Reactivity of litter leachates from California oak woodlands in the formation of disinfection by-products

Litter materials from forested watersheds can be a significant source of dissolved organic matter (DOM) to surface waters that can contribute to the formation of carcinogenic disinfection by-products (DBPs) during drinking-water chlorination. This study characterized the reactivity of DOM from litter leachates of representative vegetation in oak woodlands, a major plant community in the Foothill Region of California. Leachates from fresh and decomposed litter (duff) from two oak species, pine, and annual grasses were collected for an entire rainy season to evaluate their reactivity to form DBPs on chlorination. Relationships among specific ultraviolet absorbance (SΔUVA), fluorescence index (FI), specific differential ultraviolet absorbance (SΔUVA), specific chlorine demand (SCD), and the dissolved organic carbon:dissolved organic nitrogen (DOC:DON) ratio to the specific DBP formation potential (SDBP-FP) were examined. The DOM derived from litter materials had considerable reactivity in forming trihalomethanes (THMs) (1.80-3.49 mmol mol), haloacetic acid (HAAs) (1.62-2.76 mmol mol(-1)), haloacetonitriles (HANs) (0.12-0.37 mmol mol(-1)), and chloral hydrate (CHD) (0.16-0.28 mmol mol). These values are comparable to other identified watershed sources of DBP precursors reported for the California Delta, such as wetlands and organic soils. Vegetation type and litter decomposition stage (fresh litter versus 1-5 yr-old duff) were key factors that determined characteristics of DOM and their reactivity to form DBPs. Pine litter had significantly lower specific THM formation potential compared with oak and grass, and decomposed duff had a greater DON content, which is a precursor of HANs and other nitrogenous DBPs. The SΔUVA and SDBP-FP were temporally variable and dependent on vegetation type, degree of decomposition, and environmental conditions. Among the optical properties of DOM, SΔUVA was the only parameter that was consistently correlated with SDBP-FP.     

Using pruning residues as mulch: analysis of its adoption and process of diffusion in Southern Spain olive orchards

This paper analyses both the processes of adoption and diffusion of the practice of using the chopped residues of pruning as mulch in the olive orchards of the Southern Spanish province of Granada, one of the major olive-producing areas in the world. Many olive groves in the area are located on steep areas where the risk of soil erosion is high. A majority of farmers have adopted no tillage, as an alternative to traditional tillage, combined with either vegetation soil covers or, more frequently, using the chopped pruning residues as mulch. The data used comes from a survey carried out in 2005 to 215 olive farmers. From farmers' responses we estimate a binomial probit model to identify some socio-economic and institutional factors related to the decision to use the practice of mulching on a regular basis. We also estimate several diffusion models that describe the spatial and temporal spread of mulching among farmers. Our results show that mulching using the pruning residues is adopted by 43% of the surveyed farmers. The diffusion process of this practice has been very intense since the middle nineties, and seems to have been based on the interactions among farmers in the area of study rather than in other external source of information. Some of the relevant identified factors that affect the probability of adoption of this practice are farmer's experience, the level of soil degradation in the farm or the continuity of farming by some relative.     

Evaluation of environmental management resources (ISO 14001) at civil engineering construction worksites: a case study of the community of Madrid

In recent years, significant advances have been made in business organization and management. The growing demands of clients as well as the globalization of world markets are among the many factors that have led to the establishment of systems of quality control and environmental management as a competitive strategy for businesses. When compared to other professional sectors, the construction sector has been slower to respond to environmental problems and to adopt Environmental Management Systems (EMS). In the world today the ISO 14001 standard is currently the main frame of reference used by construction companies to implement this type of management system. This article presents the results of a general study regarding the evaluation of the application of the ISO 14001 standard at civil engineering construction worksites in the Community of Madrid (Spain), specifically pertaining to requirement 4.4.1, Resources, roles, responsibilities, and authority. According to requirement 4.4.1, company executives should appoint people responsible for implementing the EMS and also specify their responsibilities and functions. The personnel designated for supervising environmental work should also have sufficient authority to establish and maintain the EMS. The results obtained were the following: - EMS supervisors did not generally possess adequate training and solid experience in construction work and in the environment. Furthermore, supervisors were usually forced to combine their environmental work with other tasks, which made their job even more difficult. - Generally speaking, supervisors were not given sufficient authority and autonomy because productivity at the construction site had priority over environmental management. This was due to the fact that the company management did not have a respectful attitude toward the environment, nor was the management actively involved in the establishment of the EMS. - Insufficient resources were allocated to the Environmental Management Unit. As a result, the application of EMSs in construction projects often appeared to be more of a formality, which was merely a way of maintaining the certification of the Environmental Management System. It was more a means of meeting the requirements for submitting a tender to contracting organisms rather than an indicator of any real commitment to improving the environmental performance of construction companies.     

