Ozone facilitated degradation of caffeine using Ce-TiO2 catalyst

The ozone initiated oxidation of 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine (caffeine), commonly found in wastewaters as model compound is reported using cerium (Ce)/titanium dioxide (TiO₂) as catalyst. The effect of pH and loading of ceria on titania were investigated. Effect of reaction conditions on degradation of caffeine based on their pseudo first-order rate constants were compared. The combination of catalyst Ce-TiO₂ and ozone aeration significantly enhanced the degradation of caffeine compared to uncatalysed ozonation. The oxidation of caffeine ensued via the free radical mechanism, through enhanced ozone decomposition into OH radicals. Ce/TiO₂(0.5?wt%) showed good activity in degradation of caffeine at pH 6, in both natural stream and river water samples showing about 60% total organic carbon removal in 2?h ozonation period. Using liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy, degradation products were analysed. A reaction intermediate and one final product were positively identified. Nano-catalysts with different loadings of Ce on TiO₂ synthesized by sol-gel route were characterized by scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscopy, BET and powder X-ray diffraction spectrum techniques. The results showed that the material retained a highly ordered mesoporous structure and possessed large surface area.     

Effects of T-2 toxin on histopathology,fatty acid and water distribution of shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) muscle

T-2 toxin (T-2), one of the naturally occurring mycotoxins, often accumulates in aquatic animals from contaminated feed. Shrimp (n?=?30 per group) were fed with different concentrations (0, 0.5, 1.5, 4.5 and 13.5?mg kg^?1) of T-2 for 20?days. Changes in histopathology, fatty acid and water distribution of shrimp muscle were analyzed. Histopathology of shrimp muscle showed dose-dependent marked degenerative and necrotic changes on exposure to dietary T-2. The T-2 significantly (P?<?0.05) affected the muscle fatty acid composition. ∑SFA, ∑MUFA and ∑PUFA initially decreased and then increased slowly in the high-dosed groups. C16:0, C18:1n-9 and C18:2n-6 were the main saturated fatty acid (SFA), monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA), respectively. Also, T-2 significantly affected water distribution in shrimp muscle. High doses of T-2 reduced free water content, resulting in a reduction in the water holding capacity and hence changes to the shrimp muscle quality. Collectively, these results illustrated that T-2 significantly affects the fatty acid and water distribution, and also muscle histopathology, all of which would result in a reduction in the quality and nutritional value of shrimp.     

Fishing‐gear restrictions and biomass gains for coral reef fishes in marine protected areas

Considerable empirical evidence supports recovery of reef fish populations with fishery closures. In countries where full exclusion of people from fishing may be perceived as inequitable, fishing‐gear restrictions on nonselective and destructive gears may offer socially relevant management alternatives to build recovery of fish biomass. Even so, few researchers have statistically compared the responses of tropical reef fisheries to alternative management strategies. We tested for the effects of fishery closures and fishing gear restrictions on tropical reef fish biomass at the community and family level. We conducted 1,396 underwater surveys at 617 unique sites across a spatial hierarchy within 22 global marine ecoregions that represented 5 realms. We compared total biomass across local fish assemblages and among 20 families of reef fishes inside marine protected areas (MPAs) with different fishing restrictions: no‐take, hook‐and‐line fishing only, several fishing gears allowed, and sites open to all fishing gears. We included a further category representing remote sites, where fishing pressure is low. As expected, full fishery closures, (i.e., no‐take zones) most benefited community‐ and family‐level fish biomass in comparison with restrictions on fishing gears and openly fished sites. Although biomass responses to fishery closures were highly variable across families, some fishery targets (e.g., Carcharhinidae and Lutjanidae) responded positively to multiple restrictions on fishing gears (i.e., where gears other than hook and line were not permitted). Remoteness also positively affected the response of community‐level fish biomass and many fish families. Our findings provide strong support for the role of fishing restrictions in building recovery of fish biomass and indicate important interactions among fishing‐gear types that affect biomass of a diverse set of reef fish families.     

Understanding implications of consumer behavior for wildlife farming and sustainable wildlife trade

Unsustainable wildlife trade affects biodiversity and the livelihoods of communities dependent upon those resources. Wildlife farming has been proposed to promote sustainable trade, but characterizing markets and understanding consumer behavior remain neglected but essential steps in the design and evaluation of such operations. We used sea turtle trade in the Cayman Islands, where turtles have been farm raised for human consumption for almost 50 years, as a case study to explore consumer preferences toward wild‐sourced (illegal) and farmed (legal) products and potential conservation implications. Combining methods innovatively (including indirect questioning and choice experiments), we conducted a nationwide trade assessment through in‐person interviews from September to December 2014. Households were randomly selected using disproportionate stratified sampling, and responses were weighted based on district population size. We approached 597 individuals, of which 37 (6.2%) refused to participate. Although 30% of households had consumed turtle in the previous 12 months, the purchase and consumption of wild products was rare (e.g., 64–742 resident households consumed wild turtle meat [i.e., 0.3–3.5% of households] but represented a large threat to wild turtles in the area due to their reduced populations). Differences among groups of consumers were marked, as identified through choice experiments, and price and source of product played important roles in their decisions. Despite the long‐term practice of farming turtles, 13.5% of consumers showed a strong preference for wild products, which demonstrates the limitations of wildlife farming as a single tool for sustainable wildlife trade. By using a combination of indirect questioning, choice experiments, and sales data to investigate demand for wildlife products, we obtained insights about consumer behavior that can be used to develop conservation‐demand‐focused initiatives. Lack of data from long‐term social–ecological assessments hinders the evaluation of and learning from wildlife farming. This information is key to understanding under which conditions different interventions (e.g., bans, wildlife farming, social marketing) are likely to succeed.     

