The styrene purification performance of biotrickling filter with toluene-styrene acclimatization under acidic conditions

The obvious disadvantages of biotrickling filters (BTFs) are the long start-up time and low removal efficiency (RE) when treating refractory hydrophobic volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which limits its industrial application. It is worthwhile to investigate how to reduce the start-up period of the BTF for treating hydrophobic VOCs. Here, we present the first study to evaluate the strategy of toluene induction combined with toluene-styrene synchronous acclimatization during start-up in a laboratory-scale BTF inoculated with activated sludge for styrene removal, as well as the effects of styrene inlet concentration (0.279 to 2.659 g·m^?3), empty bed residence time (EBRT) (i.e., 136, 90, 68, 45, 34 sec), humidity (7.7% to 88.9%), and pH (i.e., 4, 3, 2.5, 2) on the performance of the BTF system. The experiments were carried out under acidic conditions (pH 4.5) to make fungi dominant in the BTF. The start-up period for styrene in the BTF was shortened to about 28 days. A maximum elimination capacity (EC_max) of 126 g·m^?3·hr^?1 with an RE of 80% was attained when styrene inlet loading rate (ILR) was below 180 g·m^?3·hr^?1. The highest styrene RE(s) [of BTF] that could be achieved were 95% and 93.4%, respectively, for humidity of 7.7% and at pH 2. A single dominant fungal strain was isolated and identified as Candida palmioleophila strain MA-M11 based on the 26S ribosomal RNA gene. Overall, the styrene induction with the toluene-styrene synchronous acclimatization could markedly reduce the start-up period and enhance the RE of styrene. The BTF dominated by fungi exhibited good performance under low pH and humidity and great potential in treating styrene with higher inlet concentrations.

Implications: The application of the toluene induction combined with toluene-styrene synchronous acclimatization demonstrated to be a promising approach for the highly efficient removal of styrene. The toluene induction can accelerate biofilm formation, and the adaptability of microorganisms to styrene can be improved rapidly by the toluene-styrene synchronous acclimatization. The integrated application of two technologies can shorten the start-up period of biotrickling filters markedly and promote its industrial application.     

Characteristics of single atmospheric particles in a heavily polluted urban area of China: size distributions and mixing states

To investigate the chemical composition, size distribution, and mixing state of aerosol particles on heavy pollution days, single-particle aerosol mass spectrometry was conducted during 9–26 October 2015 in Xi’an, China. The measured particles were classified into six major categories: biomass burning (BB) particles, K-secondary particles, elemental carbon (EC)–related particles, metal-containing particles, dust, and organic carbon (OC) particles. BB and EC-related particles were the dominant types during the study period and mainly originated from biomass burning, vehicle emissions, and coal combustion. According to the ambient air quality index, two typical episodes were defined: clean days (CDs) and polluted days (PDs). Accumulation of BB particles and EC-related particles was the main reason for the pollution in Xi’an. Most types of particle size were larger on PDs than CDs. Each particle type was mixed with secondary species to different degrees on CDs and PDs, indicating that atmospheric aging occurred. The mixing state results demonstrated that the primary tracers were oxidized or vanished and that the amount of secondary species was increased on PDs. This study provides valuable information and a dataset to help control air pollution in the urban areas of Xi’an.

Graphical abstract

     

Prevalence and Bayesian Phylogenetics of Enteroviruses Derived From Environmental Surveillance Around Polio Vaccine Switch Period in Shandong Province,China

Food and Environmental Virology - We present the results of environmental surveillance for poliovirus (PV) and non-poliovirus (NPEV) around the switch from trivalent to bivalent oral polio-vaccine...     

