Effects of typical algae species (Aphanizomenon flosaquae and Microcystis aeruginosa) on photoreduction of Hg2+ in water body

Photoreduction characteristics of divalent inorganic mercury(Hg~(2+)) in the presence of specific algae species are still not well known. Laboratory experiments were conducted in the present study to identify the effects of different concentrations of living/dead algae species, including Aphanizomenon flosaquae(AF) and Microcystis aeruginosa(MA), on the photoreduction rate of Hg~(2+)under various light conditions. The experimental results showed that percentage reduction of Hg~(2+)was significantly influenced by radiation wavelengths, and dramatically decreased with the presence of algae. The highest percentage reduction of Hg~(2+)was induced by UV-A, followed by UV-B, visible light and dark for both living and dead AF, and the order was dark UV-A UV-B visible light for both living and dead MA. There were two aspects, i.e., energy and attenuation rate of light radiation and excrementitious generated from algae metabolisms, were involved in the processes of Hg~(2+)photoreduction with the presence of algae under different light conditions. The percentage reduction of Hg~(2+)decreased from 15% to 11% when living and dead AF concentrations increased by 10 times(from 106 to 105 cells/mL), and decreased from 11% to ～ 9% in the case of living and dead MA increased. Algae can adsorb Hg~(2+)and decrease the concentration of free Hg~(2+), thus inhibiting Hg~(2+)photoreduction, especially under the conditions with high concentrations of algae. No significant differences were found in percentage reduction of Hg~(2+)between living and dead treatments of algae species.The results are of great importance for understanding the role of algae in Hg~(2+)photoreduction.     

Air pollution characteristics and their relationship with emissions and meteorology in the Yangtze River Delta region during 2014–2016

With rapid economic growth and urbanization, the Yangtze River Delta(YRD) region in China has experienced serious air pollution challenges. In this study, we analyzed the air pollution characteristics and their relationship with emissions and meteorology in the YRD region during 2014–2016. In recent years, the concentrations of all air pollutants, except O_3,decreased. Spatially, the PM_(2.5), PM_(10), SO_2, and CO concentrations were higher in the northern YRD region, and NO_2 and O_3 were higher in the central YRD region. Based on the number of non-attainment days(i.e., days with air quality index greater than 100), PM_(2.5) was the largest contributor to air pollution in the YRD region, followed by O_3, PM_(10), and NO_2.However, particulate matter pollution has declined gradually, while O_3 pollution worsened.Meteorological conditions mainly influenced day-to-day variations in pollutant concentrations. PM_(2.5) concentration was inversely related to wind speed, while O_3 concentration was positively correlated with temperature and negatively correlated with relative humidity.The air quality improvement in recent years was mainly attributed to emission reductions.During 2014–2016, PM_(2.5), PM_(10), SO_2, NO_x, CO, NH_3, and volatile organic compound(VOC)emissions in the YRD region were reduced by 26.3%, 29.2%, 32.4%, 8.1%, 15.9%, 4.5%, and0.3%, respectively. Regional transport also contributed to the air pollution. During regional haze periods, pollutants from North China and East China aggravated the pollution in the YRD region. Our findings suggest that emission reduction and regional joint prevention and control helped to improve the air quality in the YRD region.     

移民搬迁是否加剧了山区耕地撂荒?——基于陕南三市1578户农户面板数据

山区移民搬迁是否加剧耕地撂荒关系到移民稳定性及国家粮食安全,具有重要的研究价值。基于陕西省南部地区商洛、安康、汉中3市8县（区）1578户农户调查数据,运用面板Logit和Tobit模型回归得出,移民年数对是否撂荒、撂荒面积及撂荒耕地占比在1%的水平上有正向影响;仅当移民距离超过0.5 km时,农户耕地撂荒面积及撂荒耕地占比显著增加;不同移民类型中,工程移民对耕地撂荒的影响程度最大,避灾移民影响程度最小;另外,户主特征、家庭特征、资源禀赋特征、农地流转特征显著影响了农户的耕地撂荒行为。可以得出,移民搬迁加剧了山区耕地撂荒,城镇生活的转变及务农时间机会成本的增加是耕地撂荒的主要原因。建议政府对工程移民农户进行有土安置,加大生态移民区退耕还林支持力度,扶持扶贫、避灾移民农户发展特色产业,加快农地流转信息平台建设。     

