Effect of crude oil contamination on the chlorophyll content and morpho-anatomy of Cyperus brevifolius (Rottb.) Hassk

Chlorophyll plays a pivotal role in the plant physiology and its productivity. Cultivation of plants in crude oil contaminated soil has a great impact on the synthesis of chlorophyll pigment. Morpho-anatomy of the experimental plant also shows structural deformation in higher concentrations. Keeping this in mind, a laboratory investigation has been carried out to study the effect of crude oil on chlorophyll content and morpho-anatomy of Cyperus brevifolius plant. Fifteen-day-old seedling of the plant was planted in different concentrations of the crude oil mixed soil (i.e., 10,000, 20,000, 30,000, 40,000, and 50,000 ppm). A control setup was also maintained without adding crude oil. Results were recorded after 6 months of plantation. Investigation revealed that there is a great impact of crude oil contamination on chlorophyll content of the leaves of the experimental plant. It also showed that chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and total chlorophyll content of leaves grown in different concentrations of crude oil were found to be lower than those of the control plant. Further, results also demonstrated that chlorophyll content was lowest in the treatment that received maximum dose of crude oil. It also showed that chlorophyll content was decreased with increased concentration of crude oil. Results also demonstrated that there was a reduction in plant shoot and root biomass with the increase of crude oil concentration. Results also revealed that the shoot biomass is higher than root biomass. Morphology and anatomy of the experimental plant also show structural deformation in higher concentrations. Accumulation of crude oil on the cuticle of the transverse section of the leaves and shoot forms a thick dark layer. Estimation of the level of pollution in an environment due to oil spill is possible by the in-depth study of the harmful effects of oil on the morphology and anatomy and chlorophyll content of the plants grown in that particular environment.     

Hydrogeochemical characterization of contaminated groundwater in Patancheru industrial area,southern India

The groundwater is one of the most contaminated natural resources in Patancheru industrial area due to unplanned and haphazard industrial growth and urbanization without following basic pollution control norms. The rapid industrialization initiated in early 1970 has started showing up its after effects few years later in the form of physiochemical contamination of the both surface and groundwater bodies of the area. It has resulted in local people being deprived of safe drinking water, plant and aquatic life has severely affected, and situation is deteriorating over the years in the area in spite of some preventive and remedial measures being initiated. The focus of the present study is to understand the chemical characteristics of groundwater and geochemical processes the contaminant water is undergoing which are normally imprinted in its ionic assemblages. The water samples collected in pre- and post-monsoon seasons from forty two groundwater and four surface water sources were analyzed for major constituents such as Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, CO₃⁻, HCO₃⁻, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻, NO₃⁻, and F⁻, and selected samples were tested for ten important trace metals like Fe, Pb, Bi, Mn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Cd. Na⁺ among cations and Cl⁻ among anions dominate the water in both the seasons where as Ca²⁺, HCO₃⁻, and Cl⁻ show significant reduction in their ionic strength in post-monsoon. The groundwater in general is of mixed type, but most of it belong to Na⁺–Cl⁻, Na⁺–HCO₃⁻, Ca²⁺–Mg²⁺–HCO₃⁻, and Ca²⁺–Mg²⁺–Cl⁻ facies. The Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ are in the transitional state with Na⁺ replacing Ca²⁺ and HCO₃⁻–Cl⁻ due to physiochemical changes in the aquifer system. The evaluation of hydrochemistry through various ionic indices, ratios, and plots suggest that silicate–carbonate weathering, ion exchange, dissolution, and evaporation processes are responsible for origin of the present chemical status of the groundwater which is also controlled by the contamination from extraneous sources that could have accelerated the dissolution processes. Gibbs plots authenticate that the evolution of water chemistry is influenced by interaction of percolating water with aquifer matrix apart from anthropogenic enrichment of elements which get over concentrated due to evaporation.     