Characterization of submicron particles during autumn in Beijing, China

In this study, we performed a highly time-resolved chemical characterization of nonrefractory submicron particles(NR-PM_1) in Beijing by using an Aerodyne high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer(HR-ToF-AMS). The results showed the average NR-PM_1 mass concentration to be 56.4 ± 58.0 μg/m~3, with a peak at 307.4 μg/m~3. Due to the high frequency of biomass burning in autumn, submicron particles significantly increased in organic content, which accounted for 51% of NR-PM_1 on average. Secondary inorganic aerosols(sulfate + nitrate + ammonium) accounted for 46% of NR-PM_1, of which sulfate,nitrate, and ammonium contributed 15%, 20%, and 11%, respectively. To determine the intrinsic relationships between the organic and inorganic species, we used the positive matrix factorization(PMF) model to merge the high-resolution mass spectra of the organic species and NO+and NO_2~+ions. The PMF analysis separated the mixed organic and nitrate(NO+and NO_2~+) spectra into four organic factors, including hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol(HOA), oxygenated organic aerosol(OOA), cooking organic aerosol(COA), and biomass burning organic aerosol(BBOA), as well as one nitrate inorganic aerosol(NIA) factor. COA(33%) and OOA(30%) contributed the most to the total organic aerosol(OA) mass, followed by BBOA(20%) and HOA(17%). We successfully quantified the mass concentrations of the organic and inorganic nitrates by the NO+and NO2+ions signal in the organic and NIA factors. The organic nitrate mass varied from 0.01-6.8 μg/m~3, with an average of 1.0 ±1.1 μg/m~3, and organic nitrate components accounted for 10% of the total nitrate mass in this observation.     

Are current Chinese national ambient air quality standards on 24-hour averages for particulate matter sufficient to protect public health?

With rapid economic development and urbanization in recent decades, China has experienced the worsening of ambient air quality. For better air quality management to protect human health, Chinese government revised national ambient air quality standards(NAAQS) for particulate matter(PM) in 2012(GB3095-2012). To assess the effectiveness of current NAAQS for PM on public health in Chinese population, we conducted a metaanalysis on published studies examining the mortality risk of short-term exposure to PM with aerodynamic diameters less than 10 and 2.5 μm(PM_(10) and PM_(2.5)) in China. The reported24-hour concentrations of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) in studies ranged from 43.5 to 150.1 μg/m~3 and 37.5 to 176.7 μg/m~3. In the pooled excess, mortality risk estimates of short-term exposure to PM.In specific, per 10 μg/m~3 increase in PM_(10), we observed increases of 0.40%(95%CI: 0.33%,0.47%), 0.57%(95%CI: 0.44%, 0.70%) and 0.49%(95%CI: 0.40%, 0.58%) in total, respiratory and cardiovascular mortality, per 10 μg/m~3 increase in PM_(2.5), we observed increases of 0.51%(95%CI: 0.38%, 0.63%), 0.62%(95%CI: 0.52%, 0.73%) and 0.75%(95%CI: 0.54%, 0.95%) in total,respiratory and cardiovascular mortality. Finally, we derived 125 μg/m~3 for PM_(10) and 62.5 μg/m~3 for PM_(2.5) as 24-hour recommendation values based on the pooled estimates. Our results indicated that current Chinese NAAQS for PM could be sufficient in mitigating the excess mortality risk from short-term exposure to ambient PM. However, future research on longterm exposure cohort studies in Chinese population is also essential in revising annual averages for PM in Chinese NAAQS.     

Long-term observations of tropospheric NO2, SO2 and HCHO by MAX-DOAS in Yangtze River Delta area, China

Yangtze River Delta(YRD) area is one of the important economic zones in China. However,this area faces increasing environmental problems. In this study, we use ground-based multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy(MAX-DOAS) network in Eastern China to retrieve variations of NO_2, SO_2, and formaldehyde(HCHO) in the YRD area. Three cities of YRD(Hefei, Nanjing, and Shanghai) were selected for long-term observations. This paper presents technical performance and characteristics of instruments, their distribution in YRD, and results of vertical column densities(VCDs) and profiles of NO_2, SO_2, and HCHO.Average diurnal variations of tropospheric NO_2 and SO_2 in different seasons over the three stations yielded minimum values at noon or in the early afternoon, whereas tropospheric HCHO reached the maximum during midday hours. Slight reduction of the pollutants in weekends occurred in all the three sites. In general trace gas concentrations gradually reduced from Shanghai to Hefei. Tropospheric VCDs of NO_2, SO_2, and HCHO were compared with those from Ozone Monitoring Instrument(OMI) satellite observations, resulting in R~2 of 0.606, 0.5432, and 0.5566, respectively. According to analysis of regional transports of pollutants, pollution process happened in YRD under the north wind with the pollution dissipating in the southeast wind. The feature is significant in exploring transport of tropospheric trace gas pollution in YRD, and provides basis for satellite and model validation.     

