Size distributions of aerosol and water-soluble ions in Nanjing during a crop residual burning event

To investigate the impact on urban air pollution by crop residual burning outside Nanjing, aerosol concentration, pollution gas concentration, mass concentration, and water-soluble ion size distribution were observed during one event of November 4-9, 2010. Results show that the size distribution of aerosol concentration is bimodal on pollution days and normal days, with peak values at 60-70 and 200-300 nm, respectively. Aerosol concentration is 10⁴ cm^-3. nm^-1 on pollution days. The peak value of spectrum distribution of aerosol concentration on pollution days is 1.5-3.3 times higher than that on a normal day. Crop residual burning has a great impact on the concentration of fine particles. Diurnal variation of aerosol concentration is trimodal on pollution days and normal days, with peak values at 03:00, 09:00 and 19:00 local standard time. The first peak is impacted by meteorological elements, while the second and third peaks are due to human activities, such as rush hour traffic. Crop residual burning has the greatest impact on SO₂ concentration, followed by NO₂, O₃ is hardly affected. The impact of crop residual burning on fine particles (< 2.1 μm) is larger than on coarse particles (> 2.1 μm), thus ion concentration in fine particles is higher than that in coarse particles. Crop residual burning leads to similar increase in all ion components, thus it has a small impact on the water-soluble ions order. Crop residual burning has a strong impact on the size distribution of K⁺, Cl^-, Na⁺, and F^- and has a weak impact on the size distributions of NH₄⁺, Ca²⁺, NO₃^- and SO₄^2-.     

Particle number size distribution and new particle formation: New characteristics during the special pollution control period in Beijing

New particle formation is a key process in shaping the size distribution of aerosols in the atmosphere.We present here the measurement results of number and size distribution of aerosol particles (10-1...     

Sewage sludge disintegration by high-pressure homogenization: A sludge disintegration model

High-pressure homogenization (HPH) technology was applied as a pretreatment to disintegrate sewage sludge. The effects of homogenization pressure, homogenization cycle number, and total solid content on sludge disintegration were investigated. The sludge disintegration degree (DDCOD), protein concentration, and polysaccharide concentration increased with the increase of homogenization pressure and homogenization cycle number, and decreased with the increase of sludge total solid (TS) content. The maximum DDCOD of 43.94% was achieved at 80 MPa with four homogenization cycles for a 9.58 g/L TS sludge sample. A HPH sludge disintegration model of DD_COD= kN^aP^b was established by multivariable linear regression to quantify the effects of homogenization parameters. The homogenization cycle exponent a and homogenization pressure exponent b were 0.4763 and 0.7324 respectively, showing that the effect of homogenization pressure (P) was more significant than that of homogenization cycle number (N). The value of the rate constant k decreased with the increase of sludge total solid content. The specific energy consumption increased with the increment of sludge disintegration efficiency. Lower specific energy consumption was required for higher total solid content sludge.     

南京市夏季大气气溶胶新粒子生成事件分析

研究了南京市夏季大气气溶胶数浓度的基本特征和气溶胶新粒子生成事件的形成条件及其影响因子.应用宽范围颗粒粒径谱仪(WPS)和双光路差分吸收光谱仪(DOAS)对南京市2010年7月大气气溶胶数浓度谱分布和污染气体(O3、SO2和NO2)进行了观测,并结合气象要素观测数据和后向轨迹模式模拟,探讨了南京市夏季大气气溶胶新粒子生成的条件及其影响因子.结果表明,南京市夏季10～500nm气溶胶平均数浓度为1.7×104cm-3,与北美和欧洲的一些典型城市观测值相近;10～25 nm气溶胶粒子数浓度占总数浓度的比例为25%.观测期间共出现6次新粒子生成事件,通过分析发现比较稳定的风速风向、较强的太阳辐射有利于南京夏季新粒子的形成.南京夏季新粒子生成事件的相对湿度条件在50%～70%,通过后向轨迹模式模拟的结果发现偏东风或偏南风带来的海洋性洁净气团有利于新粒子的生成.南京夏季新粒子生成事件发生时,10～25 nm气溶胶数浓度与SO2的浓度呈正相关,与O3的浓度呈负相关,而与NO2的浓度相关性较差.     

近50a东江流域径流变化及影响因素分析

以1956—2005年降雨、径流与气象资料为基础,应用Mann-Kendall趋势检验、小波分析以及R/S分析等多种方法,探讨了东江流域径流年际变化特征及其对气候变化以及植被覆盖变化的响应。结果表明:①50 a来流域年径流序列变化趋势不明显,存在4 a、7~9 a、11~13 a、16~22 a等4类尺度的周期性变化规律;河源、岭下站径流序列具有较强的状态持续性,博罗站持续性很小。②厄尔尼诺现象出现的当年,东江流域年径流量普遍减少;厄尔尼诺现象出现的次年,年径流量普遍增加。太阳黑子数的急剧变化,与东江径流量的丰、枯也有良好的响应关系。③50 a来,在降雨量呈不显著减少趋势的背景下,河源、岭下站径流仍然呈不显著增加趋势的主要原因是蒸发量下降的缘故,是气候因素和流域植被退化共同作用的结果。     

