Personal exposure to PM2.5-bound heavy metals associated with cardiopulmonary function in general population

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - To better understand the cardiopulmonary alterations associated with personal exposed PM2.5-bound heavy meals, we conducted a cross-sectional study in...     

The dynamics and drivers of environmental performance in Chinese cities: a decomposition analysis

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This paper examines urban environmental performance using a unique database of 286 Chinese cities for the period 2002–2014. Both the dynamics of...     

Diversity of antibiotic resistance genes and encoding ribosomal protection proteins gene in livestock waste polluted environment

The rapid development and increase of antibiotic resistance are global phenomena resulting from the extensive use of antibiotics in human clinics and animal feeding operations. Antibiotics can promote the occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), which can be transferred horizontally to humans and animals through water and the food chain. In this study, the presence and abundance of ARGs in livestock waste was monitored by quantitative PCR. A diverse set of bacteria and tetracycline resistance genes encoding ribosomal protection proteins (RPPs) from three livestock farms and a river were analyzed through denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The abundance of sul(I) was 10³ to 10⁵ orders of magnitude higher than that of sul(II). Among 11 tet-ARGs, the most abundant was tet(O). The results regarding bacterial diversity indicated that the presence of antibiotics might have an evident impact on bacterial diversity at every site, particularly at the investigated swine producer. The effect of livestock waste on the bacterial diversity of soil was stronger than that of water. Furthermore, a sequencing analysis showed that tet(M) exhibited two genotypes, while the other RPPs-encoding genes exhibited at least three genotypes. This study showed that various ARGs and RPPs-encoding genes are particularly widespread among livestock.     

Preparation and Characterization of Collagens from the Skin of Northern Snakehead (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Channa argus)</Emphasis>

Channa argus, a type of snakehead fish native to China, is a popular food fish in certain Asian countries but is a known destructive invasive species in the US. In this study, the two collagens, i.e. acid-soluble collagen (ASC) and pepsin-solubilized collagen (PSC), were obtained from C. argus skin. The yield of ASC was 28.0% and that of PSC was 16.8% on the dry bases. The collagens were identified as the collagen of type I by SDS–PAGE patterns. The Tds were approximately 27.0?°C. Similar ultraviolet spectra of both collagens were observed. Fourier Transform infrared spectra indicated PSC structure had a little change due to the loss of terminal domains by pepsin digestion. The results of XRD proved that the two collagens retained their helical structures. The results suggest that the collagens isolated from C. argus can potentially be alternative sources of vertebrate collagens for use in the food and other industries.     

Adsorptive conversion of nitrogen dioxide from etching vent gases over activated carbon

Some metal etching operations emit limited flow rates of waste gases with reddish-brown NO₂ fume, which may cause visual and acidic-odor complaints, as well as negative health effects. In this study, tests were performed by passing caustic-treated waste gases vented from Al-etching operations through columns packed either with virgin or regenerated granular activated carbon (GAC) to test their adsorptive conversion performance of NO₂ in the gases. The gases contained 5–55 ppm NO₂ and acetic and nitric acids of below 3 ppm. Exhausted carbon was regenerated by scrubbing it with caustic solution and water, and dried for further adsorption tests. Results indicate that with an (empty bed residence time (EBRT) of 0.15 sec for the gas through the GAC-packed space, around 60% of the influent NO₂ of 54 ppm could be removed, and 47% of the removed NO₂ was converted by and desorbed from the carbon as NO. GAC used in the present study could be regenerated at least twice to restore its capacity for NO₂ adsorption. Within EBRTs of 0.076–0.18 sec, the adsorptive conversion capacity was linearly varied with EBRT. In practice, with an EBRT of 0.20 sec, a conversion capacity of 0.80 kg NO₂ (kg GAC)^?1 with an influent NO₂ of 40 ppm can be used as a basis for system design.

Implications: Some metal etching operations emit waste gases with reddish-brown (yellow when diluted) NO₂ fume which may cause visual and acidic-odor complaints, as well as negative health effects. This study provides a simple process for the adsorptive conversion of NO₂ in caustic-treated waste gases vented from metal-etching operations through a GAC column. With an EBRT of 0.20 sec, a conversion capacity of 0.80 kg NO₂ (kg GAC)^?1 with an influent NO₂ of 40 ppm can be used as a basis for system design. Saturated GAC can be regenerated at least twice by simply scrubbing it with aqueous caustic solution.     

