Field crops (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk. and Brassica chinensis L.) for phytoremediation of cadmium and nitrate co-contaminated soils via rotation with Sedum alfredii Hance

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Phytoremediation coupled with crop rotation (PCC) is a feasible strategy for remediation of contaminated soil without interrupting crop production....     

Spatial variation and toxicity assessment for heavy metals in sediments of intertidal zone in a typical subtropical estuary (Min River) of China

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Sediment samples were collected in five marshes (C1, Phragmites australis marsh; C2, P. australis and Cyperus malaccensis marsh; C3, C. malaccensis...     

Validation of temporal and spatial consistency of facility- and speed-specific vehicle-specific power distributions for emission estimation: A case study in Beijing,China

Vehicle-specific power (VSP) has been found to be highly correlated with vehicle emissions. It is used in many studies on emission modeling such as the MOVES (Motor Vehicle Emissions Simulator) model. The existing studies develop specific VSP distributions (or OpMode distribution in MOVES) for different road types and various average speeds to represent the vehicle operating modes on road. However, it is still not clear if the facility- and speed-specific VSP distributions are consistent temporally and spatially. For instance, is it necessary to update periodically the database of the VSP distributions in the emission model? Are the VSP distributions developed in the city central business district (CBD) area applicable to its suburb area? In this context, this study examined the temporal and spatial consistency of the facility- and speed-specific VSP distributions in Beijing. The VSP distributions in different years and in different areas are developed, based on real-world vehicle activity data. The root mean square error (RMSE) is employed to quantify the difference between the VSP distributions. The maximum differences of the VSP distributions between different years and between different areas are approximately 20% of that between different road types. The analysis of the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission factor indicates that the temporal and spatial differences of the VSP distributions have no significant impact on vehicle emission estimation, with relative error of less than 3%.

Implications: The temporal and spatial differences have no significant impact on the development of the facility- and speed-specific VSP distributions for the vehicle emission estimation. The database of the specific VSP distributions in the VSP-based emission models can maintain in terms of time. Thus, it is unnecessary to update the database regularly, and it is reliable to use the history vehicle activity data to forecast the emissions in the future. In one city, the areas with less data can still develop accurate VSP distributions based on better data from other areas.     

Potential toxicity of amphenicol antibiotic: binding of chloramphenicol to human serum albumin

Antibiotics are widely used in daily life but their abuse has posed a potential threat to human health. To evaluate the toxicity of chloramphenicol (CAP) at the protein level, the interaction between CAP and human serum albumin (HSA) was investigated by fluorescence, Ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) absorption, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and molecular docking methods. Fluorescence data revealed that the fluorescence quenching of HSA by CAP was the result of the formation of CAP–HSA complex, and the binding constant was determined to be 3.196?×?10⁴ L mol^?1 at 310 K. The thermodynamic determination indicated that the interaction was driven by enthalpy change and entropy change together, where the multiple hydrogen bonds (CAP and the residues Arg 222 and His 242 of HSA) and van der Waals forces were the dominant binding force. The site marker competition revealed that CAP bound into sub-domain IIA of HSA. The binding of CAP induced the drastic reduction in α-helix conformation and the significant enhancement in β-sheet conformation of HSA. Molecular docking study further confirmed the binding mode obtained by experimental study. This work provides a new quantitative evaluation method for antibiotics to cause the protein damage.     

基于CA-MAS的水域总有机碳扩散模拟研究

当前水环境污染扩散研究一般基于普通数值模型模拟,忽略了水污染扩散微观驱动力的影响。为能更真实地反映其动态扩散过程,针对水域总有机碳(TOC)扩散机理,基于CA和MAS技术,将影响TOC扩散的自然和社会经济因素抽象为微观的水流Agent、风速Agent、径流量Agent、污水排放口Agent、人工管理Agent以及农业生产地Agent,将研究水域抽象为CA元胞空间,建立了CA-MAS水域总有机碳扩散模型,对水域总有机碳的动态演化过程进行模拟,并以武汉理工大学鉴湖水域作为实验区域,借助NetLogo仿真平台完成了模型的实现与验证。模拟结果表明,该模型基本能够反映水体总有机碳的扩散规律,可以为水环境污染控制提供参考。     

