Spatial characteristics of fine particulate matter: identifying representative monitoring locations in Seattle, Washington

This study investigates how PM2.5 varies spatially and how these spatial characteristics can be used to identify potential monitoring sites that are most representative of the overall ambient exposures to PM2.5 among susceptible populations in the Seattle, WA, area. Data collected at outdoor sites at the homes of participants of a large exposure assessment study were used in this study. Harvard impactors (HIs) were used at 40 outdoor sites throughout the Seattle metropolitan area. Up to six sites at a time were monitored for 10 consecutive 24-hr average periods. A fixed-effect analysis of variance (ANOVA) model that included date and location effects was used to analyze the spatial variability of outdoor PM2.5 concentrations. Both date and location effects were shown to be highly significant, explaining 92% of the variability in outdoor PM2.5 measurements. The day-to-day variability was 10 times higher than the spatial variability between sites. The site mean square was more than twice the error mean square, showing that differences between sites, while modest, are potentially an important contribution to measurement error. Variances of the model residuals and site effects were examined against spatial characteristics of the monitoring sites. The spatial characteristics included elevation, distance from arterials, and distance from major PM2.5 point sources. Results showed that the most representative PM2.5 sites were located at elevations of 80-120 m above sea level, and at distances of 100-300 m from the nearest arterial road. Location relative to industrial PM2.5 sources is not a significant predictor of residential outdoor PM2.5 measurements. Additionally, for sites to be representative of the average population exposures to PM2.5 among those highly susceptible to the health effects of PM2.5, areas of high elderly population density were considered. These representative spatial characteristics were used as multiple, overlapping criteria in a Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis to determine where the most representative sites are located.     

Co-surfactant of ethoxylated sorbitan ester and sorbitan monooleate for enhanced flushing of tetrachloroethylene

This work evaluated the flushing efficiency of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) using the co-surfactant of non-ionic ethoxylated sorbitan ester (Tween) and oilphilic sorbitan monooleate (Span 80), which formed more hydrophobic micelles than Tween alone. The flushing efficiency was evaluated with laboratory columns filled with silica and aquifer sand. Results from column flushing were also compared to those of batch solubility experiments to study the removal mechanism by the co-surfactant solution. Compared to Tween 80 alone, the molar solubilization ratio and the affinity between the micelles and PCE increased 84% and 90%, respectively, by the co-surfactant solution of Tween 80 and Span 80 mixed at a 4:1 ratio. Flushing with 1% Tween 80 solution yielded a steady PCE recovery of 7% for both silica and aquifer sand in each pore volume (PV). Flushing with co-surfactant of 1% Tween 80 + Span 80 (4:1) further increased PCE recovery to 10% for silica sand and 13% for aquifer sand per PV. A comparison of results from column flushing and batch solubility tests indicated that the primary flushing mechanism of PCE using the co-surfactant solution of Tween 80 + Span 80 (4:1) was micellar solubilization.     

Insights into the mercury(II) adsorption and binding mechanism onto several typical soils in China

To better understand the Hg(II) adsorption by some typical soils and explore the insights about the binding between Hg(II) and soils, a batch of adsorption and characteristic experiments was conducted. Results showed that Hg(II) adsorption was well fitted by the Langmuir and Freundlich. The maximum adsorption amount of cinnamon soil (2094.73 mg kg^?1) was nearly tenfold as much as that of saline soil (229.49 mg kg^?1). The specific adsorption of Hg(II) on four soil surface was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) owing to the change of elemental bonding energy after adsorption. However, the specific adsorption is mainly derived from some substances in the soil. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated that multiple oxygen-containing functional groups (O–H, C=O, and C–O) were involved in the Hg(II) adsorption, and the content of oxygen functional groups determined the adsorption capacity of the soil. Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy combined with X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM–EDS) more intuitive revealed the binding of mercury to organic matter, metal oxides, and clay minerals in the soil and fundamentally confirmed the results of XPS and FTIR to further elucidate adsorptive phenomena. The complexation with oxygen-containing functional groups and the precipitation with minerals were likely the primary mechanisms for Hg(II) adsorption on several typical soils. This study is critical in understanding the transportation of Hg(II) in different soils and discovering potential preventative measures.     

Photocatalytic degradation of azo dyes by nitrogen-doped TiO2 nanocatalysts

This study examined the photocatalytic degradation of three azo dyes, acid orange 7 (AO7), procion red MX-5B (MX-5B) and reactive black 5 (RB5) using a new type of nitrogen-doped TiO2 nanocrystals. These newly developed doped titania nanocatalysts demonstrated high reactivity under visible light (lambda>390 nm), allowing more efficient usage of solar light. The doped titania were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Experiments were conducted to compare the photocatalytic activities of nitrogen-doped TiO2 nanocatalysts and commercially available Degussa P25 powder using both UV illumination and solar light. It is shown that nitrogen-doped TiO2 after calcination had the highest photocatalytic activity among all three catalysts tested, with 95% of AO7 decolorized in 1 h under UV illumination. The doped TiO2 also exhibited substantial photocatalytic activity under direct sunlight irradiation, with 70% of the dye color removed in 1h and complete decolorization within 3 h. Degussa P25 did not cause detectable dye decolorization under identical experimental conditions using solar light. The decrease of total organic carbon (TOC) and evolution of inorganic sulfate (SO4(2-)) ions in dye solutions were measured to monitor the dye mineralization process.     