Importance of nutrient availability for soluble microbial products formation during a famine period of activated sludge: Evidence from multiple analyses

Much remains unknown about compositional variations in soluble microbial products (SMP) with the shift of the substrate condition from a feast to a famine phase in biological treatment systems. This study demonstrated that the formation of SMP could be suppressed by up to 75% during the famine phase with the addition of essential nutrients. In contrast, presence of electron acceptor did not play any significant role during the stress condition, showing the similar amounts of SMP (r?=?0.98, p?<?0.05) formation between the bioreactors supplied with air and N₂. The SMP formed in the famine phase was more bio-refractory in the famine versus the feast phase with a linear correlation shown between the production and their aromatic structures in the composition (R²?>?0.95). The fluorescence excitation–emission matrix coupled with parallel factor analysis (EEM-PARAFAC) revealed the presence of four different fluorescent components, including two protein-like (C1 and C4), fulvic-like (C2), and humic-like (C3) components, in the SMP and bEPS formed at different conditions. Both C1 and C4 showed increasing trends (R²?>?0.95) with the length of starvation in the bioreactors without essential nutrients. Nutrient availability was found to be a key factor to quench the production of large-sized biopolymers. This study provides a wealth of information on operation conditions of activated sludge treatment systems to minimize large sized SMP molecules (particularly proteins), which typically exert many environmental concerns to effluent organic matter quality.     

Facile synthesis of Ag-modified manganese oxide for effective catalytic ozone decomposition

O₃ decomposition catalysts with excellent performance still need to be developed. In this study, Ag-modified manganese oxides (AgMnO_x) were synthesized by a simple co-precipitation method. The effect of calcination temperature on the activity of MnO_x and AgMnO_x catalysts was investigated. The effect of the amount of Ag addition on the activity and structure of the catalysts was further studied by activity testing and characterization by a variety of techniques. The activity of 8%AgMnO_x for ozone decomposition was significantly enhanced due to the formation of the Ag_1.8Mn₈O₁₆ structure, indicating that this phase has excellent performance for ozone decomposition. The weight content of Ag_1.8Mn₈O₁₆ in the 8%AgMnO_x catalyst was only about 33.76%, which further indicates the excellent performance of the Ag_1.8Mn₈O₁₆ phase for ozone decomposition. The H₂ temperature programmed reduction (H₂-TPR) results indicated that the reducibility of the catalysts increased due to the formation of the Ag_1.8Mn₈O₁₆ structure. This study provides guidance for a follow-up study on Ag-modified manganese oxide catalysts for ozone decomposition.     

Highly catalytic activity of Mn/SBA-15 catalysts for toluene combustion improved by adjusting the morphology of supports

Rod-like, hexagonal and fiber-like SBA-15 mesoporous silicas were synthesized to support MnO_x for toluene oxidation. This study showed that the morphology of the supports greatly influenced the catalytic activity in toluene oxidation. MnO_x supported on rod-like SBA-15(R-SBA-15) displayed the best catalytic activity and the conversion at 230°C reached more than 90%, which was higher than the other two catalysts. MnO_x species consisted of coexisting MnO_2 and Mn_2O_3 on the three kinds of SBA-15 samples. Large amounts of Mn_2O_3 species were formed on the surface and high oxygen mobility was obtained on MnO_x supported on R-SBA-15, according to the H_2 temperature programmed reduction(H_2-TPR)and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) results. The Mn/R-SBA-15 catalyst with greater amounts of Mn_2O_3 species possessed a large amount of surface lattice oxygen, which accelerated the catalytic reaction rate. Therefore, the surface lattice oxygen and high oxygen mobility were critical factors on the catalytic activity of the Mn/R-SBA-15 catalyst.     

