Trends in primary particulate matter emissions from Canadian agriculture

Particulate matter (PM) has long been recognized as an air pollutant due to its adverse health and environmental impacts. As emission of PM from agricultural operations is an emerging air quality issue, the Agricultural Particulate Matter Emissions Indicator (APMEI) has been developed to estimate the primary PM contribution to the atmosphere from agricultural operations on Census years and to assess the impact of practices adopted to mitigate these emissions at the soil landscape polygon scale as part of the agri-environmental indicator report series produced by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. In the APMEI, PM emissions from animal feeding operations, wind erosion, land preparation, crop harvest, fertilizer and chemical application, grain handling, and pollen were calculated and compared for the Census years of 1981–2006. In this study, we present the results for PM₁₀ and PM_2.5, which exclude chemical application and pollen sources as they only contribute to total suspended particles. In 2006, PM emissions from agricultural operations were estimated to be 652.6 kt for PM₁₀ and 158.1 kt for PM_2.5. PM emissions from wind erosion and land preparation account for most of PM emissions from agricultural operations in Canada, contributing 82% of PM₁₀ and 76% of PM_2.5 in 2006. Results from the APMEI show a strong reduction in PM emissions from agricultural operations between 1981 and 2006, with a decrease of 40% (442.8 kt) for PM₁₀ and 47% (137.7 kt) for PM_2.5. This emission reduction is mainly attributed to the adoption of conservation tillage and no-till practices and the reduction in the area of summerfallow land.

Implications: Increasing sustainability in agriculture often means adapting management practices to have a beneficial impact on the environment while maintaining or increasing production and economic benefits. We developed an inventory of primary PM emissions from agriculture in Canada to better quantify the apportionment, spatial distribution, and trends for Census years 1981–2006. We found major reductions of 40% in PM₁₀ and 47% in PM_2.5 emissions over the 25-yr period as a co-benefit of increasing carbon sequestration in agricultural soils. Indeed, farmers adopted conservation tillage/no-till practices, increased usage of cover crops, and reduced summerfallow, in order to increase soil organic matter and reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which also reduced primary PM emissions, although the agricultural production increased over the period.     

Biodegradation of nicotine by a novel Strain Shinella sp. HZN1 isolated from activated sludge

The nicotine-degrading bacterium HZN1 was isolated from activated sludge and identified as Shinella sp. based on its physiological characteristics and analysis of 16S rDNA gene. Strain HZN1 is capable of using nicotine as the sole carbon source in the mineral salts medium. The optimum temperature and pH for strain HZN1 growth and nicotine degradation were 30°C and 7.0, respectively. It could degrade approximately 100 % of 0.5 g L^?1 of nicotine within 9 h. Three intermediate metabolites were produced by the strain HZN1 and identified as cotinine, myosmine and nicotyrine using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. This is the first report of nicotine-degrading strain from the genus of Shinella. The results showed that strain HZN1 could be potentially employed in bioremediation of nicotine. Our findings would provide a new insight into the biodegradation of nicotine.     

不同利用方式土壤中磷的吸附与解吸特性

研究不同利用方式土壤对磷的吸附解吸特性及其影响因素。采用室内恒温培养法研究了湖南典型土壤(红壤、潮土和紫色土)的不同利用方式(旱地、水田)土壤对P的吸附和解吸过程。土壤对磷的吸附解吸过程是分阶段进行的,用Langmuir方程拟合程度比Freundlich方程高,相关系数均在0.90(P<0.05)以上;从最大吸附量(Qm)、吸附反应常数(K)和最大缓冲容量(MBC)3项吸附参数综合考虑,旱地对P的吸附无论在强度还是容量方面均大于同母质的水田土壤;解吸率随着吸附量的增加而增大,其大小为旱地<水田。Qm与<0.002 mm粘粒及无定形铁含量呈正相关,相关系数分别为0.95和0.94(P<0.05)。不同利用方式土壤P吸附解吸特性差别较大,针对不同土壤应采取不同的磷素管理措施以实现作物增产和保护环境的双重效益。     

A Composting Study of Membrane-Like Polyvinyl Alcohol Based Resins and Nanocomposites

