Source-specific sewage pollution detection in urban river waters using pharmaceuticals and personal care products as molecular indicators

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Source-specific elucidation of domestic sewage pollution caused by various effluent sources in an urban river water, as conducted for this study,...     

A struggle for distributive fairness in waste disposal: Koto Ward and In-Ward Waste Disposal in the 23 wards of Tokyo

This study explores the politics of distributive fairness in Locally-Unwanted-Land-Uses (LULUs) siting by looking into how a movement in LULU disputes changes its attitude towards a frame of distributive fairness over a long period of time. Some kinds of facilities are often opposed by local residents because of negative side-effects, even as they are claimed to be necessary for the well-being of the wider public. Framing refers to actors’ signifying work, and how to frame distributive fairness plays a significant role in conflicts over such controversial land uses. In the 23 wards of Tokyo, distributive fairness in waste disposal among the wards has been a crucial issue. In the early 1970s, Koto Ward, which suffered a disproportionate burden of waste disposal, launched a campaign to rectify the unfairness. In-Ward Waste Disposal (IWWD), a frame of distributive fairness, played a central role in this movement. However, Koto Ward’s attitude towards this frame of distributive fairness changed over time. By examining why Koto Ward’s advocacy for IWWD varied over time, this study shows how Koto Ward’s stance on IWWD changed in conjunction with economic, policy, and political circumstances, thereby illuminating the importance of integrating socio-politico-economic contexts in framing analysis.     

Isolation of antifungal bacteria from Japanese fermented soybeans, natto

An inhibitory effect of a traditional Japanese fermented food, natto, was found against plant pathogens such as Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium oxysporum, and the bacteria which showed inhibition were isolated from the natto. Among isolated bacteria, BC-1 and GAc exhibited a strong antagonistic effect in vitro against plant pathogens on an agar medium. The supernatant of bacterial culture also showed strong activity against R. solani, which meant the antimicrobial substances were produced and secreted into the medium. Both of the bacteria were estimated as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens from a partial sequence of the 16s rRNA gene. High performance liquid chromatography analysis clearly showed the production of the lipopeptide antibiotic iturin A by BC-1 and GAc.     

Micro fabrication on cylinder surface for control of wettability

A micro fabrication is presented to control wettability on cylinder surfaces. A machine tool is developed to form the micro-scale structure on the cylinder in incremental stamping. The stamping tool is manufactured with fabricating the micro-scale structure on the top of the tool in FIB sputtering. The micro incremental stamping is repeated with linear motion of the tool and rotation of the workpiece. The rotation is controlled by the friction drive on the machine table because of the stable stamping with reducing bending of the workpiece. The critical stamping depth, the minimum depth in which the structure is formed, is determined in the forming tests using the structured tool. Then, a stripe type structure is formed to control wettability on the cylinder surface. Anisotropic wettability appears on the structured surface.     

Net ecosystem CO2 exchange over a larch forest in Hokkaido, Japan

Larch forests are distributed extensively in the east Eurasian continent and are expected to play a significant role in the terrestrial ecosystem carbon cycling process. In view of the fact that studies on carbon exchange for this important biome have been very limited, we have initiated a long-term flux observation in a larch forest ecosystem in Hokkaido in northern Japan since 2000. The net ecosystem CO₂ exchange (NEE) showed large seasonal and diurnal variation. Generally, the larch forest ecosystem released CO₂ in nighttime and assimilated CO₂ in daytime during the growing season from May to October. The ecosystem started to become a net carbon sink in May, reaching a maximum carbon uptake as high as 186 g C m⁻² month⁻¹ in June. With the yellowing, senescing and leaf fall, the ecosystem turned into a carbon source in November. During the non-growing season, the larch forest ecosystem became a net source of CO₂, releasing an average of 16.7 g C m⁻² month⁻¹. Overall, the ecosystem sequestered 141–240 g C m⁻² yr⁻¹ in 2001. The NEE was significantly influenced by environmental factors. Respiration of the ecosystem, for example, was exponentially dependent on air temperature, while photosynthesis was related to the incident PAR in a manner consistent with the Michaelis–Menten model. Although the vapor pressure deficit (VPD) was scarcely higher than 15 hPa, the CO₂ uptake rate was also depressed when VPD surpassed 10 hPa.     