Carbon trading thickness and market efficiency in a socialist market economy

Unlike the European Union emission trade system (EU ETS), China’s pilot ETSs implemented diversified policy designs instead of using a uniform framework. Variance ratio test is used to evaluate the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) in China’s carbon trading markets. The results of two versions of variance ratio tests indicate that the carbon trading market in Hubei is considered weak form efficient, and the socialist market economy does not necessarily lead to market inefficiency in carbon trading markets. Thin trading activities generate market frictions and bias the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) tests.     

近53 a来长江流域极端降水指数特征

利用1963~2015年长江流域115个气象站点逐日降水数据，分析了不同极端降水指标的空间变化特点和时间变化趋势。结果表明，近53 a来，长江流域多年平均年极端降水量与年降水量从下游到上游逐渐递减，两者变化趋势大致呈现“增-减-增”的空间分布格局。年极端降水量对年降水量贡献（PEP）存在明显的空间分布差异，但贡献比例在流域内普遍呈现增加的趋势。持续1 d的极端降水事件的降水量分布及其变化趋势与年极端降水量的分布特征类似，其对年极端降水量的贡献比例高达65%以上，说明长江流域极端降水以持续1 d的极端降水事件为主。持续2 d及以上的极端降水事件主要集在中皖苏赣局部地区和四川中部地区，但其降水量对年极端降水量的贡献比例较小。从上游到下游，年最大日降水量（MDP）逐渐增大。其中，上游源头地区的沱沱河、曲麻莱和玉树3个站点MDP主要集中在0~25 mm之间，其他站点均以25~50 mm量级为主；长江流域中部地区的MDP大部分以50~100 mm的量级为主，处于100~150 mm之间的次之；长江流域东部地区主要以100~150 mm量级的MDP为主。 关键词： 极端降水；降水贡献；不同历时；长江流域     

The regulatory role of endogenous iron on greenhouse gas emissions under intensive nitrogen fertilization in subtropical soils of China

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Anaerobic batch experiments were conducted to study the regulatory role of endogenous iron in greenhouse gas emissions under intensive nitrogen...     

Effect of Soybean Cultivation on Soil Collembola Community in Marshland of Sanjiang Plain,China

The Sanjiang Plain, the largest inland freshwater marshland in China, was extensive reclaimed into agricultural land. To assess the effects of marshland reclamation on Collembola, we investigated collembolan communities in a chronosequence of soybean plantations (2, 15, and 25 years) in Sanjiang marshland, Northeastern China. We found that: 1) the densities and species richness of Collembola were promoted after short-term (2 years) cultivation of soybean, but significantly decreased after medium-term cultivation (15 years); 2) the densities of epi-edaphic Collembola increased while the densities of hemi-edaphic Collembola decreased as the elongation of soybean cultivation; 3) compared with S0, two species of Collembola appeared while five species disappeared in S25. The changes of plant communities and the soil traits were supposed to be the key factors affecting the composition of soil Collembola. We thus suggest that original marshland should be saved for preserving high diversity and densities of Collembola in the Sanjiang Plain.

     

Purification of water contaminated with Hg using horizontal subsurface constructed wetlands

As a global pollutant, Hg (Hg) since the turn of the last century has received increased attention. Decreasing the emission of Hg into the food chain and the atmosphere is an effective way to reduce the Hg damage. The current study provided information about pilot-scale horizontal subsurface flow (HSSF) constructed wetlands (CWs) to remove different Hg species in polluted water. Synthetic wastewater was fed to two HSSF CWs, one was planted with Acorus calamus L and the other was unplanted as a control. The total Hg (THg), dissolved Hg (DHg), and particulate Hg (PHg) from five sites along the HSSF CWs were analyzed to describe the process of Hg removal. Results show that the CWs have high removal efficiency of Hg which is more than 90%. The removal efficiencies of THg and DHg from the unplanted CW were 92.1?±?3.6% and 72.4?±?13.1%, respectively. While, the removal efficiencies of THg and DHg in planted CW were 95.9?±?7.5% and 94.9?±?4.9%, which were higher than that in blank CW. The PHg was mainly removed in the first quarter of the CWs, which was also revealed by the partition coefficient K_d. To a certain extent, the effect of plants depends on the hydraulic retention time (HRT). The results in the current study show the potential of the HSSF-CWs for restoration from Hg-contaminated water.