Effectiveness of nanoscale zero-valent iron for treatment of a PCE-DNAPL source zone

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) has received considerable attention as a potential in situ remediation technology for treating chlorinated solvent source zones. Experimental and mathematical modeling studies were conducted to investigate the performance of nZVI in the transformation of tetrachloroethene (PCE) entrapped as a dense nonaqueous phase liquid (DNAPL). Injection of a 60 g/L suspension of nZVI into a column containing 20-30 mesh Ottawa sand and PCE-DNAPL at a residual saturation of 5.5% resulted in a uniform distribution of nZVI and minimal displacement of PCE. Subsequent flushing with 267 pore volumes of water containing 3mM CaCl(2) at a Darcy velocity of 0.75 m/day resulted in steady-state effluent concentrations of PCE near the solubility limit (ca. 200mg/L) and production of dissolved-phase ethene (10-30 mg/L). Over the duration of the experiment, approximately 30% of the initial PCE-DNAPL mass reacted to form ethene, 50% was eluted as dissolved-phase PCE, and 20% remained in the column as PCE-DNAPL. To further explore the implications of the nZVI column results, a multiphase transport model was developed that incorporated rate-limited PCE-DNAPL dissolution and reactions with nZVI. Using a fitted pseudo first-order transformation rate coefficient of 1.421/h, the model accurately captured observed trends in effluent concentrations of PCE and ethene and overall mass balance. A model sensitivity study reveals a strong dependence of treatment effectiveness on system characteristics. The sensitivity analysis suggests that an increase in the extent of PCE transformation is facilitated by decreasing flow rate, emplacement of nZVI down-gradient of the DNAPL source zone, and decreasing length of the DNAPL source zone. These findings indicate that, although emplacement of high concentrations of nZVI within a PCE-DNAPL source zone can result in substantial transformation of the parent compound, careful attention to design parameters (e.g. flow rate, location and amount nZVI delivered) will be required to achieve complete conversion to benign reaction products.     

Recent Years Status of Sediment Bed of Golden Horn (Istanbul) After Year 1999

Golden Horn is an estuary in Istanbul. It has connection with Marmara Sea directly and with Black Sea via Bosphorus, and was polluted by different kinds of industrial plants up to 1999. In addition to this, municipal wastewater of around one million people has been discharged to here. Greater part of the estuary was almost blocked off by sediment islands. Extensive effort was spent to dredge sediment in 1999. This created quite a convenient condition for aquatic medium in the estuary.In this research, the variations of chemical compositions of sediment bed were investigated to get clue about ecological conditions of the estuary. For that purpose, sediment samples were taken from 6 stations along the estuary in 2001, 2003 and 2004. The sediment samples were analyzed for inorganic and organic constituents. Meanwhile, water samples (from the surface and just above benthic mass) were also taken from the same 6 places and they were analyzed to verify the data from sediment samples. By this way, correlations between sediment mass and water body were determined.     

Re-examining the water affordability: A comparison of alternative measures

Water affordability is determined by the percentage of income households that must allocate to municipal water services, while factoring in essential or basic needs water use. With the rise in water prices reported in most areas of the country along with somewhat stagnant income growth—a combination that suggests ceteris paribus—more of a household's disposable income is being spent on water services. This paper adds to the discussion in three ways. First, given the lack of a consistent definition for “affordability” and the subjective connotation associated with such a term, we develop and compare five different water expenditure ratios, including two different measures of water for essential needs, as well as measures for indoor, efficient, and actual water use. Second, because of the granularity of our data, we illustrate how such “affordability” measures can vary significantly within a water district and thus highlight how using district- or county-level income measures can mask the degree to which affordability is an issue for households living in low-income block groups. Our results indicate that the choice of income measure and type of water service use can influence affordability measures substantially.     

Comparison of Three Pebble Count Protocols (EMAP,PIBO, and SFT) in Two Mountain Gravel‐Bed Streams1

