Base-catalyzed amination of olefins: an example of an environmentally friendly synthesis of amines

The base-catalyzed amination of aromatic olefins is described as an environmentally friendly synthesis of various beta-arylethylamines. Primary and secondary aliphatic amines as well as aromatic amines react with styrene derivatives to give the corresponding beta-arylethylamines in high yield up to 99%. While aliphatic amines react with styrenes in the presence of n-BuLi as the pre-catalyst, anilines can be olefinated using KOtBu as the catalyst.     

Nonlinear regression adjustments of multiple continuous monitoring methods produce effective characterization of short-term fine particulate matter

This study comprehensively characterizes hourly fine particulate matter (PM(2.5)) concentrations measured via a tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM), beta-gauge, and nephelometer from four different monitoring sites in U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 (in U.S. states Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin) and compares them to the Federal Reference Method (FRM). Hourly characterization uses time series and autocorrelation. Hourly data are compared with FRM by averaging across 24-hr sampling periods and modeling against respective daily FRM concentrations. Modeling uses traditional two-variable linear least-squares regression as well as innovative nonlinear regression involving additional meteorological variables such as temperature and humidity. The TEOM shows a relationship with season and temperature, linear correlation as low as 0.7924 and nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9370 when modeled with temperature. The beta-gauge shows no relationship with season or meteorological variables. It exhibits a linear correlation as low as 0.8505 with the FRM and a nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9339 when modeled with humidity. The nephelometer shows no relationship with season or temperature but a strong relationship with humidity is observed. A linear correlation as low as 0.3050 and a nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9508 is observed when modeled with humidity. Nonlinear models have higher correlation than linear models applied to the same dataset. This correlation difference is not always substantial, which may introduce a tradeoff between simplicity of model and degree of statistical association. This project shows that continuous monitor technology produces valid PM(2.5) characterization, with at least partial accounting for variations in concentration from gravimetric reference monitors once appropriate nonlinear adjustments are applied. Although only one regression technically meets new EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) correlation coefficient criteria, several others are extremely close, showing optimistic potential for use of this nonlinear adjustment model in garnering EPA NAAQS FEM approval for continuous PM(2.5) sampling methods.     

Strategies of maintaining the natural purification potential of rivers and lakes

Surface waters have a great impact on ecology and life of man. Because of their current use and exploitation, chemical and biological pollution, as well as physical changes of rivers and lakes are common. Natural self-purification potential helps to compensate harms to a certain degree. Proposals are given to detect restrictions of the purification potential in time as well as to support and to enhance the natural purification potential.     

Structural Dependence of Diurnal Fluctuations of Radon Progeny in Residential Buildings

Movement of radon progeny inside houses is a complex process that depends both on atmospheric conditions and on building structure. The indoor working level (WL) monitored in four houses of differing structures shows regular diurnal fluctuations related to solar warming of the atmosphere. In the two houses with full basements, radon is removed by indoor/outdoor pressure-driven airflow, and basement WL varies inversely with outdoor temperature. In the two houses with half basements open to crawl spaces, radon is drawn into the basement faster than it is removed, so that basement WL varies directly with outside temperature. Average WL's in basements are about twice as high as first floor WL's and as much as 18 times as high as outdoor WL's. Each house shows an individual pattern of radon progeny movement throughout the building.     

Application of photocatalysis as a post treatment method of a heterotrophic-autotrophic denitrification reactor effluent

The aim of this study is the application of photocatalysis as an effective post treatment scheme for the removal of the organic matter and bacteria released by an innovative biological denitrification process referred to as heterotrophic-autotrophic denitrification, which combines heterotrophic and autotrophic denitrification processes. Photocatalytic treatment was applied using TiO2 as a photocatalyst in the loading range of 0.25-2.00 g l(-1) for irradiation periods up to 60 min using a black light fluorescent lamp with an intensity of I(0)=1309 microW cm(-2). The photocatalytic inactivation data were modelled to pseudo first order kinetics as well as by the areal rates to evaluate the photocatalyst loading effect. Chlorination was used as a final disinfection step to attain an overall inactivation of total coliforms as well as to the formation of very low level of trihalomethanes.     

