Comparative and competitive adsorption of Cr(VI), As(III), and Ni(II) onto coconut charcoal

This study evaluates the behavior of coconut charcoal (AC) to adsorb Cr(VI), As(III), and Ni(II) in mono- and multicomponent (binary and ternary) systems. Batch experiments were carried out for mono- and multicomponent systems with varying metal ion concentrations to investigate the competitive adsorption characteristics. The adsorption kinetics followed the mechanism of the pseudo-second-order equation in both single and binary systems, indicating chemical sorption as the rate-limiting step of adsorption mechanism. Equilibrium studies showed that the adsorption of Cr(VI), As(III), and Ni(II) followed the Langmuir model and maximum adsorption capacities were found to be 5.257, 0.042, and 1.748 mg/g, respectively. In multicomponent system, As(III) and Ni(II) adsorption competed intensely, while Cr(VI) adsorption was much less affected by competition than As(III) and Ni(II). With the presence of Cr(VI), the adsorption capacities of As(III) and Ni(II) on AC were higher than those in single system and the metal sorption followed the order of Ni(II)?>?As(III)?>?Cr(VI). The results from the sequential adsorption–desorption cycles showed that AC adsorbent held good desorption and reusability.     

Mechanisms of chromium and arsenite adsorption by amino-functionalized SBA-15

The adsorption of Cr(VI) and As(III) by amino-functionalized SBA-15 (NH₂-SBA-15) from single and binary systems were investigated in this work. The effects of pH and temperature on the adsorption of NH₂-SBA-15 were studied. Adsorption kinetics, isotherm model, and thermodynamics were studied to analyze the experimental data. pH 2 was the optimum condition for the adsorption of Cr(VI) and pH 4 for As(III) adsorption. Increasing temperature had a positive effect on the removal of both Cr(VI) and As(III). The Freundlich isotherm model can depict the adsorption process best. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model fitted well with the kinetic data of Cr(VI) and As(III) in the single-component system. In the binary system, the adsorption of As(III) by NH₂-SBA-15 was slightly enhanced with the presence of Cr(VI); however, As(III) had no obvious effect on the removal of Cr(VI). Regeneration experiments indicated that 0.1 mol/L NaHCO₃ was an efficient desorbent for the recovery of Cr(VI) and As(III) from NH₂-SBA-15; the desorption rates for Cr(VI) and As(III) were 91.6 and 33.59 %, respectively. After five recycling cycles, the removal rates were 88 and 7 % for Cr(VI) and As(III) adsorption by NH₂-SBA-15, respectively.     

Microalgal-bacterial granular sludge process outperformed aerobic granular sludge process in municipal wastewater treatment with less carbon dioxide emissions

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The aerobic granular sludge (AGS) process and microalgal-bacterial granular sludge (MBGS) process were comparably applied for municipal wastewater...     

纺织印染废水及其底泥对太湖花早期发育的毒性研究

在(25±1)℃水温条件下,以纺织印染废水及其底泥水提液为试验相,采用半静止式生物毒性试验法,分析了纺织印染废水及其底泥对太湖花早期发育阶段的影响,计算了印染废水和底泥水提液对花早期发育各阶段的无可观察效应浓度(NOEC)、可观察效应浓度(LOEC)、可允许毒物浓度(MATC)、半数效应浓度(EC50)、LD50和安全浓度.结果表明,高浓度纺织印染废水和底泥水提液对花的胚胎发育和仔鱼具有明显的毒性效应,对初孵仔鱼的毒性效应最大,96h半数致死剂量(LD50)分别为19.61%和44.83%.胚胎发育前期对纺织印染废水及其底泥水提液的敏感性高于胚胎发育后期.印染废水和底泥水提液对花早期发育的各个阶段均有一定的致死和致畸毒性作用,且随着浓度的不断增加,花受精卵孵化率降低,胚胎发育延缓、畸形及仔鱼运动性差、死亡率增高.     

Rail height effects on safety performance of Midwest Guardrail System

Objective: Guardrail heights play a crucial role in the way that errant vehicles interact with roadside barriers. Low rail heights increase the propensity of vehicle rollover and override, whereas excessively tall rails promote underride. Further, rail mounting heights and post embedment depths may be altered by variations in roadside terrain. An increased guardrail height may be desirable to accommodate construction tolerances, soil erosion, frost heave, and future roadway overlays. This study aimed to investigate and identify a maximum safe installation height for the Midwest Guardrail System that would be robust and remain crashworthy before and after pavement overlays.

Methods: A research investigation was performed to evaluate the safety performance of increased mounting heights for the standard 787-mm (31-in.)-tall Midwest Guardrail System (MGS) through crash testing and computer simulation. Two full-scale crash tests with small passenger cars were performed on the MGS with top-rail mounting heights of 864 and 914 mm (34 and 36 in.). Test results were then used to calibrate computer simulation models.

