Assessment of heavy metal pollution in vegetables and relationships with soil heavy metal distribution in Zhejiang province,China

There are increasing concerns on heavy metal contaminant in soils and vegetables. In this study, we investigated heavy metal pollution in vegetables and the corresponding soils in the main vegetable production regions of Zhejiang province, China. A total of 97 vegetable samples and 202 agricultural soil samples were analyzed for the concentrations of Cd, Pb, As, Hg, and Cr. The average levels of Cd, Pb, and Cr in vegetable samples [Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris spp. Pekinensis), pakchoi (Brassica chinensis L.), celery (Apium graveolens), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), cucumber (Colletotrichum lagenarium), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.), and eggplant (Solanum melongena)] were 0.020, 0.048, and 0.043 mg kg^?1, respectively. The Pb and Cr concentrations in all vegetable samples were below the threshold levels of the Food Quality Standard (0.3 and 0.5 mg kg^?1, respectively), except that two eggplant samples exceeded the threshold levels for Cd concentrations (0.05 mg kg^?1). As and Hg contents in vegetables were below the detection level (0.005 and 0.002 mg kg^?1, respectively). Soil pollution conditions were assessed in accordance with the Chinese Soil Quality Criterion (GB15618-1995, Grade II); 50 and 68 soil samples from the investigated area exceeded the maximum allowable contents for Cd and Hg, respectively. Simple correlation analysis revealed that there were significantly positive correlations between the metal concentrations in vegetables and the corresponding soils, especially for the leafy and stem vegetables such as pakchoi, cabbage, and celery. Bio-concentration factor values for Cd are higher than those for Pb and Cr, which indicates that Cd is more readily absorbed by vegetables than Pb and Cr. Therefore, more attention should be paid to the possible pollution of heavy metals in vegetables, especially Cd.     

Decontamination of electronic waste-polluted soil by ultrasound-assisted soil washing

Laboratorial scale experiments were performed to evaluate the efficacy of a washing process using the combination of methyl-β-cyclodextrin (MCD) and tea saponin (TS) for simultaneous desorption of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) and heavy metals from an electronic waste (e-waste) site. Ultrasonically aided mixing of the field contaminated soil with a combination of MCD and TS solutions simultaneously mobilizes most of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and the analyte metal (Pb, Cu, and Ni) burdens. It is found that 15 g/L MCD and 10 g/L TS is an efficient reagent combination reconciling extraction performance and reagent costs. Under these conditions, the removal efficiencies of HOCs and heavy metals are 93.5 and 91.2 %, respectively, after 2 cycles of 60-min ultrasound-assisted washing cycles. By contrast, 86.3 % of HOCs and 88.4 % of metals are removed from the soil in the absence of ultrasound after 3 cycles of 120-min washing. The ultrasound-assisted soil washing could generate high removal efficiency and decrease the operating time significantly. Finally, the feasibility of regenerating and reusing the spent washing solution in extracting pollutants from the soil is also demonstrated. By application of this integrated technology, it is possible to recycle the washing solution for a purpose to reduce the consumption of surfactant solutions. Collectively, it has provided an effective and economic treatment of e-waste-polluted soil.

     

杭州市郊区表层土壤中多环芳烃的风险分析

采集杭州市郊区表层土壤中多环芳烃的样品,用色谱-质谱技术对多环芳烃化合物进行定量分析。美国环保总署推荐优先控制的16种多环芳烃单体质量分数在1.49～87.43 ng.g-1之间,萘、芴、苊等低分子量芳烃质量分数相对较低;、茚并[1,2,3-cd]芘、苯并[ghi]苝等高分子量芳烃质量分数相对较高,其中苯并[ghi]苝质量分数最高。对照荷兰的土壤标准,杭州市郊区表层土壤中的荧蒽、、茚并[1,2,3-cd]芘、苯并[ghi]苝超标比较严重,超标率100%;多环芳烃的Bap等效毒性当量是荷兰规定目标值的2倍;因此,杭州市郊区表层土壤中存在一定的潜在风险。多环芳烃Ant/（Phe＋Ant）、BaA/（Chr＋BaA）、Flua/（Pyr＋Flua）等参数表明,多环芳烃主要来源于燃烧源,且以机动车尾气为主;BeP/（BeP＋BaP）比值偏高,可能与土壤中的多环芳烃主要来源于大气沉降有关。     

基于"囚徒困境"的城市用户群节水心理探源

博弈分析得出个体理性会引起集体非理性,使得个体陷入"囚徒困境",无法达到水资源利用的最佳状态。任何规章制度都不可能完全克服这一"囚徒困境",最终解决途径只能是采取自律模式——C模式,也就是用水者自我约束、自觉节水。城市用户群是由人类个体组成的人类集合体,正是这一群体及其所含个体的心理特点极大程度地支配着他们的用水行为,特别是自律行为的产生。所以,城市用户群的节水问题首先是心理问题。文章从人类心理的不同方面挖掘城市用户群及其所含个体的用水行为特点,提出釆用从个体心理根源出发,提高城市用户群对节水的认识与情感认同;从群体心理根源入手,建立城市用户群用水行为的良好导向,形成较强的群体凝聚力;应用社会互动现象,有意识调整城市用户群的用水心理与行为;矫正城市用户群不良的消费动机与消费需要,提倡绿色消费等措施,以促使用户形成自律行为,达到建设节水型社会的目的。