Evaluation of uptake rate of heavy metals by Eichhornia crassipes and Hydrilla verticillata

Lakes, ponds, and streams are the sources of surface water, which anchorage the survival of aquatic life flora and fauna and maintain ecological balance. Due to urbanization, population explosion, and industrialization, these natural sources are getting polluted. Present paper is an attempt to evaluate the uptake rate of heavy metals namely lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), and chromium (Cr) by the macrophytes. The two macrophytes taken for the study are Eichhornia crassipes and Hydrilla verticillata. Both macrophytes have the capacity to absorb heavy metals from contaminated water. The present experimental study was conducted to compare and identify their potential to improve the water quality by removing the heavy metals. The paper critically evaluates the water-purifying capacity of submerged macrophyte (H. verticillata) and free-floating macrophyte (E. crassipes). It also evaluates the extent up to which heavy metal can be removed by macrophyte in a given period of time.     

Particulate matter emissions and gaseous air toxic pollutants from commercial meat cooking operations

This study assessed the effectiveness of three novel control technologies for particulate matter (PM) and volatile organic compound (VOC) removal from commercial meat cooking operations. All experiments were conducted using standardized procedures at University of California, Riverside''s commercial test cooking facility. PM mass emissions collected using South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Method 5.1, as well as a dilution tunnel-based PM method showed statistically significantly reductions for each control technology when compared to baseline testing (i.e., without a catalyst). Overall, particle number emissions decreased with the use of control technologies, with the exception of control technology 2 (CT2), which is a grease removal technology based on boundary layer momentum transfer (BLMT) theory. Particle size distributions were unimodal with CT2 resulting in higher particle number populations at lower particle diameters. Organic carbon was the dominant PM component (> 99%) for all experiments. Formaldehyde and acetaldehyde were the most abundant carbonyl compounds and showed reductions with the application of the control technologies. Some reductions in mono-aromatic VOCs were also observed with CT2 and the electrostatic precipitator (ESP) CT3 compared to the baseline testing.     

Multivariate ordination approach for identification of sub-regional homogeneities in Gujarat, western India

Identification of homogeneous invariant geographical units assumes considerable importance in the context of current attempts at developing environmental indices to monitor changes. Data on the edaphic and climatic parameters for the state of Gujarat--a predominantly arid to semi-arid province in western India--has been used to elaborate an approach that employs principal component analysis (PCA) as the basis for unbiased clustering of similar geographic units at sub-regional scales. PCA identified different sets of edaphic and climatic variables responsible for separating one unit from another. With the exception of a few cases, soil variables exhibited greater influence on the separation of units than climate. Response of some agro-ecological variables (total cultivable area, forestland and normalized difference vegetation index) to both original and ordinated variables in each of the identified edaphic-climatic units (ECU) has been evaluated using step-wise multiple regressions. The edaphic-climatic parameters were good predictors of these variables, although ordination did not necessarily enhance the predictive power of the independent variables. Instead, in many cases original variables showed better correlations. The response of these variables, chosen on the basis of varying levels of dynamism (slow to seasonal fluctuations), showed that independent of the degree of dynamism, the dependence of these variables was distinct in each ECU. This provided a reality check on the agro-ecological and bio-climatic differentiation among the ECUs.     

Unravelling the molecular mechanism of mutagenic factors impacting human health

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Environmental mutagens are chemical and physical substances in the environment that has a potential to induce a wide range of mutations and generate...     

Analyzing critical success factors to adopt sustainable consumption and production linked with circular economy

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Scarcity of natural resources and increasing level of pollution have put the survival of human in trouble. This situation has compelled the world to...