聚苯乙烯/CdS/TiO_2双壳层核壳纳米颗粒可见光催化降解甲基橙

采用溶胶-凝胶法,在聚苯乙烯(PS)/CdS核壳纳米颗粒表面包覆致密TiO_2层,制备出具有双壳层结构的PS/CdS/TiO_2纳米复合颗粒,考察了制备条件对材料结构的影响,并利用甲基橙溶液对其光催化性能进行了评价。SEM、TEM、XRD和FTIR分析结果表明,制得的微球单分散性良好,壳层包覆完整,厚度均匀。PS/CdS/TiO_2制备的适宜反应时间为12~18 h,适宜反应pH为7~9。PS/CdS/TiO_2较PS/CdS具有更为优异的可见光催化性能。     

磁性Fe_3O_4/石墨烯纳米复合材料催化降解水中17β-雌二醇

利用化学沉淀法制备磁性四氧化三铁/石墨烯(Fe3O4/GE)纳米复合材料,并将其与H2O2构成非均相Fenton体系用于催化降解水中微量的17β-雌二醇(E2),研究了初始p H值,初始H2O2浓度,催化剂用量对E2降解的影响。结果表明,Fe3O4/GE纳米复合材料在无需外加光源的条件下能够有效催化降解E2。在p H 7.0,E2初始浓度为1 mg/L,初始H2O2浓度为15 mmol/L,Fe3O4/GE投加量为15 mg/L的条件下,反应8 h后可去除92.9%的E2。Fe3O4/GE具有便捷的磁分离特性和稳定的催化活性,经过7次循环使用后对E2的降解效率仍保持在91.5%左右。     

网状季胺基阴离子吸附剂制备及吸附性能

以丝瓜络为原料,采用醚化-接枝技术制备出季胺基阴离子交换吸附剂。采用电镜扫描、傅里叶红外光谱、比表面积孔径分布测定仪和元素分析仪等仪器对其进行分析和结构表征,并考察了温度、p H和硝酸盐初始浓度等因素对NO-3去除率的影响。实验结果表明,在20℃,p H值为3~10时,NO-3的吸附率可达90%左右;在不同温度下该吸附过程用Langmuir等温线模型和Freundich等温线模型描述均可;与伪一级动力学方程相比,伪二级动力学方程能更好地描述其吸附动力学方程。     

固定化斜生栅藻净化畜禽废水中氨氮和磷的影响因素

为探讨Cu2+、p H和流速对固定化斜生栅藻去除畜禽废水中NH+4-N、TP效果的影响,在实验室条件下模拟实际污水处理过程,并采用正交实验方案对结果进行分析。结果表明低质量浓度Cu2+(0~0.05 mg/L)改善藻的净化效果,高质量浓度Cu2+(0.50~5.00 mg/L)抑制藻的净化效果;在p H较高的条件下(p H=9),固定化斜生栅藻的净化效果明显提高;流速对结果没有明显影响。通过正交实验,得出固定化斜生栅藻去除畜禽废水中NH+4-N、TP的优化条件如下:Cu2+质量浓度为0.05 mg/L,p H为9,流速为0.3 m/s。此时NH+4-N去除率为96.11%,TP去除率为97.53%。     

气质联用法测固定污染源中三氟甲烷、四氟甲烷、六氟乙烷和六氟化硫

建立了固定污染源排气中三氟甲烷、四氟甲烷、六氟乙烷和六氟化硫的采样和气质联用分析方法,检出限分别为0.06、0.15、0.21、0.71 mg/m3,精密度在3.2%以下,相关系数大于0.999 6,并对浙江省内2家典型企业排放的温室气体进行了监测,实际样品监测结果表明,该方法能够满足废气中4种温室气体的监测要求。     

济南市空气污染现状及控制对策

利用2013年1—12月济南市大气监测数据,分析该市空气质量现状及时空分布特征,结果表明:2013年济南市空气主要污染物质量浓度均超过《环境空气质量标准》(GB 3095—2012)二级标准限值,空气污染严重时段为冬季采暖期,颗粒物污染严重区域为该市西部和西北部地区,SO2、NO2污染严重区为中心城区,并从点源、面源和移动源3个方面提出相应的污染防治对策。在SO2、NOx和工业烟粉尘分别减排22.5%、18.2%和31.4%的条件下,运用Models-3/CMAQ模型模拟计算得出:2015年1月和7月,济南市空气中SO2、NO2、PM10和PM2.5的质量浓度与2010年同期相比将分别降低23.9%和29.7%、11.4%和15.9%、21.9%和32.6%、13.5%和26.9%,空气质量得到明显改善。