Bacterial degradation of acetone in an outdoor model stream

Diurnal variations of the acetone concentration in an outdoor model stream were measured with and without a nitrate supplement to determine if the nitrate supplement would stimulate bacterial degradation of the acetone. Acetone loss coefficients were computed from the diurnal data using a fitting procedure based on a Lagrangian particle model. The coefficients indicated that bacterial degradation of the acetone was occurring in the downstream part of the stream during the nitrate addition. However, the acetone concentrations stabilized at values considerably above the limit of detection for acetone determination, in contrast to laboratory respirometer studies where the acetone concentration decreased rapidly to less than the detection limit, once bacterial acclimation to the acetone had occurred. One possible explanation for the difference in behavior was the limited 6-hour residence time of the acetone in the model stream.     

Cadmium-induced DNA damage and mutations in Arabidopsis plantlet shoots identified by DNA fingerprinting

Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) test is a feasible method to evaluate the toxicity of environmental pollutants on vegetal organisms. Herein, Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis) plantlets following Cadmium (Cd) treatment for 26 d were screened for DNA genetic alterations by DNA fingerprinting. Four primers amplified 20-23 mutated RAPD fragments in 0.125-3.0 mg L⁻¹ Cd-treated Arabidopsis plantlets, respectively. Cloning and sequencing analysis of eight randomly selected mutated fragments revealed 99-100% homology with the genes of VARICOSE-Related, SLEEPY1 F-box, 40S ribosomal protein S3, phosphoglucomutase, and noncoding regions in Arabidopsis genome correspondingly. The results show the ability of RAPD analysis to detect significant genetic alterations in Cd-exposed seedlings. Although the exact functional importance of the other mutated bands is unknown, the presence of mutated loci in Cd-treated seedlings, prior to the onset of significant physiological effects, suggests that these altered loci are the early events in Cd-treated Arabidopsis seedlings and would greatly improve environmental risk assessment.     

Toward long solids retention time of activated sludge processes: benefits in energy saving, effluent quality, and stability

The activated sludge process is the most common method of secondary municipal wastewater treatment; solids retention time (SRT) is the key control parameter for this process. Typically, operating at long SRT is considered only for nitrification, but there are additional benefits of high SRT operation. This paper presents experimental and literature evidence to demonstrate three major additional benefits of long SRT operation: increased oxygen transfer efficiency; improved biomass particle size distribution, which results in more efficient clarification with fewer effluent particles and suspended solids; and enhanced removal of many emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and endocrine disrupting compounds. This paper presents experimental results from several treatment plants that showed increasing oxygen transfer efficiency and particle size with increasing SRT, and evidence documenting improved removal of emerging contaminants and biodegradable organic carbon. A long-term survey of three treatment plants concludes that operating at higher SRT is not as energy intensive as typically assumed.     

重庆主城区建设用地扩展的时空特征及驱动因子分析

以多时相的遥感影像为基础，选用归一化裸露指数（NDBI）、重归一植被指数（RDVI）和改进的归一化水体指数（修改后的NDWI），通过阈值分割、掩膜处理提取建设用地信息，结合重庆主城区的社会经济数据，利用扩展速度指数、扩展强度指数、扩展弹性指数、紧凑度指数、建设用地扩展系数及扩展方向分析研究了不同阶段建设用地扩展的时空动态特征，并运用灰色关联分析，对建设用地扩展的驱动因子进行探讨。结果表明：1988～2011年重庆主城区建设用地扩展了39332 km2，扩展速度和扩展强度呈现增大的趋势；扩展弹性系数、建设用地扩展系数波动变化，反映了重庆主城区建设用地逐渐由粗放型向集约型转变；建设用地扩展的空间分析表明重庆主城区的城市形态由非紧凑型向紧凑型发展，同时扩展方向具有明显的分异性，主要向正北和西北方向扩展；人口增长，尤其是城市人口的增长是重庆主城区建设用地扩展最主要的驱动因子；经济发展、产业结构变化与建设用地的扩展也有明显的相关性     

Volatile Organic Compounds in Ambient Air at Four Residential Locations in Seoul, Korea

To investigate the environmental behavior of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in urban areas, their concentrations were measured at four urban monitoring sites (namely, N, S, E, and W) in Seoul, Korea (February to December 2009). A total of 27 compounds were quantified that consist of four chemical groups: aromatic (AR), halogenated aromatic, halogenated paraffin, and halogenated olefin. Results were evaluated by focusing on these four functional groups just mentioned and their summation term as total VOC (TVOC) along with several individual species (mainly AR species, that is, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene). The highest concentration of chemical groups was found from AR (71.1±42.1?ppbC), while that for individual species confirmed the dominance of toluene (7.48±3.88?ppb). The analysis of spatial distribution indicated that high TVOC levels were recorded at sites N and W, while it was not so significant such as S and E in terms of TVOC budget. Seasonal variation of these VOCs was characterized by the peak values in December to reflect the combined effects of pronounced source activities and meteorological conditions. Analysis of spatial variations in VOC levels between the four urban sites indicated that their distributions are tightly affected by local source processes in each area.     

