Screening and detection of biomarkers in chickpea plants exposed to chromium and cadmium

A broad screening protocol, covering the most general phytochemical groups of compounds, was developed on the basis of high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC). A total of six TLC systems, comprising three derivatization reagents, two stationary phases and two mobile phases, were included. The screening method was applied for the identification of biomarkers in the chickpea plant exposed to cadmium and chromium. The biomarkers were selected on the basis of significant changes (0.26-4.6 fold) in concentration levels of phytochemicals. Totally, five different amino acids, three organic acids, one sulphur containing compound and one sugar were identified as biomarkers in chickpea exposed heavy metal.     

Spatial assessment of groundwater quality in Mamundiyar basin, Tamil Nadu, India

Understanding the groundwater quality is important as it is the main factor determining its suitability for drinking, domestic, agricultural, and industrial purposes. In order to assess the groundwater quality, 30 groundwater samples have been collected in year 2008. The water samples collected in the field were analyzed for electrical conductivity, pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), major cations like calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, and anions like bicarbonate, carbonate, chloride, nitrate, and sulfate, in the laboratory using the standard methods given by the American Public Health Association. The groundwater locations were selected to cover the entire study area and attention was been given to the area where contamination is expected. The expected groundwater contaminants were chloride, nitrate, TDS, etc. The results were evaluated in accordance with the drinking water quality standards given by the World Health Organization (WHO 1993). To know the distribution pattern of the concentration of different elements and to demarcate the higher concentration zones, the contour maps for various elements were also generated, discussed, and presented.     

Prevalence of heavy metal resistance in bacteria isolated from tannery effluents and affected soil

In the present study, a total of 198 bacteria were isolated, 88 from the tannery effluents and 110 from agricultural soil irrigated with the tannery effluents. Tannery effluents and soils were analyzed for metal concentrations by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The tannery effluents and soil samples were found to be contaminated with chromium, nickel, zinc, copper, and cadmium. All isolates were tested for their resistance against Cr^6?+?, Cr^3?+?, Ni^2?+?, Zn^2?+?, Cu^2?+?, Cd^2?+?, and Hg^2?+?. From the total of 198 isolates, maximum bacterial isolates were found to be resistant to Cr^6?+? 178 (89.9%) followed by Cr^3?+? 146 (73.7%), Cd^2?+? 86 (43.4%), Zn^2?+? 83 (41.9%), Ni^2?+? 61 (30.8%), and Cu^2?+? 51 (25.6%). However, most of the isolates were sensitive to Hg^2?+?. Among the isolates from tannery effluents, 97.8% were resistant to Cr^6?+? and 64.8% were resistant to Cr^3?+?. Most of the soil isolates were resistant against Cr^6?+? (83.6%) and Cr^3?+? (81.8%). All isolates were categorized into Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In a total of 114 Gram-positive isolates, 91.2% were resistant to Cr^6?+? followed by 73.7% to Cr^3?+?, 42.1% to Zn^2?+?, 40.4% to Cd^2?+?, and 32.5% to Ni^2?+?. Among Gram-negative isolates, 88.1% were found showing resistance to Cr^6?+?, 75.0% to Cr^3?+?, and 47.6% were resistant to Cd^2?+?. Majority of these metal-resistant isolates were surprisingly found sensitive to the ten commonly used antibiotics. Out of 198 isolates, 114 were found sensitive to all antibiotics whereas only two isolates were resistant to maximum eight antibiotics at a time. Forty-one and 40 isolates which constitute 20.7% and 20.2% were resistant to methicilin and amoxicillin, respectively.     