Investigation of saponification for determination of polychlorinated biphenyls in marine sediments

The effects of saponification conditions (temperature and water content of saponifying solution) on the determination of chlorinated biphenyls (CBs) in marine sediments were investigated. Although highly chlorinated biphenyls (nona- to deca-CBs) decomposed during high-temperature saponification, the degree of degradation was reduced by adding water to the ethanolic potassium hydroxide saponifying solution. Room-temperature saponification yielded quantitative recovery of highly chlorinated biphenyl surrogates but low extraction efficiencies of lightly chlorinated biphenyls (mono- to di-CBs). The same samples were analyzed by other extraction techniques, for example, pressurized liquid extraction, and analytical results were compared. The mono- and di-CB concentrations were correlated with the extraction temperatures of various extraction techniques. In particular, the concentrations of some CB congeners (CB11, CB14) were higher with saponification. The low degree of degradation of highly chlorinated biphenyls and the high recovery of lightly chlorinated biphenyls were compatible when room-temperature and high-temperature saponification were combined. Except for the anomalies of CB11 and CB14, the combined method gave satisfactory results for analysis of PCBs.     

Effects of copper chloride on formation of polychlorinated dibenzofurans in model waste incineration in a laboratory-scale fluidized-bed reactor

Combustion experiments in a laboratory-scale fluidized-bed reactor have been performed to clarify the effects of copper chloride as a catalyst on polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) formation in municipal waste incineration. We used model wastes with and without copper chloride (CuCl2 x 2H2O) as a catalyst, both of which contained polyvinyl chloride (PVC) as a chlorine source. Combustion temperature was set to 900 degrees C, and the amount of air supplied was twice as much as the theoretical amount. The experimental setup had been carefully planned to ensure avoidance of the influences of previous experiments. Results of these present experiments revealed that copper chloride in the waste increased the amount of PCDFs formed and made the homologue profile shifted towards the highly chlorinated species. Copper chloride contributes to PCDFs formation by promoting chlorination via catalytic reactions, whereby the reaction could be important in that organic matters are chlorinated directly by chlorinated compounds related to Deacon reaction such as copper chloride. It was elucidated that characteristic isomer distribution patterns appeared in case the waste contained copper chloride. It is probable in our experiment with copper chloride that PCDFs are mainly formed via catalytic reactions of copper compounds and carbon.     

Effects of copper chloride on formation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins in model waste incineration

Combustion experiments in a laboratory-scale fluidized-bed reactor were conducted to elucidate the effects of copper chloride as a catalyst on polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) formation in municipal waste incineration. We used model wastes with and without copper chloride (CuCl₂ · 2H₂O), both of which contained polyvinyl chloride as a chlorine source. Combustion temperature was set to 900 °C, and the amount of air supplied was twice the stoichiometric ratio. The experimental setup was carefully planned to suppress the influences of experimental conditions except the waste composition. Results of these experiments showed that copper chloride in the waste increased the amount of PCDDs formed and made the homologue profile to shift towards the highly chlorinated species. Copper chloride contributes to the PCDDs formation by promoting chlorination, whereby the reaction is important in that organic matter is chlorinated directly by copper compounds. Copper chloride did not exert a great influence on the isomer distribution patterns of PCDDs, while there appeared a significant difference in the case of PCDFs. This points out the difference of the major formation mechanisms between PCDDs and PCDFs. PCDDs are less formed by the catalytic reactions from carbon/polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons than PCDFs in our experimental conditions.     

The Chinese steel industry

The Chinese steel industry achieved even growth in the 1980s and China is now the world's fourth largest steel producing country. Two factors that have played important roles in this development of the Chinese steel industry are the reform of the system or the strengthening of enterprise autonomy accompanying market reform, and the introduction of advanced technology from Western countries as a continuing policy since the 1970s. The Chinese steel industry still lags far behind those of other steel producing countries in terms of equipment and production technology, however. The present situation and problems of the Chinese steel industry in the 1990s are discussed here, together with a review of its development in the 1980s.