地下水渗流补给-内源释放耦合作用下河流水质不确定模拟

针对河流-地下水环境系统的模糊性、不精确性及随机不确定性,采用梯形模糊数描述和表征河流水文、水质及水文地质参数,构建了集成地下水渗流补给与内源释放耦合影响的一维河流水质模糊模拟模型.在此基础上,就地下水渗流补给与内源释放的可能组合,设置5种情景,分别进行水质模拟,并对计算结果进行分析、对比.实例研究表明,对地下水渗流补给与内源释放耦合作用下的河流水质衰减变化规律,梯形模糊数有较好的模拟效果.     

UV-B辐射增强对壶状臂尾轮虫种群增殖的影响

运用群体累计培养的方法研究了UV-B辐射增强对壶状臂尾轮虫(Brachionus urceus)种群增殖的影响.结果表明:UV-B辐射增强对壶状臂尾轮虫的种群数量、雌体抱卵率和种群增殖率都有显著影响(P<0.05).实验表明,在本实验辐射强度(20μW/cm2)和剂量范围内(0.24、0.48、0.72、0.96和1.20kJ/m2),壶状臂尾轮虫的种群数量和种群增殖率均以对照组最高,各UV-B辐射处理组则随UV-B辐射剂量的增大而呈一致性减小,说明该种群的种群数量和种群增殖率随UV-B辐射的增强显示一致性的影响,两者都可以作为大气UV-B辐射强弱的生物指标.     

Review of the remediation strategies for soil water repellency

Many regions of the world are predicted to experience water scarcity due to more frequent and more severe droughts and increased water demands. Water use efficiency by plants can be negatively affected by soil water repellency (SWR). It is timely to review existing techniques to remedy SWR. Ideally remediation addresses the origins of a problem. However, the fundamental mechanisms of how and why SWR develops are still poorly understood. In this review it was hypothesized that SWR occurs where the balance of input-decomposition of organic matter is impaired, due to either increased input or decreased decomposition rates of hydrophobic substances. Direct and indirect strategies to remedy SWR were distinguished. While direct remediation aims at abolishing the causes of SWR, indirect strategies seek to manage sites with SWR by treating its symptoms. The 12 reviewed strategies include applying surfactants, clay, slow-release fertilizers, lime, and fungicides, bioremediation of SWR through stimulating earthworms, choosing adapted vegetation, irrigation, cultivation, soil aeration and compaction. Some of the techniques have been applied successfully only in laboratory experiments. Our review highlights that it is not straightforward to cure SWR based on easily measurable and site-specific soil and vegetation properties, and that long-term, large-scale field experiments are required to improve the understanding of the evolution of SWR as cornerstone to develop cost-effective and efficient remediation strategies. We also identified current research gaps around the diagnosis and prevention of SWR.     

Evidence of new particle formation during post monsoon season over a high-altitude site of the Western Ghats,India

The formation of ultrafine particles, their growth, and associated characteristic features has been studied during new particle formation events over a high-altitude station of the Western Ghats during the 2014 post-monsoon season. Most of the events were observed during noon time where particle bursts in the nucleation-mode size range from 5 to 25 nm followed by sustained growth in size. This phenomenon persists for ～4–8 h with a growth rate of 1–2 nm h^–1. Peak concentrations of nucleation-mode particles during the event generally vary from 2300 to 5000 cm^–3. The mean growth rate is 1.4 ± 0.42 nm h^–1, particle formation rate is 1.14 ± 0.22 cm^–3 s^–1, coagulation sink is 0.35 ± 0.22 cm^–3 s^–1, and condensational sink is 15.4 ± 2.6?×?10^–3 s^–1. All these values are comparable with earlier results from Indian region. Comparison of size-segregated particle number concentration during days of new particle formation events and those without new particle formation were carried out showing a distinct variation in nucleation and Aitken mode with least variability associated with the accumulation mode.     

An experimental apparatus for testing biodiesels based on a CFR engine—setup and validation with different methyl ester blends

A cooperative fuel research (CFR) engine was modified and instrumented in order to control operating conditions and to measure engine parameters and in-cylinder pressure diagrams. Aiming at the comparison of different alternative fuels, an experimental procedure was defined, including cetane number (CN) evaluation and the definition of engine operating quantities in different working points, for fixed levels of compression ratio (CR) and injection advance. An investigation was made considering several blends of methyl-esters of rapeseed oil (RME) and of a mix of vegetable oils (VOME) with conventional diesel oil. The defined experimental procedure was applied to assess CN, engine brake thermal efficiency (bte) and exhaust emissions. Results show that the biodiesel content has a positive influence on soot emissions, with strong reduction, while thermal efficiency and NO_X emissions are negatively affected, which can be justified taking into account fuel properties and changes in combustion process. As observed outcomes are generally in line with those presented in literature, the facility proved to be a suitable tool for basic investigations on alternative fuels to be used in specific applications.