Concentrations of Heavy Metals in Hair and Nails of Young Pakistanis: Correlation with Dietary Elements

Hair and nail samples from young Pakistani adults were separately analyzed for quantification of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn concentrations. The concentrations of these metals were also analyzed in commonly consumed local foods to evaluate potential correlation of hair and nail concentrations with diet. Pearson correlation coefficients ranged from 0.349 to 0.999, demonstrating diet to be a significant contributor for accumulation of heavy metals in humans.     

Sea otters,social justice,and ecosystem‐service perceptions in Clayoquot Sound,Canada

We sought to take a first step toward better integration of social concerns into empirical ecosystem service (ES) work. We did this by adapting cognitive anthropological techniques to study the Clayoquot Sound social‐ecological system on the Pacific coast of Canada's Vancouver Island. We used freelisting and ranking exercises to elicit how locals perceive ESs and to determine locals’ preferred food species. We analyzed these data with the freelist‐analysis software package ANTHROPAC. We considered the results in light of an ongoing trophic cascade caused by the government reintroduction of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) and their spread along the island's Pacific coast. We interviewed 67 local residents (n = 29 females, n = 38 males; n = 26 self‐identified First Nation individuals, and n = 41 non‐First Nation individuals) and 4 government managers responsible for conservation policy in the region. We found that the mental categories participants—including trained ecologists—used to think about ESs, did not match the standard academic ES typology. With reference to the latest ecological model projections for the region, we found that First Nations individuals and women were most likely to perceive the most immediate ES losses from the trophic cascade, with the most certainty. The inverse was found for men and non‐First Nations individuals, generally. This suggests that 2 historically disadvantaged groups (i.e., First Nations and women) are poised to experience the immediate impacts of the government‐initiated trophic cascade as yet another social injustice in a long line of perceived inequities. Left unaddressed, this could complicate efforts at multistakeholder ecosystem management in the region.     

Solar-induced generation of singlet oxygen and hydroxyl radical in sewage wastewaters

Singlet oxygen (¹O₂) and hydroxyl radical (·OH) play an important role in the degradation of pollutants in surface waters. However, the mechanism underlying the photochemical generation of ¹O₂ and ·OH in wastewaters is poorly known. Here we studied the photo-induced generation of ¹O₂ and ·OH in different sewage treatment plant units. The correlation between the generation of ¹O₂ and ·OH and the water constituents was discussed. Our results show that in sewage units the ¹O₂ formation rate ranges from 2.19 × 10^?8 to 6.74 × 10^?8 mol L^?1 s^?1, and the ·OH formation rate ranges from 1.7 × 10^?11 to 3.06 × 10^?10 mol L^?1 s^?1. The average ¹O₂ formation rates in the various sewage units are similar to those in wetland and estuarine waters containing rich dissolved organic matter and 2–4 times higher than those in lake and seawater samples. The average ·OH formation rates of the sewage units are 5–50 times higher than for other water samples reported. The ·OH generation rate increased with the iron content with a correlation coefficient of 0.85, which indicates that the photo-Fenton reaction plays a dominant role in ·OH generation in sewage wastewater.     

Optimal heat rejection pressure for transcritical CO2 refrigeration cycle with an expander

Heat rejection pressure plays an important role in designing a transcritical CO₂ refrigeration system, and it has an optimal value to maximize the system’s coefficient of performance (COP). With a thermodynamic simulation model, the optimal heat rejection pressure is studied in the paper for an expander cycle, as well as conventional throttle valve cycle. The effects of compressor efficiency, expander efficiency, gas cooler outlet temperature, and evaporation temperature on the optimal heat rejection pressure are analyzed. It is the first time for a transcritical CO₂ expander cycle that the optimal heat rejection pressure is correlated with the gas cooler outlet temperature and the evaporation temperature at given compressor efficiency and expander efficiency. The average deviation from the correlation to simulation results is less than 1.0%. The correlation provides a guideline to system development and performance optimization of a transcritical CO₂ expander cycle.