Competitive sorption between 17α-ethinyl estradiol and bisphenol A/4-n-nonylphenol by soils

The sorption of 17α-ethinyl estradiol(EE2),bisphenol A(BPA),and 4-n-nonylphenol(NP) in single systems and the sorption of EE2 with different initial aqueous concentrations of BPA or NP were examined using three soils.Results showed that all sorption isotherms were nonlinear and fit the Freundlich model.The degree of nonlinearity was in the order BPA(0.537-0.686) > EE2(0.705-0.858) > NP(0.875-0.0.951) in single systems.The isotherm linearity index of EE2 sorption calculated by the Freundlich model for Loam,Silt Loam and Silt increased from 0.758,0.705 and 0.858,to 0.889,0.910 and 0.969,respectively,when BPA concentration increased from 0 to 1000 μg/L,but the effect of NP was comparably minimal.Additionally,EE2 significantly suppressed the sorption of BPA,but insignificantly suppressed that of NP.These findings can be attributed to the difference of sorption affinity of EE2,NP and BPA on the hard carbon(e.g.,black carbon) of soil organic matter that dominated the sorption in the low equilibrium aqueous concentration range of endocrine-disrupting chemicals(EDCs).Competitive sorption among EDCs presents new challenges for predicting the transport and fate of EDCs under the influence of co-solutes.     

Effects of physical and chemical characteristics of surface sediments in the formation of shallow lake algae-induced black bloom

Surface sediments are closely related to lake black blooms. The dissolved oxygen （DO） distribution and its penetration depth in surface sediments as well as the migration and transformation of redox sensitive elements such as Fe and S at the sediment-water interface are important factors that could influence the formation of the black bloom. In this study, dredged and undredged sediment cores with different surface properties were used to simulate black blooms in the laboratory. The Micro Profiling System was employed to explore features of the DO and ∑H2S distribution at the sediment-water interface. Physical and chemical characteristics in sediments and pore waters were also analyzed. The results showed that sediment dredging effectively suppressed the black blooms. In the undredged treatment, DO penetration depth was only 50 μm. Fe^2＋ concentrations, ∑H2S concentrations, and ∑H2S production rates were remarkably higher in surface sediments and pore waters compared to control and dredged treatments. Furthermore, depletion of DO and accumulation of Fe^2＋ and ∑H2S in surface sediments and pore waters provided favorable redox environments and necessary material sources for the blooms. The study results proved that physical and chemical characteristics in surface sediments are important factors in the formation of the black bloom, and could provide scientific guidance for emergency treatment and long-term pre-control of black blooms.     

Iron and lead ion adsorption by microbial flocculants in synthetic wastewater and their related carbonate formation

Although microbial treatments of heavy metal ions in wastewater have been studied, the removal of these metals through incorporation into carbonate minerals has rarely been reported. To investigate the removal of Fe^3＋ and Pb^2＋, two representative metals in wastewater, through the precipitation of carbonate minerals by a microbial flocculant （MBF） produced by Bacillus mucilaginosus. MBF was added to synthetic wastewater containing different Fe^3＋ and Pb^2＋ concentrations, and the extent of flocculation was analyzed. CO2 was bubbled into the mixture of MBF and Fe^3＋/Pb^2＋ to initiate the reaction. The solid substrates were analyzed via X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results showed that the removal efficiency decreased and the MBF adsorption capacity for metals increased with increasing heavy metal concentration. In the system containing MBF, metals （Fe^3＋ and Pb^2＋）, and CO2, the concentrated metals adsorbed onto the MBF combined with the dissolved CO2, resulting in oversaturation of metal carbonate minerals to form iron carbonate and lead carbonates. These results may be used in designing a method in which microbes can be utilized to combine CO2 with wastewater heavy metals to form carbonates, with the aim of mitigating environmental problems.     

Enhanced photocatalytic activity of quantum-dot-sensitized one-dimensionally-ordered ZnO nanorod photocatalyst

An efficient photocatalyst was fabricated by assembling quantum dots （QDs） onto one-dimensionally-ordered ZnO nanorods, and the photocatalytic properties for Methyl Orange degradation were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, UV-Vis-NIR absorption spectroscopy and photoluminescence. The results indicate that the catalyst with assembled QDs is more favorable for the degradation than the pristine ZnO nanorods. The QDs with core-shell structure lower the photocatalytic ability due to the higher carder transport barrier of the ZnS shell layer. Besides its degradation efficiency, the photocatalyst has several advantages given that the one-dimensionally-ordered ZnO nanorods have been grown directly on indium tin oxide substrates. The article provides a new method to design an effective and easily recyclable photocatalyst.     

Research on the evolvement of morphology of coking coal during the coking process

The evolvement of morphology and structure of the coal with different metamorphic degrees during coking process in the vertical furnace was investigated by infrared Image detector. Moreover, the temperature distribution in the radial direction and the crack formation were also studied in heating process. The results show that the amount of crack and the shrinkage level of char decrease with the coal rank rising. In addition, the initial temperature of crack formation for char increases with the coal rank rising.     