Results: In the first test, a small car impacted the MGS with 864-mm (34-in.) rail height at 102 km/h (63.6 mph) and 25.0° and was successfully redirected. In the second test, another small car impacted the MGS with a 914-mm (36-in.) rail height at 103 km/h (64.1 mph) and 25.6° and was successful. Both system heights satisfied the Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) Test Level 3 (TL-3) evaluation criteria. Test results were then used to calibrate computer simulation models. A mounting height of 36 in. was determined to be the maximum guardrail height that would safely contain and redirect small car vehicles. Simulations confirmed that taller guardrail heights (i.e., 37 in.) would likely result in small car underride. In addition, simulation results indicated that passenger vehicle models were successfully contained by the 34- and 36-in.-tall MGS installed on approach slopes as steep as 6:1.

Conclusions: A mounting height of 914 mm (36 in.) was determined to be the maximum guardrail height that would safely contain and redirect 1100C vehicles and not allow underride or excessive vehicle snag on support posts. Recommendations were also provided regarding the safety performance of the MGS with increased height.     

南阳市冬春交替期大气VOCs污染特征及来源解析

近年来我国中部地区臭氧污染问题日益凸显,而挥发性有机物(VOCs)作为近地面臭氧生成的关键前体物,有关其来源研究相较于我国东部地区相对欠缺.为了解我国中部地区VOCs污染特征及其来源,本研究于2017年2—3月在豫鄂陕三省交界处的河南省南阳市南阳理工学院站点开展了为期1个月的VOCs在线监测.测量结果显示,观测期间总VOCs平均浓度为(37.4±18.5)×10~(-9).与国内外已有研究的VOCs测量结果相比,本研究中烷烃、烯烃和炔烃的浓度处于中等偏上水平,而芳香烃浓度则较低.烯烃对臭氧潜势的贡献最高(37%),其次是芳香烃(28%).乙烯、二甲苯、甲苯、丙烯和C4~C5烷烃是最重要的活性组分.利用正交矩阵因子分析(PMF)解析出4个因子,分别是天然气/液化石油气使用+背景、交通排放、溶剂涂料使用和燃煤+生物质燃烧.观测期间南阳理工学院站点对VOCs浓度贡献最高的是燃煤+生物质燃烧因子,平均贡献率为35%,其次是交通排放因子(25%)、天然气/LPG使用+背景(23%)和溶剂涂料使用(17%).研究结果对于认识我国中部地区VOCs来源结构,进而开展VOCs和臭氧防治具有重要意义.     

Combining the multivariate statistics and dual stable isotopes methods for nitrogen source identification in coastal rivers of Hangzhou Bay,China

Coastal rivers contributed the majority of anthropogenic nitrogen (N) loads to coastal waters, often resulting in eutrophication and hypoxia zones. Accurate N source identification is critical for optimizing coastal river N pollution control strategies. Based on a 2-year seasonal record of dual stable isotopes (\({\updelta}^{15}\mathrm{N}-{\mathrm{NO}}_3^{\hbox{-} }\) and \({\updelta}^{18}\mathrm{O}-{\mathrm{NO}}_3^{\hbox{-} }\)) and water quality parameters, this study combined the dual stable isotope-based MixSIAR model and the absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) model to elucidate N dynamics and sources in two coastal rivers of Hangzhou Bay. Water quality/trophic level indices indicated light-to-moderate eutrophication status for the studied rivers. Spatio-temporal variability of water quality was associated with seasonal agricultural, aquaculture, and domestic activities, as well as the seasonal precipitation pattern. The APCS-MLR model identified soil + domestic wastewater (69.5%) and aquaculture tailwater (22.2%) as the major nitrogen pollution sources. The dual stable isotope-based MixSIAR model identified soil N, aquaculture tailwater, domestic wastewater, and atmospheric deposition N contributions of 35.3 ±21.1%, 29.7 ±17.2%, 27.9 ±14.5%, and 7.2 ±11.4% to riverine \({\mathrm{NO}}_3^{\hbox{-} }\) in the Cao’e River (CER) and 34.4 ±21.3%, 29.5 ±17.2%, 27.4 ±14.7%, and 8.7 ±12.8% in the Jiantang River (JTR), respectively. The APCS-MLR model and the dual stable isotope-based MixSIAR model showed consistent results for riverine N source identification. Combining these two methods for riverine N source identifications effectively distinguished the mix-source components from the APCS-MLR method and alleviated the high cost of stable isotope analysis, thereby providing reliable N source apportionment results with low requirements for water quality sampling and isotope analysis costs. This study highlights the importance of soil N management and aquaculture tailwater treatment in coastal river N pollution control.