The impact of different voltage application modes on biodegradation of chloramphenicol and shift of microbial community structure

● Presented coupled system enhanced biodegradation of antibiotic chloramphenicol. ● HRT and electrical stimulation modes were key influencing factors. ● Electrical stimulation had little effect on the chloramphenicol metabolic pathway. ● Microbial community structure varied with the voltage application mode. Exoelectrogenic biofilms have received considerable attention for their ability to enhance electron transfer between contaminants and electrodes in bioelectrochemical systems. In this study, we constructed anaerobic-aerobic-coupled upflow bioelectrochemical reactors (AO-UBERs) with different voltage application modes, voltages and hydraulic retention times (HRTs). In addition, we evaluated their capacity to remove chloramphenicol (CAP). AO-UBER can effectively mineralize CAP and its metabolites through electrical stimulation when an appropriate voltage is applied. The CAP removal efficiencies were ~81.1%±6.1% (intermittent voltage application mode) and 75.2%±4.6% (continuous voltage application mode) under 0.5 V supply voltage, which were ~21.5% and 15.6% greater than those in the control system without voltage applied, respectively. The removal efficiency is mainly attributed to the anaerobic chamber. High-throughput sequencing combined with catabolic pathway analysis indicated that electrical stimulation selectively enriched Megasphaera, Janthinobacterium, Pseudomonas, Emticicia, Zoogloea, Cloacibacterium and Cetobacterium, which are capable of denitrification, dechlorination and benzene ring cleavage, respectively. This study shows that under the intermittent voltage application mode, AO-UBERs are highly promising for treating antibiotic-contaminated wastewater.     

Quantitative analysis of microplastics in coastal tidal-flat reclamation in Dongtai,China

• Reclamation projects are important disturbances on microplastic risk in coasts. • Tidal-flat reclamation area is a large storage medium for sedimentary microplastics. • Aging and distribution features of soil microplastics show spatial heterogeneity. • Coastal weathered engineering geotextiles are a significant threat to marine health. Coastal tidal flats have received considerable attention in recent years, as they provide a direct channel for the discharge of terrestrial microplastics into the ocean. Land reclamation is occurring increasingly frequently in coastal tidal-flats; however, the environmental impacts of these activities remain unclear. Therefore, this pioneering study assessed the microplastic emission characteristics of reclamation geotextiles and performed a risk assessment accordingly. Morphological characterization of geotextile samples collected from five sites in Dongtai, China, provided evidence of sedimentary weathering. Based on several assumptions, the average abundance of microplastics in soil covered by geotextiles was estimated to reach 349±137 particles/kg dry weight, with the total microplastic load in the reclaimed area estimated to be 20.67±8.06 t. Compared with previous studies, this research demonstrates that coastal reclamation areas store a high concentration of microplastics, aggravating marine microplastic pollution. Moreover, conditional fragmentation model results revealed that the weathering and distribution characteristics of soil microplastics in coastal tidal-flat areas exhibit spatial heterogeneity, being more easily affected by natural factors (such as tides) than those in inland areas. As a result of tides, the annual discharge of geotextile-originating microplastics from the studied areas into the ocean was approximately 2465.52±960.77 t. These findings prove that the risks posed by engineering-microplastics are significant, indicating that further investigations are required on the precise laws of transfer and migration, as well as the toxicity mechanisms, in order to improve analytical techniques and policies in this field.     

Enhanced cross-flow filtration with flat-sheet ceramic membranes by titanium-based coagulation for membrane fouling control

• Ceramic membrane filtration showed high performance for surface water treatment. • PTC pre-coagulation could enhance ceramic membrane filtration performance. • Ceramic membrane fouling was investigated by four varied mathematical models. • PTC pre-coagulation was high-effective for ceramic membrane fouling control. Application of ceramic membrane (CM) with outstanding characteristics, such as high flux and chemical-resistance, is inevitably restricted by membrane fouling. Coagulation was an economical and effective technology for membrane fouling control. This study investigated the filtration performance of ceramic membrane enhanced by the emerging titanium-based coagulant (polytitanium chloride, PTC). Particular attention was paid to the simulation of ceramic membrane fouling using four widely used mathematical models. Results show that filtration of the PTC-coagulated effluent using flat-sheet ceramic membrane achieved the removal of organic matter up to 78.0%. Permeate flux of ceramic membrane filtration reached 600 L/(m²·h), which was 10-fold higher than that observed with conventional polyaluminum chloride (PAC) case. For PTC, fouling of the ceramic membrane was attributed to the formation of cake layer, whereas for PAC, standard filtration/intermediate filtration (blocking of membrane pores) was also a key fouling mechanism. To sum up, cross-flow filtration with flat-sheet ceramic membranes could be significantly enhanced by titanium-based coagulation to produce both high-quality filtrate and high-permeation flux.     

Efficient degradation of semi-coking wastewater in three-dimensional electro-Fenton by CuFe2O4 heterocatalyst

Semi-coking wastewater contains a rich source of toxic and refractory compounds. Three-dimensional electro-Fenton (3D/EF) process used CuFe₂O₄ as heterocatalyst and activated carbon (AC) as particle electrode was constructed for degrading semi-coking wastewater greenly and efficiently. CuFe₂O₄ nanoparticles were prepared by coprecipitation method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy disperse spectroscopy (EDS). Factors like dosage of CuFe₂O₄, applied voltage, dosage of AC and pH, which effect COD removal rate of semi-coking waste water were studied. The results showed that COD removal rate reached to 80.9% by 3D/EF process at the optimum condition: 4 V, 0.3 g of CuFe₂O₄, 1 g of AC and pH?=?3. Trapping experiment suggesting that hydroxyl radical (?OH) is the main active radical. The surface composition and chemical states of the fresh and used CuFe₂O₄ were analyzed by XPS indicating that Fe, Cu, and O species are involved into the 3D/EF process. Additionally, anode oxidation and the adsorption and catalysis of AC are also contributed to the bleaching of semi-coking waste water. The possible mechanisms of 3D/EF for degrading semi-coking waste water by CuFe₂O₄ heterocatalyst were proposed.

