Freshwater alga Raphidocelis subcapitata undergoes metabolomic changes in response to electrostatic adhesion by micrometer-sized nylon 6 particles

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Nylon powders are a type of microplastic (MP) used in personal care products such as cosmetics and sunscreens. To determine the effects of nylon...     

木棉纤维对水中柴油的吸附性能

用木棉纤维作为吸附材料对含油废水进行吸附研究,考察了吸附平衡时间、等温吸附、以及溶液pH、溶液盐浓度等因素对油吸附的影响。溶液pH对吸附影响很小,在不同的盐浓度下吸附略有下降,木棉纤维吸附剂对0#柴油的吸附所需平衡时间为4h,在室温和pH=7左右的条件下,吸附材料对0#柴油的最大吸附量(qm)为(31±0.81)g/g,等温吸附线符合Langmuir和Freundlich模式,研究结果表明:木棉纤维对含油废水的吸附能在较短的时间达到吸附饱和,吸附量较大,对溶液环境的适应能力强,具有很好的应用前景。     

Decomposition of poly(amide-imide) film enameled on solid copper wire using atmospheric pressure non-equilibrium plasma

The decomposition of a poly(amide-imide) thin film coated on a solid copper wire was attempted using atmospheric pressure non-equilibrium plasma. The plasma was produced by applying microwave power to an electrically conductive material in a gas mixture of argon, oxygen, and hydrogen. The poly(amide-imide) thin film was easily decomposed by argon-oxygen mixed gas plasma and an oxidized copper surface was obtained. The reduction of the oxidized surface with argon-hydrogen mixed gas plasma rapidly yielded a metallic copper surface. A continuous plasma heat-treatment process using a combination of both the argon-oxygen plasma and argon-hydrogen plasma was found to be suitable for the decomposition of the poly(amide-imide) thin film coated on the solid copper wire.     

Distribution features of biological hazardous pollutants in residential environments in Korea

This research has been conducted continuously since 2009 as part of a cohort of studies examining relationships between asthma and genetic factors, dietary habits, and environmental factors. Based on data from environmental research on house dust mites and endotoxins, which are widely known as pollutants in bedding that cause asthma in pregnant women and children, this work was conducted to obtain basic data that can be used in future cohort studies that analyze links between distribution of biological hazards and physical features of residential environments. The detection rates of house dust mite allergens, Der p1 and Der f1, were 52.7 and 86.5 %, respectively, indicating that Der f1 is a dominant species in domestic indoor environments. According to comparisons between concentrations of house dust mites and endotoxins in bedding of pregnant women and children, Der p1 and endotoxins showed significantly lower concentrations in bedding of pregnant women compared with those in bedding of children, whereas Der f1 showed no significant difference in concentration according to bedding.     

Flowering pattern of biodiesel plant Jatropha in frost- and drought-prone regions of Botswana

Jatropha has gained interest as a potential biodiesel feedstock. Nevertheless, its oil production decreases significantly in frost- and drought-prone regions. In this study, we characterized the flowering pattern of Jatropha in Botswana in the 2014/2015 season. Extensive springtime pruning synchronized Jatropha regrowth in summer and effectively stimulated growth after frost damage. Flowering started in February 2015 and peaked in April and May. Wide variations in flowering frequency were observed among different Jatropha accessions. Trees flowering in February and March produced fruit in May, but most trees only flowered in April and May and did not yield fruit because of cold snaps. These observations suggested that harvesting seed before wintertime is the key to improve Jatropha production in the Botswana climate. This study highlighted the importance of inducing early flowering by developing new agricultural managements. These may include frost cover and sun shades to prevent stress-induced damage, canopy control by pruning, optimization of fertilization practice, and/or introduction of superior Jatropha varieties.     

Inhibition of residual <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-hexane in anaerobic digestion of lipid-extracted microalgal wastes and microbial community shift

Converting lipid-extracted microalgal wastes to methane (CH₄) via anaerobic digestion (AD) has the potential to make microalgae-based biodiesel platform more sustainable. However, it is apparent that remaining n-hexane (C₆H₁₄) from lipid extraction could inhibit metabolic pathway of methanogens. To test an inhibitory influence of residual n-hexane, this study conducted a series of batch AD by mixing lipid-extracted Chlorella vulgaris with a wide range of n-hexane concentration (～10 g chemical oxygen demand (COD)/L). Experimental results show that the inhibition of n-hexane on CH₄ yield was negligible up to 2 g COD/L and inhibition to methanogenesis became significant when it was higher than 4 g COD/L based on quantitative mass balance. Inhibition threshold was about 4 g COD/L of n-hexane. Analytical result of microbial community profile revealed that dominance of alkane-degrading sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and syntrophic bacteria increased, while that of methanogens sharply dropped as n-hexane concentration increased. These findings offer a useful guideline of threshold n-hexane concentration and microbial community shift for the AD of lipid-extracted microalgal wastes.     

Biodegradability of algal-derived organic matter in a large artificial lake by using stable isotope tracers

In order to understand the biodegradability of algal-derived organic matter, biodegradation experiments were conducted with ¹³C and ¹⁵N-labeled natural phytoplankton and periphytic algal populations in experimental conditions for 60 days. Qualitative changes in the dissolved organic matter were also determined using parallel factor analysis and the stable carbon isotopic composition of the hydrophobic dissolved organic matter through the experimental period. Although algal-derived organic matter is considered to be easily biodegradable, the initial amounts of total organic carbon newly produced by phytoplankton and periphytic algae remained approximately 16 and 44 % after 60 days, respectively, and about 22 and 43 % of newly produced particulate nitrogen remained. Further, the dissolved organic carbon derived from both algal populations increased significantly after 60 days. Although the dissolved organic matter gradually became refractory, the contributions of the algal-derived organic matter to the dissolved organic matter and hydrophobic dissolved organic matter increased. Our laboratory experimental results suggest that algal-derived organic matter produced by phytoplankton and periphytic algae could contribute significantly to the non-biodegradable organic matter through microbial transformations.