Recycling, reuse and energetic valuation of meat industry wastes in Extremadura (Spain)

The environmental problem caused by the effluents from the four main agrifood industries in Extremadura (W Spain) is evaluated in the present work. In particular, attention is paid to the management of wastes from slaughterhouse operations. Pollution is quantified in terms of equivalent population and biological oxygen demand, for which very high values are reported.Efforts are also focused on the search of viable technical solutions for the treatment of those residues and their energetic valuation. In this sense, anaerobic digestion techniques are proposed, not only because they lead to a drastic decrease in their pollution potential, but also because significant volumes of biogas are obtained. This biogas might be used to produce electricity to be transferred to the electrical network. This way, anaerobic digestion plants would allow depreciation within a relatively short period.In particular, an analysis of the economics of a plant for the codigestion of solid and liquid effluents from meat industry is carried out, and a payback time between 7 and 8 years was achieved.     

基于微粒再悬浮的沉降微粒团的受力分析

以管流中柴油机排气沉降微粒为研究对象,通过建立的沉降微粒再悬浮的静态模型,从微粒再悬浮的角度对沉降微粒团所受到的黏附力矩、重力力矩、碰撞力矩以及曳力力矩进行了计算分析.得到了柴油机排气沉降微粒团所受力矩随微粒团直径的变化规律、各种力矩的取值范围以及在柴油机排气沉降微粒再悬浮中各种力矩的作用.沉降微粒的平衡主要受黏附力矩、碰撞力矩以及曳力力矩的影响. 当微粒团直径为0.1～0.8 μm时,黏附力矩作用显著并维持沉降微粒的稳定. 随着微粒团直径的增加,曳力力矩和碰撞力矩快速增大,而黏附力矩的增大速率则相对比较缓慢,打破沉降微粒平衡的作用显著.     

铂掺杂二氧化钛的制备及光催化乳酸制氢的研究

采用溶胶-凝胶法和甲醛还原法制备了Pt/TiO2光催化剂,并采用XRD对其结构进行了表征.当焙烧温度为500℃时,制备的纳米二氧化钛为纯锐钛矿相;在二氧化钛表面沉积少量的铂对二氧化钛的晶相和粒径几乎没有影响,但可以使二氧化钛光催化的产氢性能提高近10倍.以乳酸为电子供体,对影响其光催化产氢的因素进行了详细地考察.研究结果表明,光催化分解乳酸产氢的最佳条件为焙烧温度500℃、焙烧时间2 h、载铂量0.8%、催化剂用量0.14 g·L-1和pH 1-2.     

湖泊内源氮磷污染分析方法及特征研究进展

湖泊的内源氮磷污染已成为湖泊富营养化治理的一大难题.本文总结了沉积物中氮磷赋存形态、沉积物-水界面氮磷迁移释放行为和沉积物中氮磷的生物有效性三方面的研究进展,提出了目前研究存在的问题,并对未来发展趋势和研究方向进行了展望,以期为湖泊内源氮磷污染机理分析和湖泊富营养化治理控制技术提供参考.     

赵各庄煤矿矿井排水资源化综合利用研究

赵各庄矿井排水主要为巷道涌水及奥灰水疏水降压排水,排水量大;巷道涌水悬浮物、矿化度均较高,Cd、Pb含量超标,奥灰水疏水降压排水水质良好。针对矿井排水水量、水质特征,给出了矿井排水处理方式及利用规划,可使矿井水得到综合利用,取得良好的水资源化效益。     

土壤和沉积物中多氯联苯单体测定的净化方法研究

对浓硫酸净化、铜粉脱硫、氟罗里硅土柱、硅胶柱、石墨碳柱等净化方法在土壤和沉积物多氮联苯单体测定中的应用进行了研究.浓硫酸对多氯联苯单体的净化回收率达92.4％～109％;氟罗里硅土柱用正己烷/丙酮混合溶液淋洗,净化洗脱液体积为8 mL～10 mL时,回收率达85.7％ ～ 108％;硅胶柱用正己烷淋洗,净化洗脱液体积为...