Simulation of transport and composition changes during a blocking episode over the East Atlantic and North Europe

Transport of atmospheric trace gases during a blocking event in the troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) in August 1997 is studied. Considering the frequency of such events it is obvious that they play a significant role for climate and air chemistry and thus the atmospheric environment. The event has been selected because a unique set of composition observations carried out by the CRISTA (Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes for the Atmosphere) instrument in the UTLS was available for the period of blocking. The regional European Atmospheric Dispersion (EURAD) model system was used for a detailed analysis focusing on ozone and CFC 11 (CFCl₃, Freon) distributions and their temporal and spatial variability. The combination of the CRISTA data and a regional transport chemistry model enabled a unique analysis of transport behaviour of a blocking. This developed an Ω-structure with a deep cut-off low at the western flank of the blocking high and a trough with highly perturbed trace gas fields on the eastern side. Tropopause heights varied intensively and were bended down to rather low levels in the cut-off low and folds appearing in the eastern trough. Results of artificial tracer experiments are presented which show that polluted air from lower tropospheric levels and – in this case – lower latitudes as well as the North American continent may be lifted up to the UTLS in the anticyclonic part of the Ω-block and transported from there over large distances in streamers. Quasi-periodic variations of CFC 11 flux divergence indicate dynamical coupling of the different domains of the block.     

Heavy duty vehicles: Impact on the environment and the path to green operation

The increase in the number of heavy duty vehicles (HDV) is inherently accompanied by increase in congestion, pollutant emissions and energy use as well as infrastructure overuse, all of which have broad societal implications. In addition to affecting the environment, contributing markedly to global warming, significant implications for the health of many residents living along traffic corridors as well as increases in the cost of infrastructure maintenance are logical consequences. In this interdisciplinary work a holistic approach is presented for the assessment of the combined effects of HDV employing pollutant emissions, noise and dynamic load of vehicles as criteria. Results show that vehicles that are environmentally friendly due to their pollutant emissions are not necessarily environmentally friendly when their noise emissions are considered. Each relevant parameter has to be assessed individually. Using a proposed model, the parameters are combined to obtain a holistic impression of the vehicles’ total environmental footprint. This information can be used by policy makers to introduce a bonus/malus system that would encourage vehicles with a total low environmental footprint using the “polluter/user pays” principle.     

Distribution and spectral characteristics of chromophoric dissolved organic matter in a coastal bay in northern China

The absorption spectra of chromophoric dissolved organic matter(CDOM),along with general physical,chemical and biological variables,were determined in the Bohai Bay,China,in the springs of 2011 and 2012. The absorption coefficient of CDOM at 350 nm(a350) in surface water ranged from 1.00 to 1.83 m-1(mean: 1.35 m-1) in May 2011 and from 0.78 to 1.92 m-1(mean:1.19 m-1) in April 2012. Little surface-bottom difference was observed due to strong vertical mixing. The a350 was weakly anti-correlated to salinity but positively correlated to chlorophyll a(Chl-a) concentration. A shoulder over 260–290 nm,suggestive of biogenic molecules,superimposed the overall pattern of exponentially decreasing CDOM absorption with wavelength. The wavelength distribution of the absorption spectral slope manifested a pronounced peak at ca. 300 nm characteristic of algal-derived CDOM. All a250/a365 ratios exceeded 6,corresponding to CDOM molecular weights(Mw) of less than 1 kDa. Spectroscopically,CDOM in the Bohai Bay differed substantively from that in the Haihe River,the bay's dominant source of land runoff; photobleaching of the riverine CDOM enlarged the difference.Results point to marine biological production being the principal source of CDOM in the Bohai Bay during the sampling seasons. Relatively low runoff,fast dilution,and selective photodegradation are postulated to be among the overarching elements responsible for the lack of terrigenous CDOM signature in the bay water.     

抗锶放线菌的分子鉴定及对Sr~(2+)的吸附效果和初步吸附机理分析

从大亚湾核电站附近水体中分离筛选出一株抗锶放线菌(编号YF-64),研究了该菌株在不同环境参数条件下对锶的吸附效果和初步机理,通过形态和16S rDNA序列相结合的方法对菌株进行了分类鉴定,采用红外光谱(FT-IR)分析技术对菌株吸附前后进行表征,探讨其吸附机制。结果表明,抗锶菌株隶属于天蓝黄链霉菌(基因序列登录号:JF901702),菌株对Sr~(2+)具有较强的吸附效果,根据数据显示,当接触时间为50 min,pH值为6,Sr~(2+)初始浓度为50 mg/L,摇床转速为120 r/min时,该菌株的吸附效果达到最佳为44.29 mg/g;FT-IR结果显示,JF901702菌株对Sr~(2+)的吸附主要是由细胞壁上的羟基,次甲基,羰基起主要吸附作用。由此可知,JF901702菌株可作为经济、高效、环境友好的生物吸附材料进行废水重金属处理。     

