Transparent exopolymer particles (TEPs)-associated protobiofilm: A neglected contributor to biofouling during membrane filtration

• Bacteria could easily and quickly attached onto TEP to form protobiofilms. • TEP-protobiofilm facilitate the transport of bacteria to membrane surface. • More significant flux decline was observed in the presence of TEP-protobiofilms. • Membrane fouling shows higher sensitivity to protobiofilm not to bacteria level. Transparent exopolymer particles (TEPs) are a class of transparent gel-like polysaccharides, which have been widely detected in almost every kind of feed water to membrane systems, including freshwater, seawater and wastewater. Although TEP have been thought to be related to the membrane fouling, little information is currently available for their influential mechanisms and the pertinence to biofouling development. The present study, thus, aims to explore the impact of TEPs on biofouling development during ultrafiltration. TEP samples were inoculated with bacteria for several hours before filtration and the formation of “protobiofilm” (pre-colonized TEP by bacteria) was examined and its influence on biofouling was determined. It was observed that the bacteria can easily and quickly attach onto TEPs and form protobiofilms. Ultrafiltration experiments further revealed that TEP-protobiofilms served as carriers which facilitated and accelerated transport of bacteria to membrane surface, leading to rapid development of biofouling on the ultrafiltration membrane surfaces. Moreover, compared to the feed water containing independent bacteria and TEPs, more flux decline was observed with TEP-protobiofilms. Consequently, it appeared from this study that TEP-protobiofilms play a vital role in the development of membrane biofouling, but unfortunately, this phenomenon has been often overlooked in the literature. Obviously, these findings in turn may also challenge the current understanding of organic fouling and biofouling as membrane fouling caused by TEP-protobiofilm is a combination of both. It is expected that this study might promote further research in general membrane fouling mechanisms and the development of an effective mitigation strategy.     

高含盐废水脱盐处理技术研究进展

综述了几种常见的高含盐废水脱盐处理技术的发展历程、工艺原理、优缺点及目前的研究进展，分析了热分离、膜分离、电渗析、离子交换、电吸附、微生物脱盐等方法的优缺点，展望了未来废水脱盐工艺的发展方向。指出：脱盐方法将根据各类水体的水质特点更加精细化；多种脱盐技术联合应用也是今后废水脱盐的发展方向。     

微塑料与有机污染物的相互作用研究进展

微塑料(粒径小于5 mm的塑料)作为海洋中一种新型的污染物正受到越来越多的关注。微塑料在全球多个海域均有检出,根据其来源分为原生微塑料和次生微塑料。原生微塑料由人工直接制造所得,常见于日常生活用品中;次生微塑料由大块塑料制品长期风化、磨损和光解形成。塑料自身含有多种有机添加剂,不断向环境中释放,污染海洋环境;微塑料表面还可吸附有机污染物,此吸附作用受两者的物理化学性质和环境条件影响,吸附污染物后的微塑料生物毒性增强。另外,聚合物复合光催化材料可加快有机污染物如染料的光降解反应速率,因而微塑料可能会促进有机污染物的光解。针对目前微塑料对有机物光降解的贡献、机理鲜见研究的问题,未来应加强以下3方面的研究:(1)微塑料对不同有机污染物光降解是否存在影响?(2)微塑料类型、尺寸以及反应条件对有机污染物光降解如何影响?(3)微塑料对有机污染物光降解影响的内在机制是什么?     

PVC/PES-g-PEGMA共混膜的制备及其耐污染性能

首先将聚乙二醇单甲基甲醚酯(PEGMA)接枝到聚醚砜(PES)上得到PES-g-PEGMA,然后利用溶液共混的方法,将聚氯乙烯(PVC)与PES-g-PEGMA共混,通过溶剂-非溶剂扩散诱导相分离法(NIPS)制备PVC/PES-g-PEGMA共混膜。在此基础上对PVC/PES-g-PEGMA共混膜的断面和表面微观结构、水通量、截留率、机械性能及耐污染等性能进行测试,并采用接触角,含水率(EWC),X射线光电子能谱仪(XPS)来表征PES-g-PEGMA的质量百分含量对PVC/PES-g-PEGMA共混膜亲水性的影响。结果表明,PVC/PES-g-PEGMA共混膜水通量,亲水性较纯PVC有很大程度的提高。耐污染性实验表明,随着PES-g-PEGMA的增加,耐污染性逐渐增强。实验结果同时也表明,该共混体系最佳共混比为7∶3。     

磁性生物膜载体的规模化制备、表征和应用

利用机械力化学表面改性原理设计了卧式双旋搅拌混合反应设备,通过磁铁矿粉和适量浓硫酸的球磨混合反应制备得到磁性生物膜载体,其XRD、IR、SEM和BET表征分析结果表明,磁性生物膜载体表层生成了多羟基硫酸铁为主的活性组分.进而在膜生物反应器实验装置中投加磁性生物膜载体进行了中试实验,结果表明,磁性生物膜载体能与活性污泥中的微生物聚合形成稳定的菌胶团,活性污泥SV30从实验初期89％降到了稳定期的39％,此外,磁性生物膜载体还具有稳定膜生物反应池出水COD,强化脱氮除磷的能力.     