One-step synthesis of Cu(II) metal–organic gel as recyclable material for rapid, efficient and size selective cationic dyes adsorption

Efficient removal of non-biodegradable and hazardous dyes from wastewater remains a hot research topic. Herein, a rationally designed a Cu(Ⅱ)-based metal–organic gel(Cu-MOG) with a nanoporous 3 D network structure prepared via a simple one-step mixing method was successfully employed for the removal of cationic dyes. The Cu-MOG exhibited high efficiency, with an adsorption capacity of up to 650.32 mg/g, and rapid adsorption efficiency, with the ability to adsorb 80% of Neutral Red within 1 min. The high adsorption efficiency was attributed to its large specific surface area, which enabled it to massively bind cationic dyes through electrostatic interaction, and a nanoporous structure that promoted intra-pore diffusion. Remarkably, the Cu-MOG displayed size-selective adsorption, based on adsorption studies concerning dyes of different sizes as calculated by density functional theory. Additionally, the adsorption performance of the Cu-MOG still maintained removal efficiency of 100% after three regeneration cycles. These results suggested that the Cu-MOG could be expected to be a promising and competitive candidate to conveniently process wastewater.     

碳磷添加对黄土区农田土壤呼吸及温度敏感性的影响

黄土区耕地面积占全国耕地面积的15%以上,该区域降水资源贫乏,是我国土壤生产力和土壤有机碳储量最低的区域之一。营养的大量投入可以极大地提高土壤生产力,但对于营养添加下土壤CO_2排放有何变化以及是如何改变黄土区土壤环境,进而影响土壤呼吸及温度敏感性还尚不清楚。本文以长武实验田的黑垆土作为研究对象,分别对N12(施氮量120 kg?hm~(-2))土样设置不添加、添加磷源以及CK(长期连作不施肥)土样设置不添加、添加磷源、碳源、碳磷源(共计6个处理),比较分析在15℃和25℃培养下土壤呼吸速率的变化,以及培养周期内土壤温度敏感性Q_(10)(即温度每升高10℃,温室气体排放速率变化的倍数)的变化趋势。通过对呼吸前后土壤pH值、全碳全磷、有机碳、速效磷、硝态氮、铵态氮以及微生物生物量碳磷(MBC、MBP)的测定,分析其影响因素。碳磷添加在一定程度上提高了土壤的呼吸速率,其中碳源的添加明显增强了土壤呼吸速率以及土壤Q_(10)值。碳磷添加大幅度提高了土壤全碳、速效磷含量以及微生物活性,15℃条件培养后,土壤微生物生物量最高。碳磷添加后,土壤呼吸速率与土壤pH、全碳、铵态氮、MBC呈极显著相关关系。该研究为黄土区土壤生产力的提高以及降低温室气体的排放、恢复和改善生态环境提供理论依据。     

Enhanced the photoelectrochemical performance of Bi2XO6 (X = W, Mo) for detecting hexavalent chromium by modification of CuS

In this work, Bi₂XO₆ (X = W, Mo) are synthesized at different temperatures. The results of tests find the optimal temperatures of Bi₂WO₆ and Bi₂MoO₆ are 180 and 160°C (BW-180, BM-160). Then, BW-180 and BM-160 are further compounded with different contents of CuS. The results of photoelectrochemical (PEC) tests show that CuS can improve the PEC performance of semiconductor materials, and it has better performance when CuS mass fraction is 5%. These maybe the photoelectron potentials generated by CuS/Bi₂XO₆ (X = Mo, W) heterojunction reduce the combination of photogenerated electrons and holes. When the PEC sensor based on 5%-CuS/BW-180 detects Cr(VI), it has a linear range of 1–80 μmol/L with detection limit of 0.95 μmol/L, while the PEC sensor based on 5%-CuS/BM-160 detects Cr(VI) has a linear range of 0.5–230 μmol/L and a detection limit of 0.12 μmol/L. Thus, 5%-CuS/Bi₂XO₆ has potential application in hexavalent chromium detection.