Performance and mechanism of Cr(VI) removal by zero-valent iron loaded onto expanded graphite

Zero-valent iron (ZVI) was loaded on expanded graphite (EG) to produce a composite material (EG-ZVI) for efficient removal of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)). EG and EG-ZVI were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. EG-ZVI had a high specific surface area and contained sub-micron sized particles of zero-valent iron. Batch experiments were employed to evaluate the Cr(VI) removal performance. The results showed that the Cr(VI) removal rate was 98.80% for EG-ZVI, which was higher than that for both EG (10.00%) and ZVI (29.80%). Furthermore, the removal rate of Cr(VI) by EG-ZVI showed little dependence on solution pH within a pH range of 1–9. Even at pH 11, a Cr(VI) removal rate of 62.44% was obtained after reaction for 1 hr. EG-ZVI could enhance the removal of Cr(VI) via chemical reduction and physical adsorption, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to analyze the mechanisms of Cr(VI) removal, which indicated that the ZVI loaded on the surface was oxidized, and the removed Cr(VI) was immobilized via the formation of Cr(III) hydroxide and Cr(III)–Fe(III) hydroxide/oxyhydroxide on the surface of EG-ZVI.     

安全环保开停工技术在硫黄装置的工业应用

介绍了中国石化齐鲁分公司胜利炼油厂第四硫黄回收装置开停工过程的安全环保优化技术:(1)使用酸性气替代克劳斯尾气对尾气加氢催化剂直接预硫化,预硫化后的尾气进硫黄尾气系统再处理;(2)采用酸性气完全燃烧后的气体替代传统瓦斯进行吹硫,吹硫烟气进入硫黄尾气系统再处理;(3)实现硫黄装置反应炉、反应器升温和尾气加氢催化剂预硫化操作同步进行,缩短硫回收装置开工周期,大幅度降低硫黄装置排放烟气中的SO_2浓度,降低装置开停工能耗。     

过敏与非过敏儿童室内PM2.5的细胞毒性比较研究

流行病学研究表明,空气细颗粒污染物(PM_(2.5))的暴露与过敏性疾病有一定的联系;然而,PM_(2.5)暴露与过敏性疾病之间的关系尚未完全阐明,特别是室内环境中PM_(2.5)涉及到过敏或非过敏的作用不详.为了比较研究过敏与非过敏儿童室内PM_(2.5)的细胞毒性,在武汉市洪山区10户家庭室内进行了为期3个月的采样,分别收集过敏与非过敏儿童的室内PM_(2.5).采用有机/元素碳测定仪对二者PM_(2.5)成分中的含碳组分进行了分析,并通过检测昆明小鼠巨噬细胞的形态及吞噬功能影响、细胞活力、乳酸脱氢酶(LDH)漏出率等指标,来检测PM_(2.5)暴露所致的细胞毒性.结果表明,高剂量(200μg·mL~(-1))PM_(2.5)暴露对小鼠巨噬细胞的形态及吞噬功能会产生不利的影响;与非过敏儿童的室内PM_(2.5)暴露组相比,过敏儿童的室内PM_(2.5)暴露组诱导巨噬细胞产生的毒性作用更明显.细胞体外测试结果提示:在相同PM_(2.5)暴露剂量下,引起儿童过敏症的室内PM_(2.5)成分具有重要影响.     

邻苯二甲酸二异癸酯对小鼠学习记忆的影响

为研究增塑剂邻苯二甲酸二异癸酯（DIDP）对小鼠学习和记忆能力的影响,以白藜芦醇（Res）作为保护剂,将42只雄性昆明小鼠随机分为6组,每组7只,分别为：生理盐水组、1.5,15,150mg/（kg·d） DIDP组、20mg/（kg·d） Res组、150mg/（kg·d） DIDP+20mg/（kg·d） Res组.连续灌胃染毒9d,期间同时进行Morris水迷宫实验.第10d将小鼠处死,取出脑组织,检测活性氧簇（ROS）、谷胱甘肽（GSH）、丙二醛（MDA）、8-羟基脱氧鸟苷（8-OHdG）、肿瘤坏死因子（TNF-α）、白细胞介素1β（IL-1β）的含量.并对小鼠海马体切片进行H&E染色,观察病理变化.结果显示,15,150mg/（kg·d） DIDP染毒可导致小鼠的学习和记忆能力显著低于对照组,同时可诱发脑组织产生氧化应激,并促进炎症因子释放,而Res能有效减弱脑组织氧化应激水平.由上可得,DIDP致小鼠学习和记忆能力下降可能与其引起的脑组织中海马体的氧化损伤有关,同时Res可能通过降低DIDP引起的氧化应激进而减轻其对小鼠造成的学习记忆损伤.