The evolution of mass balance models of persistent organic pollutant fate in the environment

Current approaches to modelling the fate of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the environment have evolved in response to four dominant characteristics of these substances; namely: (1) the presence of POPs in virtually all environmental phases and the ease with which they move from one to the other requires multi-compartmental modelling. Describing transport across phase boundaries becomes as, or even more, important as quantifying transport within the phases; (2) POPs may persist in the environment for many decades. For chemicals that 'have time', concepts such as equilibrium partitioning and steady-state become more important than for short-lived substances whose fate is more controlled by the rates of transformation; (3) measuring POPs is difficult and expensive and observed concentrations of POPs are not available in high spatial or temporal resolution. Consequently, high resolution tends not to be a high priority in POP models; and (4) detrimental effects of POPs often manifest themselves in top predators, which has led to a focus on modelling biotic uptake and transfer within food chains. The task of building a POPs model is viewed as combining the four 'building blocks' of partitioning, transport, transformation and source data with the help of the law of the conservation of mass. Process models, evaluative models, models of real local, regional and global fate, as well as biological uptake models are presented and references to numerous examples are provided. An attempt is made to forecast future directions in the field of POPs modelling. It is expected that modelling techniques that do not rely on quantitative emission estimates as well as approaches that take into account spatial, temporal and climatic variability as well as parameter uncertainty will increase in importance. Finally, the relationship between modelling POPs and models of other pollutant issues is addressed, as are potential interactions between POPs and pollutant issues such as eutrophication, acidification and global climate change.     

A preliminary assessment of the potential environmental and human health impact of unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine as a result of space activities

A preliminary assessment of the potential environmental and human health impact of UDMH as a result of space activities has been carried out applying a theoretical approach in comparison with selected experimental data. The theoretical framework includes QSAR, ADME and PASS modelling as well as studies on the possible atmospheric dispersion of UDMH as calculated applying the OML-Multi model. The possible impact on the environment and the human health has been elucidated and it has been concluded that UDMH especially inside the fall region of burned-out rocket stages constitute a significant threat to both environmental and human health, the latter as a results of the carcinogenic, mutagenic, convulsant, teratogenic and embryotoxic characteristics of UDMH in addition to the general toxic characteristics of the compound.     

Effect of fatty acids and oils on photodegradation of azadirachtin-A

Azadirachtin-A on exposure to UV-light (254 nm) as a thin film on glass surface gave a isomerised (Z)-2-methylbut-2-enoate product. Half-life of azadirachtin-A as thin film under UV light was found to be 48 min. Azadirachtin-A was irradiated along with saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, and fatty oils under ultra-violet light as thin film. Saturated fatty acid increased the rate of photodegradation of azadirachtin-A, whereas unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic, linoleic and elaidic acid reduced the rate of degradation. Castor, linseed and olive oil accelerated the rate of degradation, whereas neem oil showed no or little change in the rate of degradation of azadirachtin-A. None of these fatty acids and fatty oils were effective in controlling the rate of degradation of azadirachtin-A under UV-light as thin film.     

Utilization and degradation of imazaquin by a naturally occurring isolate of Arthrobacter crystallopoietes

A species of bacteria that is capable of utilizing imazaquin as the sole carbon source was isolated from soil with repeated imazaquin applications, and was identified as Arthrobacter crystallopoietes (designated as strain “WWX-1”). This isolate degrades imazaquin as high as 200 μg ml⁻¹, and the estimated dissipation half-lives increased from 1.51 d for the treatment at 50 μg ml⁻¹ to 4.75 d for 200 μg ml⁻¹. Optimal growth of WWX-1 in mineral salt medium with 50 μg ml⁻¹ imazaquin was obtained at 35 °C and a pH of 5.0. Growth of WWX-1 was also observed in mineral salt medium with the addition of other imidazolinone herbicides such as imazethapyr and imazapyr, but not with different classes of herbicides such as metsulfuron-methyl. Two imazaquin metabolites were detected, and spectral analysis with HPLC–MS, ¹H NMR, and IR revealed one metabolite with a molecular weight (MW) of 199 as quinoline-2,3-dicarboxylic anhydride. We propose that A. crystallopoietes (WWX-1) could serve as an efficient biodegradation system for remediation of water and soils that are heavily contaminated with imazaquin or other structurally similar chemicals.     