Assessment of odour problem in sewage-treated effluent in a closed loop irrigation system

Uses of wastewater drives significant economic activity, supports countless livelihoods particularly those for developing countries. While using wastewater, the challenge is to identify practical, affordable safeguards that do not threaten the health of users. In Yanbu Al-Sinaiyah, treated sewage effluent (TSE) is used for landscape purposes. In the present study, the odour problem caused by TSE in community area has been addressed. Samples were collected and analysed for total coliform, odour, trihalomethanes (THMs), total organic carbon (TOC) and other physicochemical parameters. Results show that in distribution network, residual chlorine was below the detection limit, turbidity, THMs, TOC and total coliform concentration was much higher than point source, and concentration of these parameters was further increased in problematic areas. It was also observed that areas with odourous problem were at the tail of irrigation network. This indicates that odour problem was due to less residual chlorine high turbidity, high rate of coliform and TOC. In odourous water samples, carbon disulphide and dimethyl sulphide were also identified by GC/MS, while in other areas where there was no odour, both these compounds were not detected. Odour problem was successfully resolved by improving sand filtration system to minimise turbidity the main cause of odour, increasing the residual chlorine at the treatment plant and regularly flushing the distribution network.     

ModelOps for enhanced decision-making and governance in emergency control rooms

Environment Systems and Decisions - For mission critical (MC) applications such as bushfire emergency management systems (EMS), understanding the current situation as a disaster unfolds is critical...     

Feedstocks,catalysts, process variables and techniques for biodiesel production by one-pot extraction-transesterification: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Biodiesel is a sustainable alternative to petroleum diesel. The main bottlenecks in the commercialization of biodiesel are production costs and suitable industrial...     

Biopolymer-based membranes from polysaccharides for CO2 separation: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - The application of natural biopolymers such as polysaccharides for the fabrication of bio-based membranes has recently attracted attention for CO2...     

Combined role of industrialization and urbanization in determining carbon neutrality: empirical story of Pakistan

A rapid process of industrialization, on the one hand, transformed the economies from agrarian to industrial societies to improve the living standards and welfare of people. On the other hand, the urbanized and industrialized economies have posed challenging threats to environmental sustainability. The query at hand is whether the growing environmental emissions are driven by industrialization and urbanization or not. This research aims to empirically examine the combined role of industrialization and urbanization in achieving carbon neutrality in Pakistan by considering foreign direct investment and economic growth as control variables in the model. The core empirical results are the following: firstly, industrialization and economic growth exhibit negative but statistically insignificant impacts on CO₂ emissions, imparting a neutral role in determining the environmental degradation in Pakistan. Secondly, urbanization and foreign direct investment disclose positive and statistically significant (at 1% level of significance) impacts on CO₂ emissions, manifesting an environmental degradation driving impact in the country. Thirdly, given the slope coefficients of urbanization and foreign direct investment (0.058 and 0.035), urbanization proved to be a stronger driver than foreign direct investment. Finally, foreign direct investment is revealed to make the Pakistani economy a “Pollution Haven” for the foreign enterprises in the country. Based on empirical results, none of the variables predicted the support for carbon neutrality in Pakistan.

     

Economic growth,technology, and CO2 emissions in BRICS: Investigating the non-linear impacts of economic complexity

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Upgrading economic structures and producing less pollution-intensive goods are indispensable for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in...     

Role of casting and curing conditions on the strength and drying shrinkage of greener concrete

The shrinkage of cement-based materials is a critical dimensional property that needs proper attention as it can influence the corresponding characteristics especially when the preparation of such cement-based material is done in hot weather. Studies have shown that the casting or curing conditions influence the performance of concrete. However, there is limited understanding of the combined role of casting temperature and curing conditions, especially for concrete made with unconventional binders. In this study, five supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) were utilized as the substitute of the ordinary Portland cement (OPC) at different ratios to produce greener concrete and improve its characteristics and sustainability. The influence of four casting temperatures (i.e., 25 °C, 32 °C, 38 °C, and 45 °C) and two curing regimes (i.e., covering of samples using wet burlap and applying curing compound on the surface of samples) on the corresponding compressive strength and drying shrinkage at various ages was studied. The outcomes of this research revealed that the composition of the binders has a substantial impact on the characteristics of concrete. In addition, the casting temperature and curing regimes also have a huge role on the compressive strength of concrete produced with binary binders. For example, the compressive strength at 3 days of concrete made at 25 °C made with binary binders was reduced up to 31% compared to that made with only OPC as the binder when cured using wet burlap. Nonetheless, less than 38 ℃ was suitable to minimize the durability issues in the studied blended cement mixes.