UV/H2O2 oxidation of tri(2-chloroethyl) phosphate: Intermediate products, degradation pathway and toxicity evaluation

Tri(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) with the initial concentration of 5 mg/L was degraded by UV/H₂O₂ oxidation process. The removal rate of TCEP in the UV/H₂O₂ system was 89.1% with the production of Cl^? and PO₄^3? of 0.23 and 0.64 mg/L. The removal rate of total organic carbon of the reaction was 48.8% and the pH reached 3.3 after the reaction. The oxidative degradation process of TCEP in the UV/H₂O₂ system obeyed the first order kinetic reaction with the apparent rate constant of 0.0025 min^?1 (R²=0.9788). The intermediate products were isolated and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer. The addition reaction of HO? and H₂O and the oxidation reaction with H₂O₂ were found during the degradation pathway of 5 mg/L TCEP in the UV/H₂O₂ system. For the first time, environment risk was estimated via the “ecological structure activity relationships” program and acute and chronic toxicity changes of intermediate products were pointed out. The luminescence inhibition rate of photobacterium was used to evaluate the acute toxicity of intermediate products. The results showed that the toxicity of the intermediate products increased with the increase of reaction time, which may be due to the production of chlorine compounds. Some measures should be introduced to the UV/H₂O₂ system to remove the highly toxic Cl-containing compounds, such as a nanofiltration or reverse osmosis unit.     

On-going nitrification in chloraminated drinking water distribution system (DWDS) is conditioned by hydraulics and disinfection strategies

Within the drinking water distribution system (DWDS) using chloramine as disinfectant, nitrification caused by nitrifying bacteria is increasingly becoming a concern as it poses a great challenge for maintaining water quality. To investigate efficient control strategies, operational conditions including hydraulic regimes and disinfectant scenarios were controlled within a flow cell experimental facility. Two test phases were conducted to investigate the effects on the extent of nitrification of three flow rates (Q = 2, 6, and 10 L/min) and four disinfection scenarios (total Cl₂=1 mg/L, Cl₂/NH₃-N=3:1; total Cl₂=1 mg/L, Cl₂/NH₃-N=5:1; total Cl₂=5 mg/L, Cl₂/NH₃-N=3:1; and total Cl₂=5 mg/L, Cl₂/NH₃-N=5:1). Physico-chemical parameters and nitrification indicators were monitored during the tests. The characteristics of biofilm extracellular polymetric substance (EPS) were evaluated after the experiment. The main results from the study indicate that nitrification is affected by hydraulic conditions and the process tends to be severe when the fluid flow transforms from laminar to turbulent (2300<Re<4000). Increasing disinfectant concentration and optimizing Cl₂/NH₃-N mass ratio were found to inhibit nitrification to some extend when the system was running at turbulent condition (Q = 10 L/min, Re = 5535). EPS extracted from biofilm that was established at the flow rate of 6 L/min had greater carbohydrate/protein ratio. Furthermore, several nitrification indicators were evaluated for their prediction efficiency and the results suggest that the change of nitrite, together with total organic carbon (TOC) and turbidity can indicate nitrification potential efficiently.     

Coupling mechanism of activated carbon mixed with dust for flue gas desulfurization and denitrification

To clarify the effect of coking dust, sintering dust and fly ash on the activity of activated carbon for various industrial flue gas desulfurization and denitrification, the coupling mechanism of the mixed activated carbon and dust was investigated to provide theoretical reference for the stable operation. The results show that coking dust had 34% desulfurization efficiency and 10% denitrification efficiency; correspondingly, sintering dust and fly ash had no obvious desulfurization and denitrification activities. For the mixture of activated carbon and dust, the coking dust reduced the desulfurization and denitrification efficiencies by blocking the pores of activated carbon, and its inhibiting effect on activated carbon was larger than its own desulfurization and denitrification activity. The sintering dust also reduced the desulfurization efficiency on the activated carbon while enhancing the denitrification efficiency. Fly ash blocked the pores of activated carbon and reduced its reaction activity. The reaction activity of coking dust mainly came from the surface functional groups, similar to that of activated carbon. The reaction activity of sintering dust mainly came from the oxidative property of Fe₂O₃, which oxidized NO to NO₂ and promoted the fast selectively catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO to form N₂. Sintering dust was activated by the joint action of activated carbon, and both had a coupling function. Sintering dust enhanced the adsorption and oxidation of NO, and activated carbon further promoted the reduction of NO_x by NH₃; thus, the denitrification efficiency increased by 5%-7% on the activated carbon.     