生活垃圾仓式静态好氧发酵供风系统工艺设计

生活垃圾堆肥厂的核心——发酵系统对堆肥产品的质量和成本起着决定性的作用,所以其设计显得至关重要。结合多年的科研及工程实践经验,就垃圾仓式静态好氧发酵供风系统工艺设计中供风形式、方式选择,风量、风压计算以及供风控制形式选择等几个关键部分做了详细介绍。     

膜萃取邻甲酚废水的传质特性研究

构造了卷绕式及管束式两种膜组件,采用均质硅橡胶膜,以氢氧化钠溶液为萃取液来萃取邻甲酚废水.通过考察邻甲酚初始浓度、两相流动状态、两相压差(△P)和温度等因素对传质过程的影响,研究了邻甲酚废水的膜萃取过程与机制.结果表明,初始质量浓度为21.93 g/L的邻甲酚废水很适合直接进行膜萃取;当△P<0.07 MPa时,总传质系数(Kov)随△P的增大而略有减小.当△P>0.07 MPa时,Kov随△P增大而显著增大,由实验数据拟合得到总的膜萃取传质模型.且该模型的实验值与理论值的相对误差在5%以内,满足工业设计要求.     

Assessment of Bacillus subtilis spores as a possible bioindicator for evaluation of the microbicidal efficacy of radiation processing of water.

Gamma and electron-beam irradiation of Bacillus subtilis spores suspended in different types of water was studied to evaluate the inactivation of the spores and assess their possible use as a bioindicator for radiation processing. We found that the inactivation proceeded endogenously, being dose-rate-dependent and affected by oxygen. The radiation resistance of the suspended spores was found to be rather high; therefore, B. subtilis spores used as a bioindicator for efficiency of water treatment by radiation under practical conditions might result in the spores being overly conservative surrogates for pathogenic microorganisms. Moreover, the doserate dependency impedes the use of the spores as a bioindicator. Thus, B. subtilis spores cannot be recommended as a bioindicator for evaluation of the microbicidal efficacy of ionizing radiation processing of water.     

污水处理中的人工湿地强化技术研究

人工湿地作为一种新型污水生态处理工艺受到越来越广泛的重视,在生活污水、特种工业废水、采矿污水、农业和畜牧业污水以及水产养殖废水等处理中得到了广泛的应用.但是其本身的局限却限制了它在高浓度废水、某些工业废水处理等方面的应用,在寒冷地区的应用也受到限制.本研究分析了一些强化技术(如湿地内部要素强化、工艺强化和工程强化等)在提高人工湿地的净化效能以及扩大其应用范围的可能性.     

不同密度沉水植物腐解过程中水体DOM变化特征

选取白洋淀淀区的泥、水以及晒干的优势沉水植物金鱼藻、轮藻为研究对象,设置6个密度梯度模拟实验,分别于实验进行的50 d和100 d采集水样,运用紫外和荧光光谱技术研究沉水植物腐解阶段水体中溶解性有机质(DOM)的变化。结果显示,同步荧光光谱中,类蛋白峰荧光强度的变化不具规律性,类腐殖质峰荧光强度随密度的增加呈上升趋势,I2/I1的值随着密度的增加或时间的推移均逐渐增大;三维荧光光谱中,随着密度的增加,类富里酸荧光峰A和C的强度逐渐增加,而类色氨酸荧光峰T1的强度变化不大,腐解植物的密度大于3 kg/m3时各组均产生了类海洋腐殖质荧光峰B且强度随密度的增加逐渐增强,C峰的强度与水样中的COD和TP呈显著正相关;紫外光谱测定中,A253/A203的值随着密度的增加或时间的推移而逐渐增大,水体中的芳香族化合物也增多。     

Comparisons of diatoms and fishes as toxic metal bioindicator: a case study of an A-class wetland in northwest Turkey under effect of an intensive paddy cultivation stress

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In this research, diatoms as the first step and fishes as the last step of the food chain were compared as toxic metal accumulation bioindicator in an...     