镍渣的重金属浸出特性

在分析镍渣的矿物相组成和重金属元素含量的基础上,鉴定了镍渣样品的浸出毒性,并考察了pH、液固比和浸出时间等条件对镍渣样中铬、铅、铜和锌等重金属浸出特性的影响。结果表明,镍渣中的重金属总量约为渣样的0.9%,且铬、铜和锌的含量较高,需进行安全管理。实验所用镍渣样品为第Ⅰ类一般工业固体废物。在强酸条件下镍渣中重金属浸出浓度较大,pH3后浸出浓度显著降低;液固比40 L/kg时,镍渣中重金属不断溶出,液固比40 L/kg后,浸出达到饱和,浸出浓度趋于平衡;随着浸出时间的增加,重金属离子的浸出浓度先增加后减少,但由于各重金属性质不同,各重金属达到最大浸出浓度的时间不同。     

Calculation Of Electric Field Strength Distributions For New Electrostatic Precipitator Discharge Electrode Designs

New collecting and discharge electrode configurations are being used in electrostatic precipitators. In order to mathematically model preclpitators with these arrangements, it is necessary to develop reliable models of the field strength distributions of these electrodeplate geometries. This paper presents the concept of an equivalent wire diameter and attenuation functions, permitting use of the well-known wire-plate calculations. Experimental data presented in this paper shows the approximation techniques are sufficiently accurate.     

Comparison of the purification performance and microbial community functional diversity in flow-directional-switching and unidirectional-flow biotrickling filters

Because of the characteristics of low operating cost and convenient operation, the biotrickling filter is extensively researched and used to treat low concentration waste gas contaminated by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other odors. In this paper, two laboratory-scale biotrickling filters were constructed and toluene was selected as the sole carbon source, and the effects of different waste-gas flow configuration patterns on the purification capacity and the microbial community functional diversity of biotrickling filters were evaluated. The results indicated that the flow-directional-switching (FDS) biotrickling filter had better purification performance, and the maximum elimination capacity reached 480 g·m^?3·hr^?1, which was 17.1% higher than conventional unidirectional-flow (UF) biotrickling filter. Comparing the purification capacities of different sections in two biotrickling filters, the maximum toluene elimination capacity of section III in FDS system could reach 542 g·m^?3·hr^?1, which was 2.8 times as great as that in UF system, which resulted from the difference of elimination capacity in two systems. By analyzing the metabolic activity of two systems by community-level physiological profiling (CLPP) with Biolog (Biolog Inc., Hayward, CA) ECO-plate technique, metabolic activity in three sections of FDS system was higher than that of UF system. The metabolic activity was the highest in section III of FDS system and 46.8% higher than that of UF system. Shannon index and McIntosh index of section III in FDS system were 6.2% and 31.5% higher, respectively, than those of UF system.

Implications: The flow-directional-switching (FDS) biotrickling filter had a better purification performance than unidirectional-flow (UF) biotrickling filter at high inlet loadings, because FDS produced a more uniform distribution of biomass and microbial metabolic capacity along the length of the packed bed without diminishing activity and removal capacity in the inlet section.     

Effect of inoculation methods on the composting efficiency of municipal solid wastes

Four types of inoculation methods were studied during the composting of municipal solid wastes and dry grass (MSWG). The methods included a control group as well as initial-stage, two-stage, and multi-stage inoculations. Fulvic acids were extracted from the composting materials and characterized by spectroscopic techniques. The results showed that inoculation of microbes in MSWG enhanced the biodegradation of aliphatics, proteins, and polysaccharides. The inoculation also increased the molecular weight, humic- and fulvic-like compound content, as well as humification degree of the composting products. The inoculation of microbes in MSWG significantly improved composting process and efficiency. The improvement efficiency was in the order of initial-stage < two-stage < multi-stage inoculations. Inoculation of microbes based on composting organic matter composition and temperature enhanced composting efficiency.