Photodegradation of Hexafluoropropylene Oxide Trimer Acid under UV Irradiation

As a novel alternative to traditional perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), hexafluoroproplyene oxide trimer acid (HFPO-TA) has been detected worldwide in surface water. Moreover, recent researches have demonstrated that HFPO-TA has stronger bioaccumulation potential and higher hepatotoxicity than PFOA. To treat these contaminants e.g. PFOA and PFOS, some photochemical techniques by adding exogenous substances had been reported. However, there is still no report for the behavior of HFPO-TA itself under direct UV irradiation. The current study investigated the photo-transformation of HFPO-TA under UV irradiation in aqueous solution. After 72 hr photoreaction, 75% degradation ratio and 25% defluorination ratio were achieved under ambient condition. Reducing active species, i.e., hydrated electrons and active hydrogen atoms, generated from water splitting played dominant roles in degradation of HFPO-TA, which was confirmed by different effects of reaction atmospheres and quenching experiments. A possible degradation pathway was proposed based on the products identification and theoretical calculations. In general, HFPO-TA would be transformed into shorter-chain PFASs, including hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA), perfluoropropionic acid (PFA) and trifluoroacetate (TFA). This research provides basic information for HFPO-TA photodegradation process and is essential to develop novel remediation techniques for HFPO-TA and other alternatives with similar structures.     

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in benthos of the northern Bering Sea Shelf and Chukchi Sea Shelf

Eighteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were detected in benthos collected onboard the ‘Snow Dragon’ in the Northern Bering Sea Shelf and Chukchi Sea Shelf during the 6^th Chinese National Arctic Research Expedition (CHINARE 2014). Σ₁₈PAHs for all biota samples ranged from 34.2 to 128.1 ng/g dry weight (dw), with the highest concentration observed in fish muscle (Boreogadus saida) samples close to St. Lawrence Island. The PAH composition pattern was dominated by the presence of lighter 3 ring (57%) and 2 ring (28%) PAHs, indicating oil-related or petrogenic sources as important origins of PAH contamination. Concentrations of alkyl-PAHs (1-methylnaphthalene and 2-methylnaphthalene) were lower than their parent PAH (naphthalene) in all biological tissue, and their percentage also decreased significantly (p<0.05) compared with those in the corresponding sediment. There were no significant relationships between PAH concentrations and trophic levels, which is possibly due to the combined results of the complex benthic foodweb in the subarctic/Arctic shelf region, as well as a low assimilation/effective metabolism for PAHs. According to toxic potency evaluation results from TCDD toxic equivalents (TEQs) and BaP-equivalent (BaPE) values, whelk (Neptunea heros) and starfish (Ctenodiscus crispatus) are two macroinvertebrate species showing relatively higher dioxin-like toxicity and carcinogenic risk.     

Particulate matter exchange between atmosphere and roads surfaces in urban areas

The deposition and the re-suspension of particulate matter (PM) in urban areas are the key processes that contribute not only to stormwater pollution, but also to air pollution. However, investigation of the deposition and the re-suspension of PM is challenging because of the difficulties in distinguishing between the resuspended and the deposited PM. This study created two Bayesian Networks (BN) models to explore the deposition and the re-suspension of PM as well as the important influential factors. The outcomes of BN modelling revealed that deposition and re-suspension of PM10 occurred under both, high-traffic and low-traffic conditions, and the re-suspension of PM2.5 occurred under low-traffic conditions. The deposition of PM10 under low-volume traffic condition is 1.6 times higher than under high-volume traffic condition, which is attributed to the decrease in PM10 caused by relatively higher turbulence under high-volume traffic conditions. PM10 is more easily resuspended from road surfaces compared to PM2.5 as the particles which larger than the thickness of the laminar airflow over the road surface are more easily removed from road surfaces. The increase in wind speed contributes to the increase in PM build-up by transporting particulates from roadside areas to the road surfaces and the airborne PM2.5 and PM10 increases with the increase in relative humidity. The study outcomes provide a step improvement in the understanding of the transfer processes of PM2.5 and PM10 between atmosphere and urban road surfaces, which in turn will contribute to the effective design of mitigation measures for urban stormwater and air pollution.     

Analytical methods and environmental processes of nanoplastics

The degradation of plastic debris may result in the generation of nanoplastics (NPs). Their high specific surface area for the sorption of organic pollutions and toxic heavy metals and possible transfer between organisms at different nutrient levels make the study of NPs an urgent priority. However, there is very limited understanding on the occurrence, distribution, abundant, and fate of NPs in the environment, partially due to the lack of suitable techniques for the separation and identification of NPs from complex environmental matrices. In this review, we first overviewed the state-of-the-art methods for the extraction, separation, identification and quantification of NPs in the environment. Some of them have been successfully applied for the field determination of NPs, while some are borrowed from the detection of microplastics or engineered nanomaterials. Then the possible fate and transport of NPs in the environment are thoroughly described. Although great efforts have been made during the recent years, large knowledge gaps still exist, such as the relatively high detection limit of existing method failing to detect ultralow masses of NPs in the environment, and spherical polystyrene NP models failing to represent the various compositions of NPs with different irregular shapes, which needs further investigation.     