Effects of redox potential on soil cadmium solubility: Insight into microbial community

Understanding the role of microbes in the solubility of cadmium (Cd) is of fundamental importance for remediation of Cd toxicity. The present study aimed to identify the microbes that involved in regulating Cd solubility and to reveal possible mechanisms. Therefore, microbial communities were investigated through high-throughput sequencing approach, the molecular ecological network was constructed and metagenomes were predicted. Our results indicated that redox conditions affected both the solubility of soil Cd and the microbial communities. Anaerobic microbes, such as Anaerolineaceae, did not only play important roles in shaping the microbial community in soils, but might also be involved in regulating the Cd solubility. Two possible mechanisms that how Anaerolineaceae involved in Cd solubility are (1) Anaerolineaceae are important organic matter degraders under anoxic conditions and (2) Anaerolineaceae can co-exist with methane metabolism microbes, while methane metabolism promotes the precipitation of soluble Cd. Thus, application of Anaerolineaceae in bioremediation of soil Cadmium contamination is a potential approach. The study provided a novel insight into the role of microbial community in the regulation of Cd solubility under different redox conditions, and suggested a potential approach for the remediation of soil Cd contamination.     

The relation between chemical structure and mutagenic activity of some polycyclic aromatic sulfur heterocycles (s‐pah)

Results of Hückel Molecular Orbital (HMO) calculations strongly suggest identical metabolic activation routes for the mutagen benzo[2,3]phenanthro[4,5‐bcd]thiophene and its homocyclic parent, benzo[a]pyrene.     

工厂安全性评价指标体系科学性的间接测定方法

工厂安全性评价指标体系是评价工厂安全性工作的测定标准，指标体系的科学性和合理性与工厂安全性评价工作密切相关。工厂安全性评价指标体系科学性的间接测定方法是，采用直接测定结果作为间接测定指标体系的样本，再利用各指标之间的相关量，求出间接测定结果，通过直接评价结果与间接评价结果的比较，检查直接评价结果的准确程度，以分析修正指标体系。     

基于熵权法的连云港市入海河流环境健康评价——以蔷薇河为例

建立包含压力-状态-响应要素的指标体系,采用基于熵权的模糊数学评价方法,运用相对隶属度算法评价在快速城市化胁迫下(2000～2007年)连云港市入海河流(以蔷薇河为例)相对健康程度,该方法避免了主观判断河流环境健康标准的不确定性.评价结果表明2000～2007年,连云港市蔷薇河相对健康整体大致呈下降趋势,最优年为200...     

Insights on the solubilization products after combined alkaline and ultrasonic pre-treatment of sewage sludge

This work provides insights on the solubilization products after a simultaneous combination of alkaline and ultrasonic (ALK + ULS) pre-treatment of sewage sludge. Soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) increased from 1200 to 11,000 mg/L after such treatment. Organics with molecular weight around 5.6 kDa were solubilized because of the synergistic effect of ultrasound and alkali. Organics with molecular weight larger than 300 kDa increased from 7.8% to 60%, 16% and 42.3% after ULS, ALK and ALK + ULS treatment, respectively. Excitation emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy analysis identified soluble microbial product-like and humic acid-like matters as the main solubilization products. Sludge anaerobic biodegradability was significantly enhanced with the simultaneous application of ALK + ULS pre-treatment. ALK + ULS pre-treatment resulted in 37.8% biodegradability increase compared to the untreated sludge. This value was higher compared to the biodegradability increase induced by individual ALK pre-treatment (5.7%) or individual ULS pre-treatment (20.7%) under the same conditions applied.     

Molecular diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi at a large-scale antimony mining area in southern China

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) have great potential for assisting heavy metal hyperaccumulators in the remediation of contaminated soils. However, little information is available about the community composition of AMF under natural conditions in soils contaminated by antimony (Sb). The objective of this study was to investigate the characteristics of AMF molecular diversity, and to explore the effects of Sb content and soil properties on the AMF community structure in an Sb mining area. Four Sb mine spoils and one adjacent reference area were selected from around the Xikuangshan mine in southern China. The association of AMF molecular diversity and community composition with the rhizosphere soils of the dominant plant species was studied by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). Results from all five studied sites showed that the diversity of AMF decreased with increasing Sb concentration. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that the AMF community structure was markedly different among these groups. Further redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that Sb contamination was the dominating factor influencing the AMF community structure in the Sb mine area. However, the multivariate analysis showed that, apart from the soil Sb content, extractable nitrogen content and organic matter content also attributed to AMF sequence distribution type. Some AMF sequences were only found in the highly contaminated area and these might be ideal candidates for improving phytoremediation efficiency in Sb mining regions. Gene sequencing analysis revealed that most species were affiliated with Glomus, suggesting that Glomus was the dominant AMF genus in the studied Sb mining area.