exposure with ELF-EMF and every 389 ms blood vessel diameter were calculated.
Using a dorsal skinfold chamber (DSC), and following caudal vein injection of FITC-dextran 250 kDa, the microvasculature (initial
arteriole diameter of 45–80 μm), was examined by intravital microscopy and video images were recorded for a total time of
33 min. Arteriole diameter was continuously measured by on-line analysis using a High-speed Digital Machine Vision System
CV-2100, using an edge-gap detection algorithm. Since vessel diameters exhibit rhythmic variation expressed by vasomotion,
for estimation of microcirculatory activity we used both raw data for frequency analysis of vasomotion (measured frequencies
of vasomotion were in the range 0.008÷0.1 Hz) and evaluate mean blood vessel diameter for each 1 min period of time, and make
a comparison between Pre, Exposure/Sham exposure and Post exposure periods, with the aim to evaluate possible changes in mean
blood vessel diameter as a result of ELF-EMF action.
During EMF exposure and post-exposure periods, arteriole diameters increased significantly compared with the pre-exposure
period, and the changes were larger during post-exposure. In contrast to sham exposure, vasodilatation of the microvasculature
was significantly greater during exposure and post-exposure to 16 Hz EMF. These findings suggest that ELF-EMF may have potential
therapeutic use benefit for treating vascular disorders. 相似文献
Cadmium (Cd) is an environmental pollutant that has serioustoxicity in humans and animals and causes Itai-Itai disease.However, there is little available information on itscontamination in wildlife as an indicator of environmentalpollution. The Cd contents in the kidney and liver of 85 wildbirds from 9 different prefectures in Japan were investigated.The ranges of the Cd contents in the kidney and liver in allbirds were ND-174.4 and ND-21.2 g g-1 dry wt.,respectively. The mean Cd contents were higher in theoil-contaminated birds than those in the non-contaminated ones.Furthermore, a strong correlation was obtained only between theCd contents in the kidney and those in the liver of theoil-contaminated seabirds and not in the other non-contaminatedones. These results suggest that wild birds reflect the levelof environmental contamination which should be monitored. 相似文献
pH and ion concentrations (Na(+), K(+), Mg(2+), Ca(2+), NO(-)(3)) in the stemflow of the evergreen broad-leaved tree, Ilex rotunda, planted in the median strip of a highway and nitrogen oxides concentration in the air in an urban site were compared with a suburban site in Fukuoka city, Japan. The annual average of the nitrogen oxides concentration in the air was higher and NO(-)(3) concentration in the stemflow at the urban site was higher or similar compared with the suburban site. However, the annual average of pH in the stemflow at the urban site was higher than at the suburban. The annual average cation concentrations in the stemflow at the urban site were higher than at the suburban except Na(+). In particular, K(+) and Ca(2+) were higher throughout the measurement period. Therefore, higher pH in the urban stemflow was probably due to neutralization by higher concentrations of K(+), Mg(2+) and Ca(2+). 相似文献
Water at hydrothermal and supercritical conditions is considered a promising solvent for the degradation of hazardous waste
into harmless compounds. Tar liquefaction experiments were conducted using a batch-type reactor at temperatures between 623 K
and 673 K and at pressures between 25 and 40 MPa. A reaction mechanism for tar liquefaction is proposed. Moreover, on the
basis of the experimental results, this method could become an efficient method for tar liquefaction, producing high yields
of valuable chemical intermediates. 相似文献
To analyze the motivations of Japanese companies to take environmental actions to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions,
we used FY2006 research data and questioned Japanese industries regarding their reduction of GHG emissions. Empirical investigations
revealed that voluntary targets set by industry organizations, government requirements, and advance responses to possible
future regulations can positively influence environmental actions for GHG emission reduction; however, cost reductions and
corporate social responsibility fulfillment cannot.
Objective: Hazard perception (HP) is the ability to identify a hazardous situation while driving. Though HP has been well studied among neurologically intact populations, little is known about the HP of neurologically impaired populations (in this study, stroke patients). The purpose of this study is, first, to investigate the HP of stroke patients and, second, to verify the effect of lesion side (right or left hemisphere) on HP, from the viewpoint of hazard types.
Methods: Sixty-seven neurologically intact age-matched older drivers and 63 stroke patients with valid driver’s licenses conducted a video-based Japanese HP task. Participants were asked to indicate the hazardous events in the driving scenario. These events were classified into 3 types: (1) behavioral prediction hazards (BP), which are those where the cause is visible before it becomes a hazard; (2) environmental prediction hazards (EP), which are those where the ultimate hazard may be hidden from view; and (3) dividing and focusing attention hazards (DF), which are those where there is more than one potential hazard to monitor on approach.Participants also took part in the Trail Making Test (TMT) to evaluate visual information processing speed.
Results: The results showed that the number of responses was significantly fewer for stroke patients than for age-matched drivers for all hazard types (P < .001), and this difference was not affected by lesion side (P > .05). It was also found that stroke patients showed a slower response time than age-matched drivers only for BP (P < .001). The lesion side did not affect response latency (P > .05). Results of the TMT revealed that age-matched drivers completed the task significantly faster than stroke patients (P < .001) and that neither TMT-A nor TMT-B differentiated between patients with left hemisphere damage and patients with right hemisphere damage (P > .05).
Conclusions: Firstly, HP in stroke patients is low compared to age-matched drivers. Secondly, even if stroke patients notice hazards, their response may be delayed in a BP situation, due to a slower visual information processing speed. Thirdly, the lesion side does not appear to affect HP. 相似文献