Calibration and Validation of SWAP to Simulate Conjunctive Use of Fresh and Saline Irrigation Waters in Semi-Arid Regions

Soil–Water–Atmosphere–Plant (SWAP) version 2.0 was evaluated for its capability to simulate crop growth and salinity profiles at Agra (India) located in a semi-arid region having deep water table and monsoon climate. The data of 12 conjunctive use treatment combinations simulating cyclic and mixing modes of fresh and saline water for wheat were used to calibrate and validate the model. Absolute deviations between the SWAP simulated and observed relative yields during calibration ranged from 2.5 to 2.9 %. A close agreement in the trend and values of measured and simulated soil salinity profiles was observed. Scenario building simulations carried out with the validated SWAP revealed that the maximum crop yields varied from 97 to 99 % with the best available water (EC 3.6 dS m^?1) while the minimum ranged from 65 to 79 % in the treatment with all saline water. Other than this, the relative yield varied from 80 to 98 % in 10 other cyclic and mixing mode treatments. It was established that notwithstanding the seasonal build-up of salts due to saline water use, there would be no long-term build-up of salts as leaching during the monsoon season would render the soil profile salt free at the time of sowing of rabi (winter) crops. Thus, short-term field observations could be used in conjunction with SWAP to show that there seems to be an assured long-term sustainability when saline water is used in conjunctive mode with fresh water in monsoon climatic conditions with deep water table. These results are in conformity with the observation that many farmers in India are using saline and fresh water in conjunctive mode on a long-term basis.     

Temporal Moment Analysis of Multi-Species Radionuclide Transport in a Coupled Fracture-Skin-Matrix System with a Variable Fracture Aperture

This paper presents an analysis using temporal moments to study multi-species radionuclide transport along a single fracture with variable fracture aperture in a fracture-skin-matrix system. In the present study, a decay chain having three elements is considered and transport of each member in the decay chain is modeled by solving a coupled system of partial differential equations for fracture, fracture-skin, and rock matrix using explicit finite difference method. Having obtained the concentration distribution, lower order temporal moments of radionuclide distribution are computed to analyze the effective velocity and macro-dispersion coefficient of radionuclides in the fracture. In the present study, effect of varying fracture aperture on transport characteristics of radionuclides is also analyzed. It is found that the fracture aperture variation profile has significant impact on radionuclide distribution along the fracture. Sensitivity analysis is carried out in a fracture-skin-matrix system with sinusoidal fracture aperture to study the effect of various parameters like fracture aperture thickness, fracture-skin porosity, fracture-skin diffusion coefficient, flow rate, radioactive decay constant, and Freundlich sorption isotherm exponent on transport characteristics of radionuclide. The results suggest that the above mentioned parameters significantly influence concentration, distribution, mobility, and effective macro-dispersion coefficient of radionuclides along the fracture.     

Changes in contaminant mass discharge from DNAPL source mass depletion: evaluation at two field sites

Changes in contaminant fluxes resulting from aggressive remediation of dense nonaqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) source zone were investigated at two sites, one at Hill Air Force Base (AFB), Utah, and the other at Ft. Lewis Military Reservation, Washington. Passive Flux Meters (PFM) and a variation of the Integral Pumping Test (IPT) were used to measure fluxes in ten wells installed along a transect down-gradient of the trichloroethylene (TCE) source zone, and perpendicular to the mean groundwater flow direction. At both sites, groundwater and contaminant fluxes were measured before and after the source-zone treatment. The measured contaminant fluxes (J; ML(-2)T(-1)) were integrated across the well transect to estimate contaminant mass discharge (M(D); MT(-1)) from the source zone. Estimated M(D) before source treatment, based on both PFM and IPT methods, were approximately 76 g/day for TCE at the Hill AFB site; and approximately 640 g/day for TCE, and approximately 206 g/day for cis-dichloroethylene (DCE) at the Ft. Lewis site. TCE flux measurements made 1 year after source treatment at the Hill AFB site decreased to approximately 5 g/day. On the other hand, increased fluxes of DCE, a degradation byproduct of TCE, in tests subsequent to remediation at the Hill AFB site suggest enhanced microbial degradation after surfactant flooding. At the Ft. Lewis site, TCE mass discharge rates subsequent to remediation decreased to approximately 3 g/day for TCE and approximately 3 g/day for DCE approximately 1.8 years after remediation. At both field sites, PFM and IPT approaches provided comparable results for contaminant mass discharge rates, and show significant reductions (>90%) in TCE mass discharge as a result of DNAPL mass depletion from the source zone.     