Abstract: Although the term ``pebble count'' is in widespread use, there is no standardized methodology used for the field application of this procedure. Each pebble count analysis is the product of several methodological choices, any of which are capable of influencing the final result. Because there are virtually countless variations on pebble count protocols, the question of how their results differ when applied to the same study reach is becoming increasingly important. This study compared three pebble count protocols: the reach‐averaged Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP) protocol named after the EMAP developed by the Environmental Protection Agency, the habitat‐unit specific U.S. Forest Service’s PACFISH/INFISH Biological Opinion (PIBO) Effectiveness Monitoring Program protocol, and a data‐intensive method developed by the authors named Sampling Frame and Template (SFT). When applied to the same study reaches, particle‐size distributions varied among the three pebble count protocols because of differences in sample locations within a stream reach and along a transect, in particle selection, and particle‐size determination. The EMAP protocol yielded considerably finer, and the PIBO protocol considerably coarser distributions than the SFT protocol in the pool‐riffle study streams, suggesting that the data cannot be used interchangeably. Approximately half of the difference was due to sampling at different areas within the study reach (i.e., wetted width, riffles, and bankfull width) and at different locations within a transect. The other half was attributed to using different methods for particle selection from the bed, particle‐size determination, and the use of wide, nonstandard size classes. Most of the differences in sampling outcomes could be eliminated by using simple field tools, by collecting a larger sample size, and by systematically sampling the entire bankfull channel and all geomorphic units within the reach.     

Evaluation of trichloroethene recovery processes in heterogeneous aquifer cells flushed with biodegradable surfactants

The ability of two biodegradable surfactants, polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monooleate (Tween 80) and sodium dihexyl sulfosuccinate (Aerosol MA), to recover a representative dense non-aqueous-phase liquid (DNAPL), trichloroethene (TCE), from heterogeneous porous media was evaluated through a combination of batch and aquifer cell experiments. An aqueous solution containing 3.3% Aerosol MA, 8% 2-propanol and 6 g/l CaCl(2) yielded a weight solubilization ratio (WSR) of 1.21 g TCE/g surfactant, with a corresponding liquid-liquid interfacial tension (IFT) of 0.19 dyn/cm. Flushing of aquifer cells containing a TCE-DNAPL source zone with approximately two pore volumes of the AMA formulation resulted in substantial (>30%) mobilization of TCE-DNAPL. However, a TCE mass recovery of 81% was achieved when the aqueous-phase flow rate was sufficient to displace the mobile TCE-DNAPL toward the effluent well. Aqueous solutions of Tween 80 exhibited a greater capacity to solubilize TCE (WSR=1.74 g TCE/g surfactant) and exerted markedly less reduction in IFT (10.4 dyn/cm). These data contradict an accepted empirical correlation used to estimate IFT values from solubilization capacity, and indicate a unique capacity of T80 to form concentrated TCE emulsions. Flushing of aquifer cells with less than 2.5 pore volumes of a 4% T80 solution achieved TCE mass recoveries ranging from 66 to 85%, with only slight TCE-DNAPL mobilization (<5%) occurring when the total trapping number exceeded 2 x 10(-5). These findings demonstrate the ability of Tween 80 and Aerosol MA solutions to efficiently recover TCE from a heterogeneous DNAPL source zone, and the utility of the total trapping number as a design parameter for a priori prediction of DNAPL mobilization and bank angle formation when flushing with low-IFT solutions. Given their potential to stimulate microbial reductive dechlorination at low concentrations, these surfactants are well-suited for remedial action plans that couple aggressive mass removal followed by enhanced bioremediation to treat chlorinated solvent source zones.     

Assessment of plasma gasification of high caloric waste streams

Plasma gasification is an innovative technology for transforming high calorific waste streams into a valuable synthesis gas and a vitrified slag by means of a thermal plasma. A test program has been set up to evaluate the feasibility of plasma gasification and the impact of this process on the environment. RDF (refuse derived fuel) from carpet and textile waste was selected as feed material for semi-pilot gasification tests. The aim of the tests was: (1) to evaluate the technical feasibility of making a stable synthesis gas; (2) to characterize the composition of this synthesis gas; (3) to define a suitable after-treatment configuration for purification of the syngas and (4) to characterize the stability of the slag, i.e., its resistance to leaching for use as a secondary building material. The tests illustrate that plasma gasification can result in a suitable syngas quality and a slag, characterized by an acceptable leachability. Based on the test results, a further scale-up of this technology will be prepared and validation tests run.     