     

Urinary concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and phthalate metabolite mixtures in relation to semen quality among men attending an infertility clinic

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Previous studies have reported that exposure to phthalates and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is individually associated with altered semen...     

Impact of different pretreatments on the anaerobic digestion performance of cucumber vine

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Copious amounts of cucumber vine (CV) derived from crop growing and harvesting are casually discarded in the field, posing severely negative impacts...     

基于政府间府际关系的畜禽养殖废弃物治理政策优化——以治理中小规模养殖场户畜禽粪污污染为例

本文从央地纵向关系、部门间横向关系、环保督察斜线关系等视角出发,探讨畜禽养殖废弃物治理政策背后的府际关系博弈逻辑和利益融合路径,实证探讨治理案例。结果表明,政府府际间存在利益博弈,但可以实现利益融合和治理有效。其中,经济、社会和生态利益的排序差异、治理事务权与财权不匹配、地方考核指标偏向经济等因素造成央地间利益诉求差异,可从增加融资渠道、优化考核方式、扩大监管渠道和多元共治等方面促进利益融合;双重管理体制、全局和局部利益并存等因素造成同一层级的不同政府部门间存在利益诉求差异,但环保督察等“运动式”治理、约束性生态指标被纳入官员考核体系等措施有助于其组成政绩共荣体;结合案例实证检验,提出中央政府需要通过严格制度安排和多重监管督察治理动态、整合地方政策资源帮助政府各部门间形成政绩共荣体、疏堵并举精准施策构建紧密利益联结机制、搭建“政府—市场—公众”多元共治治理格局等政策建议。     

Structural investigation of catalyst deactivation of Pt/SDB for catalytic oxidation of VOC-containing wastewater

The stability of styrene-divinyl benzene copolymer (SDB)-supported Pt (Pt/SDB) catalysts for destruction of volatile-organic-compound (VOC) in wastewater was examined. The test reaction was wet oxidation of water-containing aliphatic alcohol and formaldehyde at 140 degrees C and 90 psig for 40 h. The catalytic performance tests indicated that activity of the Pt/SDB catalysts could be maintained for VOC concentration of 3 wt.%, whereas the catalysts deactivated rapidly for 10 wt.% VOC containing wastewater. In order to investigate the nature of catalyst deactivation, extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) and X-ray absorption near edge (XANES) spectroscopy were used to characterize the fresh and used catalysts. After the reaction, there is no oxidation of Pt clusters observed in EXAFS and XANES spectroscopy suggesting that the oxidation reaction takes places via the adsorbed oxygen. The spectroscopy results further indicated that deactivation of the catalysts were mainly caused by the increase of Pd particle size. After the reaction, the Pt-Pt coordination number has no significant change for the 3 wt.% wastewater whereas increase from 5.6 to 6.2 for 10 wt.% wastewater. Combined with the fact that the catalysts fractured during the reactions, we suggested that Pt agglomeration was mainly caused by thermal migration of the metal clusters.     

Biogeographic distribution patterns of algal community in different urban lakes in China: Insights into the dynamics and co-existence

Urban lake ecosystems are significant for social development, but currently we know little about the geographical distribution of algal community in urban lakes at a large-scale. In this study, we investigated the algal community structure in different areas of urban lakes in China and evaluated the influence of water quality parameters and geographical location on the algal community. The results showed that obvious differences in water quality and algal communities were observed among urban lakes in different geographical areas. Chlorophyta was the dominant phylum, followed by cyanobacteria in all areas. The network analysis indicated that algal community composition in urban lakes of the western and southern area showed more variations than the eastern and northern areas, respectively. Redundancy analysis and structural equation model revealed that nutrients and pH were dominant environmental factors that affected the algal community, and they showed higher influence than that of iron, manganese and COD _Mn concentration. Importantly, algal community and density exhibited longitude and latitude relationship. In general, these results provided an ecological insight into large-scale geographical distributions of algal community in urban lakes, thereby having potential applications for management of the lakes.     

石英E1′心电子自旋共振信号强度的热活化研究

石英E₁′心是一种重要的顺磁性缺陷,其热活化ESR信号强度的最大值有许多新的应用,但对于获取E₁′心信号强度最大值的方法尚存不同的认识。为了进一步研究和探讨石英E₁′心信号的增强机理及石英E₁′心ESR信号强度最大值的获取方法,采用电子自旋共振（ESR）技术测量了两个冰碛物样品在300℃等温加热前和加热后石英E₁′心的ESR信号强度,结果表明：在室温下,石英E₁′心信号强度随辐照剂量的增加而增强是由于伪E₁′心的形成而造成的;而石英E₁′心信号强度随辐照剂量增加而减弱可能是因为辐照使已增强的E₁′心产生衰退。300℃的等温热退火实验（分为15 min和20 min）结果表明：获取E₁′心ESR信号强度的最大值需要人工辐照,人工辐照的作用不仅是提供更多的空穴,而且可能更有利于氧空位向E₁′心转化。