Second trimester diagnosis of Neu Laxova syndrome

This is the first report of a prenatally diagnosed case of Neu Laxova syndrome (NLS) from India. This also includes a case of NLS in monochorionic diamniotic twins and two more cases in which we were able to detect most of the features of NLS as early as 19 to 20 weeks by routine antenatal ultrasonography. Severe intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), microcephaly, central nervous system (CNS) abnormality, joint contractures, and abnormal facies are the major diagnostic features observed in prenatal ultrasonography. Risk factors such as consanguinity and history of intrauterine death or stillbirth in siblings have been noted in all the cases, but none of the three families that were reported had previously had an affected fetus. The spectrum of skin manifestations and frequency of occurrence of major clinical features of the syndrome have been discussed. Review of the literature on NLS and possibility of detecting the syndrome in the second trimester is discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Heterogeneous oxidation by ozone of naphthalene adsorbed at the air-water interface of micron-size water droplets

The mass transfer of naphthalene vapor to water droplets in air was studied in the presence of ozone (O3) in the gas phase. A falling droplet reactor with water droplets of diameters 55, 91, and 182 microm was used for the study. O3 reacted with naphthalene at the air-water interface, thereby decreasing the mass transfer resistance and increasing the rate of uptake of naphthalene into the droplet. A Langmuir-Hinshelwood reaction mechanism at the air-water interface satisfactorily described the surface reaction. The first-order surface reaction rate constant, ks, increased with decreasing droplet size. Three organic intermediates were identified in the aqueous phase as a result of ozonation of naphthalene at the surface of the droplet indicating both peroxidic and nonperoxidic routes for ozonation. The presence of an organic carbon surrogate (fulvic acid) increased both the partition constant of naphthalene and the surface reaction rate of O3. The heterogeneous oxidation of naphthalene by O3 on the droplet was 15 times faster than the homogeneous oxidation by O3 in the bulk air phase, whereas it was only 0.08 times the homogeneous gas-phase oxidation by hydroxyl radicals under atmospheric conditions.     

An improved product-process for cleaner chrome tanning in leather processing

Severe restrictions imposed by the pollution control authorities on the disposal of chromium, total dissolved solids and chlorides in tannery effluents have forced the tanners to look for low-waste, high exhaust chrome tanning salts. An improved chrome syntan with more than 90% uptake of chrome has been developed. The new product serves both as tanning and retanning agent and can be applied directly to delimed pelts thus eliminating the conventional pickling stage in the leather processing. This modified process helps to reduce the chemical oxygen demand (COD), total dissolved solids (TDS) and chlorides in the spent tan liquor by 51, 81 and 99%, respectively. The product offers full, soft leathers having shrinkage temperature comparable to conventional chrome tanned skins. Since the developed product is highly reactive, it saves time and reduces the water requirement when compared to the conventional chrome tanning method. Thus the novel product/process developed not only has advantages in reducing pollution loads but also seems to be techno-economically viable.     

Characterization of airborne particles at a high-btu coal-gasification pilot plant

Airborne particles in fugitive emissions have been measured at a slagging fixed-bed coal-gasification pilot plant using lignite. Sampling was conducted during shutdown operations and opening of the gasifier following an aborted startup. Aerosol collected with a Sierra high-volume impactor was subjected to analysis by gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and scanning electron microscopy; aerosol collected with an Andersen low-volume impactor was subjected to flameless atomic absorption analysis. The data show that the bulk of the trace organic material is associated with small particles: these data are similar to data on ambient air reported in the literature. Particle morphologies resemble those of fly ash from coal combustion, including smooth spheres, vesicular spheres, and crystalline material. Trace element size distributions are bimodal and resemble data for ambient air. Pb-containing particles are generally submicron, while particles containing Al, Fe, and other crustal species are mostly of supermicron size. Aluminum-based aerosol enrichment factors calculated from the lignite composition show that the composition of the aerosol resembles that of the coal, with the exception of modest enrichments of Mg, Na, As, and Pb in the submicron size range. Aerosol enrichment factors based on the earth's crustal composition are somewhat greater than those based on coal composition for several elements, suggesting potential errors in using crustal enrichment data to investigate chemical fractionation during aerosol formation.