Influence of metal oxides on PCDD/Fs formation from pentachlorophenol

Chlorophenols (ClPhs) are considered as important precursors for PCDD/Fs formation. The influences of series of metal oxides including MgO, Al2O3, CaO, BaO, TiO2, V2O5, MnO2, Fe2O3, Co3O4, CuO, Ag2O, ZnO, HgO, SnO, PbO, La2O3, CeO2, and Eu2O3 on PCDD/Fs formation from pentachlorophenol (PCP) were investigated in a laboratory-scale reactor. The results indicated that most of the above metal oxides have obvious suppressing effects on the total amount of PCDD/Fs formation from precursor PCP except for CuO, ZnO, MnO2, TiO2 and Co3O4 with promotion effects at 280 degrees C for 2 h. Although MgO, Al2O3, Fe2O3, PbO, La2O3 and Eu2O3 could reduce the amount of octachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (OCDD), they promote the formation of more toxic 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpCDD at the same time. The total suppressing efficiencies of several metal oxides including CaO, BaO, PbO, Ag2O, HgO and SnO which have lower Z/r (charge to radius ratio) <2 are all over 90%. The theories of generalized acid-base and atomic parameter (Z/r) were used to speculate the effecting mechanisms. The factors including time and temperature on suppressing efficiencies of CaO, BaO and PbO have also been studied in the present paper. The results showed that the total suppressing efficiencies of CaO, BaO and PbO increase with the increase of heated time and temperature.     

Tylosin sorption to silty clay loam soils, swine manure, and sand

The objectives of this study were to assess sorption and desorption of tylosin, a macrolide antimicrobial chemical used in swine, cattle, and poultry production, in three silty clay loam soils of South Dakota and compare soil sorption to sand and manure sorption. The silty clay loam soils, from a toposequence in eastern South Dakota, standardized sand samples, and swine manure were used in 24-h batch sorption studies with tylosin concentrations ranging from 25 to 232 micro mole/L. Desorption from soil was conducted over a four-day period. Partition coefficients, based on the Freundlich isotherm (K(f)) or K(d) values, were calculated. K(f) values for the silty clay loams were similar, not influenced by landscape position, and averaged 1,350 with isotherm slopes ranging from 0.85 to 0.93. K(f) values for sand were dependent on solution/sand ratios and pH, ranging from 1.4 to 25.1. K(d) values of manure were dependent on the solution type and ranged from 840 L/kg with urine to about 175 L/kg when sorbed from water. Desorption of tylosin from each soil over the four-day period was < 0.2% of the amount added. The soils' high K(f) values and low desorption amounts suggest that once tylosin is in these soils, leaching to lower depths may not occur. However, this does not preclude runoff with soil eroded particles. If tylosin reaches a sand aquifer, through bypass flow or other mechanism(s), movement in the aquifer most likely would occur.     

超声波技术处理微污染水的实验研究

通过实验,对使用超声波技术处理微污染水的效果、机理进行了初步研究,实验结果表明,超声波对微污染水的细菌和色度去除效果明显,细菌的去除符合一级反应动力学方程,对COD和浊度去除有一定效果,但不显著。结果还发现,水体pH值随时间呈上升趋势。     

湿式烟气脱硫喷淋塔内部流场数值模拟研究

以300MW机组湿法烟气脱硫喷淋塔为研究对象,利用计算流体力学通用软件对其内部两相流场进行模拟。气相湍流由标准k 模型描述,喷淋液滴由拉格朗日颗粒轨道模型描述。预测了无喷淋和有喷淋2种条件下的气相湍流流场分布、沿塔高方向不同截面上的气速分布以及喷淋液滴的轨迹。模拟结果表明,引入喷淋液后,出口截面气速分布明显均匀化,其最大值由无喷淋时的12m/s降至6m/s。该最大值出现在靠近塔壁处,是由塔壁附近喷淋密度较低造成的,可通过改进周边喷嘴的布置方式及喷嘴型式进行优化。     

生态滤池处理城市污水小试研究

生态滤池(MEEF)是利用由微生物和蚯蚓为代表的微型动物共同组成的人工生态系统,对城镇污水中的污染物进行降解处理的新型污水处理技术。采用单层滤池和复合床滤池进行实验,在相同的实验条件下,对生态滤池和无蚯蚓滤池的运行效果进行了比较。运行初期,生态滤池的出水水质稍优于无蚯蚓滤池,特别是悬浮物浓度低;运行半月后,无蚯蚓滤池表面积泥,出现厌氧情况,出水水质变差,而生态滤池至少正常运行1个月。复合床生态滤池连续进水运行,水力负荷达到2.0m3/m2·d,COD去除率达80%以上,出水SS浓度<5mg/L。结果表明,蚯蚓在维持滤池的正常运行起着重要作用。最后介绍了生态滤池中各种生物的作用及生态滤池的工作原理。     

利用木素-SiO2凝胶制备稀土催化剂及对蒽醌废水处理的研究

探讨利用木质素-二氧化硅凝胶制备高比表面稀土催化剂的方法、性能及其在非均相催化体系中稀土催化剂对双氧水的催化行为与效果.结果表明,负载型稀土对双氧水产生羟基自由基氧化染料中间体废水具有明显的增效行为,并对该行为的机理进行了探讨.