Investigation of the characteristics of the reflectivity of clouds

This paper investigates some of the reflectivity characteristics that clouds (when modelled as solid bodies) must exhibit to be compatible with observations that the reflecting surface of a cloud (i) appears almost equally bright across its face, (ii) is brightest when the cloud is opposite to the Sun but decreases in brightness as the cloud moves to other positions and (iii) increases in brightness with increasing optical thickness of the cloud in the observer's line of sight. These observations, respectively, are shown to imply that the peak value of the bidirectional total reflectivity from a cloud surface (i) increases in inverse proportion to the cosine of the angle between the Sun and the normal to the cloud surface, as the incident angle increases, (ii) appears to be directed back in the direction of the incident radiation, and (iii) increases as optical thickness of the cloud in the observer's line of sight increases. The results could have application in many fields (e.g. modelling diffuse radiance distributions for cloudy skies).     

污水处理中的人工湿地强化技术研究

人工湿地作为一种新型污水生态处理工艺受到越来越广泛的重视，在生活污水、特种工业废水、采矿污水、农业和畜牧业污水以及水产养殖废水等处理中得到了广泛的应用。但是其本身的局限却限制了它在高浓度废水、某些工业废水处理等方面的应用，在寒冷地区的应用也受到限制。本研究分析了一些强化技术（如湿地内部要素强化、工艺强化和工程强化等）在提高人工湿地的净化效能以及扩大其应用范围的可能性。     

Receptor Oriented Methods of Air Particulate Source Apportionment

Receptor models have evolved rapidly over the past 13 years but have just recently been recognized as a distinct discipline. The general category of receptor models includes both microscopic and chemical methods of apportioning source contributions to ambient air particulates. The number and variations of these methods have grown rapidly over the past few years and include such methods as automated scanning electron microscopy, chemical mass balance and multivariate procedures. These methods as well as hybrid procedures such as target transformation factor analysis, are reviewed and their boundary conditions, strengths, and weaknesses discussed.     

A Simple Methodology for the Determination of Back Trajectories

Abstract

This study comprehensively characterizes hourly fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations measured via a tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM), β-gauge, and nephelometer from four different monitoring sites in U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 (in U.S. states Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin) and compares them to the Federal Reference Method (FRM). Hourly characterization uses time series and autocorrelation. Hourly data are compared with FRM by averaging across 24-hr sampling periods and modeling against respective daily FRM concentrations. Modeling uses traditional two-variable linear least-squares regression as well as innovative nonlinear regression involving additional meteorological variables such as temperature and humidity. The TEOM shows a relationship with season and temperature, linear correlation as low as 0.7924 and nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9370 when modeled with temperature. The β-gauge shows no relationship with season or meteorological variables. It exhibits a linear correlation as low as 0.8505 with the FRM and a nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9339 when modeled with humidity. The nephelometer shows no relationship with season or temperature but a strong relationship with humidity is observed. A linear correlation as low as 0.3050 and a nonlinear model correlation as high as 0.9508 is observed when modeled with humidity. Nonlinear models have higher correlation than linear models applied to the same dataset. This correlation difference is not always substantial, which may introduce a tradeoff between simplicity of model and degree of statistical association. This project shows that continuous monitor technology produces valid PM_2.5 characterization, with at least partial accounting for variations in concentration from gravimetric reference monitors once appropriate nonlinear adjustments are applied. Although only one regression technically meets new EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) correlation coefficient criteria, several others are extremely close, showing optimistic potential for use of this nonlinear adjustment model in garnering EPA NAAQS FEM approval for continuous PM_2.5 sampling methods.     

Effect of cadmium on germination, amylases and rate of respiration of germinating pea seeds

Growth of embryonic axis of germinating pea seeds (Pisum sativum cv. Bonneville) was significantly inhibited by as low as 0.25 mM cadmium and the elongation of the radicle was affected more severely than that of the plumule. Total amylolytic activity, as well as activities of alpha- and beta-amylases, diminished progressively with increasing concentrations of the metal in the media. The deleterious effect on alpha-amylase persisted throughout, whereas beta-amylase activity recovered with time. The rate of respiration of seeds, measured by oxygen uptake, was markedly impeded by cadmium and the phase of rapid and linear development of respiratory activity (after 3 days of imbibition) was almost completely, suppressed in the presence of higher concentrations (1 mM) of the metal. The observed impact of cadmium on starch mobilization and on respiratory activity are discussed in relation to its adverse effects on seed germination.