This study presents the effect of biodegradation, in a composting medium, on properties of membrane-like crosslinked and noncrosslinked polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and nanocomposites. The composting was carried out for 120 days and the biodegradation of these materials was characterized using various techniques. The changes in the PVA resin and nanocomposite surface topography and microstructure during composting were also characterized. The results from the analyses suggest biodegradation of PVA based materials in compost medium was mainly by enzymes secreted by fungi. The results also indicate that the enzymes degraded the amorphous regions of the specimens first and that the PVA crystallinity played an important role in its biodegradation. The surface roughness of the specimens was seen to increase with composting time as the microbial colonies grew which in turn facilitated further microorganism growth. All specimens broke into small pieces between 90 and 120 days of composting as a result of deep biodegradation. Glyoxal and malonic acid crosslinking decreased the PVA biodegradation rate slightly. Addition of highly crystalline microfibrillated cellulose and naturally occurring halloysite nanotubes in PVA based nanocomposites also decreased the biodegradation rate. The three factors: PVA crystallinity, crosslinking and additives, may be utilized effectively to extend the life of these materials in real life applications.     

3种污泥对活性黑KN-B的生物吸附及降解研究

对比研究了好氧污泥、厌氧污泥和厌氧颗粒污泥对染料活性黑KN-B的吸附和降解。结果表明,这3种污泥对活性黑的吸附均符合Freundlich模型(R~2为0.9665～0.9859)和Langmuir模型(R~2为0.9460～0.9906),但3种污泥对活性黑这种染料的吸附量较小;并且厌氧污泥对活性黑的吸附能力优于好氧污泥和厌氧颗粒污泥。实验还发现,3种污泥对活性黑的脱色主要是生物降解作用,而不是吸附作用。     

3种草本植物对Pb-Cd污染水体的修复研究

采用水培实验方法,研究3种水生草本植物对Pb-Cd污染水体的生长反应及对重金属离子的修复效果。结果表明,在去除率实验中3种植物对Pb2+-Cd2+的去除率均有提高,对Pb2+的去除率分别为浮萍47.88%,水蕹菜63.89%,凤眼莲77.27%,Cd2+的去除率分别为浮萍48.32%,水蕹菜58.96%,凤眼莲76.87%。植物各器官对Pb2+-Cd2+的富集规律为:Pb2+Cd2+,根茎叶,凤眼莲水蕹菜浮萍。     

EM菌与化学絮凝剂复配实验研究

通过实验考查EM复壮液分别与无机高分子絮凝剂PAC、PFS复配使用处理高岭土悬浊液絮凝条件和絮凝效果。实验结果表明:EM复壮液与化学絮凝剂复配以后的适用条件为弱酸弱碱性环境。最佳复配比分别为VPAC∶VEM=0.6mL∶2 mL或VPFS∶VEM=1.0 mL∶3.0 mL,前者的絮凝率为91.2%,优于后者的87.6%。同时降低了处理后水中的金属残余量以及絮凝剂的总投加量,降低污水处理的成本,提高了水质。     

Assessing anthropogenic sources of mercury in soil in Wanshan Hg mining area, Guizhou, China

Long-term mining and smelting activities brought a series of environmental issues into soils in Wanshan mercury (Hg) mining area (WMMA), Guizhou, China. Several studies have been published on the concentrations of Hg in local soils, but a comprehensive assessment of the mass of Hg in soil induced by anthropogenic activities, as presented in this paper, has not been previously conducted. Three districts of WMMA were chosen as the study areas. We summarized previous published data and sampled 14 typical soil profiles to analyze the spatial and vertical distributions of Hg in soil in the study areas. The regional geologic background, direct and indirect Hg deposition, and Hg-polluted irrigation water were considered as the main sources of Hg contaminations in local soils. Furthermore, the enrichment factor (EF) method was applied to assess the extent of anthropogenic input of Hg to soil. Titanium (Ti) was chosen to be the reference element to calculate the EF. Generally, the elevated values of EF were observed in the upper soil layers and close to mine wastes. The total budget of Hg in soil contributed from anthropogenic sources was estimated to be 1,227 t in arable soil and 75 t in natural soil. Our data showed that arable soil was the major sink of anthropogenic Hg in the study area.     

数学模拟在污水处理厂节能减排中的应用和发展

在国内外节能减排的大背景下,污水处理厂面临着巨大的提标改造和节能减排压力。基于活性污泥数学模型的数学模拟技术在国内外许多污水处理厂的模拟仿真、运行诊断与工艺优化、升级评估、节能减排等方面得到广泛的应用,文章主要介绍了数学模拟技术在污水处理厂节能减排方面的发展和应用情况,并提出今后国内的主要研究方向。