Reviews of emission of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) in Asia

Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) in the atmosphere play important roles in the formation of ground-level ozone and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) in global scale and also in regional scale under some condition due to their large amount and relatively higher reactivity. In places with high plant cover in the tropics and in China where air pollution is serious, the effect of BVOCs on ozone and secondary organic aerosols is strong. The present research aims to provide a comprehensive review about the emission rate, emission inventory, research methods, the influencing factors of BVOCs emissions, as well as their impacts on atmospheric environment quality and human health in recent years in Asia based on the summary and analysis of literatures. It is suggested to use field direct measurement method to obtain the emission rate and model method to calculate the emission amount. Several recommendations are given for future investigation and policy development on BVOCs emission.     

生态调控后贵州花溪水库浮游植物群落结构的变化特征及影响因素

为了解生态调控后花溪水库浮游植物功能群变化特征与环境因子的关系,基于浮游植物功能群、NMDS（非度量多维尺度分析）、RDA（冗余分析）、Pearson相关性分析方法,于2017年3月-2018年3月逐月对浮游植物群落结构与水环境指标进行采样分析.结果表明:①生态调控前,花溪水库共鉴定浮游植物4门18种,共归类出10个功能群,且功能群H1占绝对优势,其代表藻种为水华束丝藻（Aphanizomenon flosaquae）;生态调控后,共鉴定浮游植物6门66种,共归类出20个功能群,主要优势功能群为B/Lo,其代表藻种为小环藻（Cyclotella sp.）和多甲藻（Peridinium sp.）.②生态调控后,花溪水库优势功能群结构发生了变化,其变化特征为B/Lo（春季）→D/B/Lo/X2/N/P（夏季）→D/B/Lo/N（秋季）→D/MP/B/Lo/W1/W2（冬季）.功能群B的生物量在春季达到峰值（3 056.3 μg/L）,与其对低营养环境有良好的耐受性有关;功能群Lo的生物量在秋季达到峰值（2 900.9 μg/L）,与组成功能群Lo的甲藻特性有关.③RDA结果表明,生态调控前影响浮游植物生长的环境因子为SD（透明度）、ρ（DIN）（DIN为无机氮）;生态调控后影响浮游植物生长的环境因子为WT（水温）、ρ（DO）、ρ（DIN）.研究显示,生态调控后花溪水库功能群结构发生了明显变化,影响功能群变化的主要环境因子为WT和ρ（DO）.      

外加氮源影响下铁铝氧化物在土壤氮素转化中的作用

土壤中铁铝氧化物在团聚体稳定性和有机碳吸附方面具有重要作用,而氮添加对土壤氮循环影响的变化也可能与其有关,但是目前尚缺乏在氮循环方面的研究.为了探究铁铝氧化物在土壤氮素转化中的作用,选择福建省建瓯罗浮栲森林土壤为研究对象,采用选择性溶提技术准备不同的土壤——未经处理（T1）的土壤和去除游离态铁铝氧化物（T2）土壤、去除非晶质铁铝氧化物（T3）土壤、去除络合态铁铝氧化物（T4）土壤,在这些土壤中添加不同形态氮（40 mg/kg）——丙氨酸（氨基酸态氮,AA）、硫酸铵（铵态氮,AN）、硝酸钠（硝态氮,NAN）和亚硝酸钠（亚硝态氮,NIN）,进行室内培养试验,分析氮含量变化和氮素转化情况.结果表明:①与CK处理相比,AA和AN处理均增加了T1土壤中w（NH₄+-N）,NAN处理增加了w（NO₃--N）,但低于添加量,表明添加氨基酸和铵态氮均会促进氮矿化,添加硝态氮会增加NO₃--N的固定且抑制其硝化.②在CK处理下,与T1土壤相比,T2和T4土壤中w（NH₄+-N）、w（NO₃--N）和w（氨基酸）均降低,但T3土壤中w（NH₄+-N）和w（氨基酸）增加、w（NO₃--N）降低,表明土壤中游离态氧化铁铝和络合态氧化铁铝的存在有助于氮素矿化,非晶质氧化铁铝有助于硝化.③在不同氮处理下,各土壤的氮含量及其转化速率与CK处理规律相似.与CK处理相比,各氮处理均未显著增加T2和T4土壤中w（NH₄+-N）,且AA和AN处理均未影响T2、T3和T4土壤中w（NO₃--N）和w（氨基酸）.结果显示,氮添加并没有改变铁铝氧化物的作用,其中,矿化和氨化作用均表现为游离氧化铁铝>络合氧化铁铝>非晶质氧化铁铝,硝化作用表现为非晶质氧化铁铝>游离氧化铁铝>络合态氧化铁铝.因此,土壤铁铝氧化物的不同存在状态应该是调节氮素转化的重要土壤条件.