Photocatalytic degradation of carbofuran in TiO2 aqueous solution：Kinetics using design of experiments and mechanism by HPLC/MS/MS

The photocatalytic degradation kinetics of carbofuran was optimized by central composite design based on response surface methodology for the first time. Three variables, TiO2 concentration, initial pH value and the concentration of carbofuran, were selected to determine the dependence of degradation efficiencies on independent variables. Response surface methodology modeling results indicated that the degradation efficiency of carbofuran was highly affected by the initial pH value and the concentration of carbofuran. Then nine degradation intermediates were detected by HPLC/MS/MS. The Frontier Electron Densities of carbofuran were calculated to predict the active sites on carbofuran attacked by hydroxyl radicals and photoholes. Point charges were used to elucidate the chemisorption pattern on TiO2 catalysts during the photocatalytic process. By combining the experimental results and calculation data, the photocatalytic degradation pathways of carbofuran were proposed, including the addition of hydroxyl radicals and the cleavage of the carbamate side chain.     

Waste oyster shell as a kind of active filler to treat the combined wastewater at an estuary

Estuaries have been described as one of the most difficult environments on Earth. It is difficult to know how to treat the combined wastewater in tidal rivers at the estuary, where the situation is very different from ordinary fresh water rivers. Waste oyster shell was used as the active filler in this study in a bio-contact oxidation tank to treat the combined wastewater at the Fengtang Tidal River. With a middle-experimental scale of 360 ma/day, the average removal efficiency of COD, BOD, NH3-N, TP and TSS was 80.05%, 85.02%, 86.59%, 50.58% and 85.32%, respectively, in this bio-contact oxidation process. The living microbes in the biofilms on the waste oyster shell in this bio-contact oxidation tank, which were mainly composed of zoogloea, protozoa and micro-metazoa species, revealed that waste oyster shell as the filler was suitable material for combined wastewater degradation. This treatment method using waste oyster shell as active filler was then applied in a mangrove demonstration area for water quality improvement near the experiment area, with a treatment volume of 5 × 10^3 m^3/day. Another project was also successfully applied in a constructed wetland, with a wastewater treatment volume of 1 ×10^3 m^3/day. This technology is therefore feasible and can easily be applied on a larger scale,     

Eutrophication development and its key regulating factors in a water-supply reservoir in North China

Yanghe Reservoir is an important source of drinking water for Qinhuangdao City,North China;however,in recent decades this water source has been eutrophic with recurrent summer cyanobacterial blooms.The trophic grade of the system in summer was mesotrophiceutrophic in 1990 and became hypertrophic in 2011.The nutrient availability is extremely high during the entire year,and the water temperature should be the primary driver of the summer blooms.In May-October of 2010 and 2011,abrupt variations were observed in the Secchi depth(SD) and chlorophyll a(Chl-a),and both the correlated analysis of Chl-a-SD and trophic status indices(TSI) deviation(TSI Chl-a-TSI SD) showed that algal cell density dominated light attenuation.During the algal bloom outbreak,the microcystin concentration was found to vary between 0.35-2.12 μg/L in 2010 and 0.11-1.86 μg/L in 2011.The maximum microcystin content was more than two times the safety limit required for drinking water.Inflow discharges were most concentrated in the summer,with periods of lower residence time and the largest water level fluctuation over the entire year.When a high availability of nutrients promoted a high Chl-a concentration in the whole system,it appeared that the instability caused by the decrease in residence time could not produce effective changes in the cyanobacterial abundance.The results indicated that nutrient enrichment in the aquatic systems of Yanghe Reservoir is the most serious problem and that the status would not been modified effectively by increasing hydrological fluctuations(e.g.,decreasing the residence time).Therefore,decreasing the nutrient concentrations is the only route to improve the water quality of this reservoir.     

铬(Ⅵ)土著还原菌筛选及初步鉴定实验研究

以重铬酸钾为供试物,用固体平板法和还原实验对铬(Ⅵ)土著还原菌进行筛选,用载片培养法、革兰氏染色法、鞭毛染色法、芽孢染色法对还原菌做初步的鉴定,共筛选出16株铬(Ⅵ)土著还原菌,并挑选出还原率相对较高的Z2(35.2%)、Z3(45.2%)、Z4(38.6%)、X8(30.4%)、X10(29.4%)作为铬(Ⅵ)的优势还原菌株。经初步鉴定,土著真菌Z2为黑曲霉(Aspergillusniger),Z3、Z4为镰刀菌属(Fusariumsp.),土著细菌X8、X10为芽孢杆菌(Bacillussp.)。实验的方法和成果将为铬(Ⅵ)污染土壤微生物治理技术的推广应用提供技术支持。     

交通主干道旁室内外苯系物的分析和研究

监测结果表明室外的机动车流量对于室外的苯系物浓度起到较大的贡献作用,并且室外苯系物浓度的变化曲线和机动车流量变化结果呈现出一致性;同时,通过监测还表明室内的三苯浓度变化中,开窗情况下室内的污染物浓度的变化和室外浓度变化是一致,而在关窗情况下室内的三苯浓度变化较为的复杂,这可能是在交通主干道旁和对照点的建筑室内存在三苯污染源。