Application of multiple-population viability analysis to evaluate species recovery alternatives

Population viability analysis (PVA) is a powerful conservation tool, but it remains impractical for many species, particularly species with multiple, broadly distributed populations for which collecting suitable data can be challenging. A recently developed method of multiple-population viability analysis (MPVA), however, addresses many limitations of traditional PVA. We built on previous development of MPVA for Lahontan cutthroat trout (LCT) (Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi), a species listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, that is distributed broadly across habitat fragments in the Great Basin (U.S.A.). We simulated potential management scenarios and assessed their effects on population sizes and extinction risks in 211 streams, where LCT exist or may be reintroduced. Conservation populations (those managed for recovery) tended to have lower extinction risks than nonconservation populations (mean = 19.8% vs. 52.7%), but not always. Active management or reprioritization may be warranted in some cases. Eliminating non-native trout had a strong positive effect on overall carrying capacities for LCT populations but often did not translate into lower extinction risks unless simulations also reduced associated stochasticity (to the mean for populations without non-native trout). Sixty fish or 5–10 fish/km was the minimum reintroduction number and density, respectively, that provided near-maximum reintroduction success. This modeling framework provided crucial insights and empirical justification for conservation planning and specific adaptive management actions for this threatened species. More broadly, MPVA is applicable to a wide range of species exhibiting geographic rarity and limited availability of abundance data and greatly extends the potential use of empirical PVA for conservation assessment and planning.     

Actuarial Risk Analysis to Promote National Contingency Plan (NCP)‐Consistent Remediation

This article provides a case study of how green and sustainable remediation (GSR) concepts (including, but not limited to, worker risk) can be incorporated into the existing National Contingency Plan (NCP)/Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) remedy selection framework. The occupational risks of worker fatalities and injuries associated with two site remediation alternatives were calculated and compared. The results demonstrated that the increased worker risks associated with one of the remedy alternatives rendered it inferior based on the NCP “Balancing Criteria” of short‐term effectiveness. This type of approach is implementable at many sites by leveraging readily available information at the remedy selection stage using published methods and data sources. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Nutrient bioassimilation capacity of aquacultured oysters: quantification of an ecosystem service

Like many coastal zones and estuaries, the Chesapeake Bay has been severely degraded by cultural eutrophication. Rising implementation costs and difficulty achieving nutrient reduction goals associated with point and nonpoint sources suggests that approaches supplemental to source reductions may prove useful in the future. Enhanced oyster aquaculture has been suggested as one potential policy initiative to help rid the Bay waters of excess nutrients via harvest of bioassimilated nutrients. To assess this potential, total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorous (TP), and total carbon (TC) content were measured in oyster tissue and shell at two floating-raft cultivation sites in the Chesapeake Bay. Models were developed based on the common market measurement of total length (TL) for aquacultured oysters, which was strongly correlated to the TN (R2 = 0.76), TP (R2 = 0.78), and TC (R2 = 0.76) content per oyster tissue and shell. These models provide resource managers with a tool to quantify net nutrient removal. Based on model estimates, 10(6) harvest-sized oysters (76 mm TL) remove 132 kg TN, 19 kg TP, and 3823 kg TC. In terms of nutrients removed per unit area, oyster harvest is an effective means of nutrient removal compared with other nonpoint source reduction strategies. At a density of 286 oysters m(-2), assuming no mortality, harvest size nutrient removal rates can be as high as 378 kg TN ha(-1), 54 kg TP ha(-1), and 10,934 kg TC ha(-1) for 76-mm oysters. Removing 1 t N from the Bay would require harvesting 7.7 million 76-mm TL cultivated oysters.     

Seasonal greenhouse gas emissions (methane, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide) from engineered landfills: daily, intermediate, and final California cover soils

Compared with natural ecosystems and managed agricultural systems, engineered landfills represent a highly managed soil system for which there has been no systematic quantification of emissions from coexisting daily, intermediate, and final cover materials. We quantified the seasonal variability of CH, CO, and NO emissions from fresh refuse (no cover) and daily, intermediate, and final cover materials at northern and southern California landfill sites with engineered gas extraction systems. Fresh refuse fluxes (g m d [± SD]) averaged CH 0.053 (± 0.03), CO 135 (± 117), and NO 0.063 (± 0.059). Average CH emissions across all cover types and wet/dry seasons ranged over more than four orders of magnitude (<0.01-100 g m d) with most cover types, including both final covers, averaging <0.1 g m d with 10 to 40% of surface areas characterized by negative fluxes (uptake of atmospheric CH). The northern California intermediate cover (50 cm) had the highest CH fluxes. For both the intermediate (50-100 cm) and final (>200 cm) cover materials, below which methanogenesis was well established, the variability in gaseous fluxes was attributable to cover thickness, texture, density, and seasonally variable soil moisture and temperature at suboptimal conditions for CH oxidation. Thin daily covers (30 cm local soil) and fresh refuse generally had the highest CO and NO fluxes, indicating rapid onset of aerobic and semi-aerobic processes in recently buried refuse, with rates similar to soil ecosystems and windrow composting of organic waste. This study has emphasized the need for more systematic field quantification of seasonal emissions from multiple types of engineered covers.