Mitochondrial toxicity and in vitro biological effects of ambient PM2.5 from an urban site in China

Abstract

The roles of PM_2.5-induced mitochondrial damage and oxidative stress on mast cell degranulation were examined in vitro. Mast cells were treated with suspensions of PM_2.5 in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium at concentrations from 25 to 200?mg/L in the absence or presence of 10?mmol/L N-acetyl-L-cysteine. Biological effects and mitochondrial function were assessed by determining cell viability, β-hexosaminidase release, interleukin-4 secretion, reactive oxygen species generation, adenosine triphosphate production, potential alteration of mitochondrial membrane, and activities of mitochondrial electron transport chain complexes I and III. Exposure of mast cells to PM_2.5 induced reduction of adenosine triphosphate production, collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential, and inhibition of the activity of complex III. Co-treatment of mast cells exposed to PM_2.5 with N-acetyl-L-cysteine attenuated cytotoxicity and the production of reactive oxygen species, and decreased the release of β-hexosaminidase and interleukin-4. Evidently, PM_2.5-induced oxidative stress plays an essential role in mitochondrial toxicity and mast cell activation.     

Review: recent advances in biogas purifying technologies

Biomethane production through biogas upgrading is a promising renewable energy for some industries which could be part of the equilibrium needed with fossil fuels consumption to achieve a sustainable society. This paper presents a comprehensive list of biogas upgrading technologies focused on carbon dioxide removal as well as recent advances reported by researcher with wide expertise in this topic. Additionally, an extensive costs–performance comparison among the technologies studied is discussed. Among the different alternatives, chemical scrubbing stood out to achieve high biomethane purities while cryogenic technologies proved to be effective against methane losses. Regarding the different costs, water scrubbing and membrane separation seem to be the most affordable techniques.     

Metabolic uncoupler, 3,3′,4′,5-tetrachlorosalicylanilide addition for sludge reduction and fouling control in a gravity-driven membrane bioreactor

• Effects of metabolic uncoupler TCS on the performances of GDMBR were evaluated. • Sludge EPS reduced and transformed into dissolved SMP when TCS was added. • Appropriate TCS increased the permeability and reduced cake layer fouling. • High dosage aggravated fouling due to compact cake layer with low bio-activity. The gravity-driven membrane bioreactor (MBR)system is promising for decentralized sewage treatment because of its low energy consumption and maintenance requirements. However, the growing sludge not only increases membrane fouling, but also augments operational complexities (sludge discharge). We added the metabolic uncoupler 3,3′,4′,5-tetrachlorosalicylanilide (TCS) to the system to deal with the mentioned issues. Based on the results, TCS addition effectively decreased sludge ATP and sludge yield (reduced by 50%). Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS; proteins and polysaccharides) decreased with the addition of TCS and were transformed into dissolved soluble microbial products (SMPs) in the bulk solution, leading to the break of sludge flocs into small fragments. Permeability was increased by more than two times, reaching 60–70 L/m²/h bar when 10–30 mg/L TCS were added, because of the reduced suspended sludge and the formation of a thin cake layer with low EPS levels. Resistance analyses confirmed that appropriate dosages of TCS primarily decreased the cake layer and hydraulically reversible resistances. Permeability decreased at high dosage (50 mg/L) due to the release of excess sludge fragments and SMP into the supernatant, with a thin but more compact fouling layer with low bioactivity developing on the membrane surface, causing higher cake layer and pore blocking resistances. Our study provides a fundamental understanding of how a metabolic uncoupler affects the sludge and bio-fouling layers at different dosages, with practical relevance for in situ sludge reduction and membrane fouling alleviation in MBR systems.     

油漆挥发分爆炸特性及浓度检测装置设计研究

为了实现对喷涂车间内挥发分浓度的检测，进行20 L球形爆炸特性测试实验，分析了油漆挥发分主成分及爆炸特性，根据油漆挥发分受热易挥发遇冷易凝结的物理特性、采样器采样原理、滤膜增重法测量原理以及基于单机片C++软件程序编写的电路智能控制技术，设计1种喷涂车间挥发分浓度检测装置。研究结果表明:油漆挥发分主成分具有爆炸性，且随着油漆颗粒物浓度增大，爆炸压力也增加。设计的装置对挥发分的采集率都在90%以上，总采集率为93.1%~98.9%，装置能够较为准确地检测挥发分浓度。     

CSM/EVA复合材料的阻燃与伸缩性能研究

采用机械共混法制备了EVA/CSM复合材料.系统地研究了EVA与CSM的混合比率、CSM交联及不同阻燃体系对复合材料阻燃性质的影响.结果表明,掺杂阻燃剂之后,复合材料都具有很好的阻燃性能,其中使用Sb2O3/氯乙醇混合阻燃体系,阻燃效果最好,且复合材料交联后,阻燃性能会进一步增强.同时研究了各种因素,如交联、混合比率和处理温度对复合材料收缩率的影响.当CSM含量较高或拉伸温度处于室温,收缩率都较好;而交联前,加入阻燃剂会使复合材料收缩性能降低;反之,交联后使之增加.