A comparative analysis of endophytic bacterial communities associated with hyperaccumulators growing in mine soils

Interactions between endophytic bacterial communities and hyperaccumulators in heavy metal-polluted sites are not fully understood. In this study, the diversity of stem-associated endophytic bacterial communities of two hyperaccumulators (Solanum nigrum L. and Phytolacca acinosa Roxb.) growing in mine soils was investigated using molecular-based methods. The denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis showed that the endophytic bacterial community structures were affected by both the level of heavy metal pollution and the plant species. Heavy metal in contaminated soil determined, to a large extent, the composition of the different endophytic bacterial communities in S. nigrum growing across soil series (five sampling spots, and the concentration of Cd is from 0.2 to 35.5 mg/kg). Detailed analysis of endophytic bacterial populations by cloning of 16S rRNA genes amplified from the stems of the two plants at the same site revealed a different composition. A total of 51 taxa at the genus level that included α-, β-, and γ-Proteobacteria (68.8% of the two libraries clones), Bacteroidetes (9.0% of the two libraries clones), Firmicutes (2.0% of the two libraries clones), Actinobacteria (16.4% of the two libraries clones), and unclassified bacteria (3.8% of the two libraries clones) were found in the two clone libraries. The most abundant genus in S. nigrum was Sphingomonas (23.35%), while Pseudomonas prevailed in P. acinosa (21.40%). These results suggest that both heavy metal pollution and plant species contribute to the shaping of the dynamic endophytic bacterial communities associated with stems of hyperaccumulators.     

A field study on phytoremediation of dredged sediment contaminated by heavy metals and nutrients: the impacts of sediment aeration

Compared to traditional chemical or physical treatments, phytoremediation has proved to be a cost-effective and environmentally sound alternative for remediation of contaminated dredged sediment. A field study was conducted in a sediment disposal site predominantly colonized by Typha angustifolia under different sediment moisture conditions to estimate the phytoremediation effects of dredged sediment. The moisture content was 37.30 % and 48.27 % in aerated and waterlogged sediment, respectively. Total nitrogen (TN) content was higher in the waterlogged sediment than in the aerated sediment. The total Cd contents were lower in aerated sediment, which was mainly resulted from the lower exchangeable fraction of Cd. The bioaccumulation of P, Cu and Pb in T. angustifolia was promoted by waterlogging, and the belowground tissue concentrations and accumulation factors (AFs) of Cu were higher than that of other metals, which can be explained by that Cu is an essential micronutrient for plants. Consistent with many previous studies, T. angustifolia showed higher metal levels in roots than in above-ground tissues at both the sediment conditions. Due to the improved biomass produced in the aerated sediment, the removals of nutrients and the metals by plant harvest were higher from aerated sediment than from waterlogged sediment. It was indicated that maintaining the dredged sediment aerated can avoid release risk and plant uptake of metals, while the opposite management option can promote phytoextraction of these contaminants.     

“控源-截污-资源化”模式处理面源污染

针对农村面源污染的时空范围广,不确定性大,成分、过程复杂,难以控制的特点,同时考虑废物资源化的问题,提出了"控污-截污-资源化(再利用)"CIR模式,包括三方面:通过改变不良用水习惯及耕作方式等从源头上控制污染排放;利用植物缓冲带、自然塘、沟渠湿地和表面流湿地等达到截污的目的;将畜禽养殖废水及生活黑水集中处理,产生沼气,变废为宝,于湿地内种植经济类水生植物,兼性塘内水产养殖,最终实现废物资源化(再利用)。经过将近一年半的运行测试,测试结果表明,整个模式不仅除污效率高,而且可产生良好的经济效益。     

火山石生物滤床对微囊藻毒素的去除

微囊藻水华爆发导致大量微囊藻毒素释放至地表水环境中,严重威胁着饮用水供水安全.通过不同条件火山石自然曝气生物滤床(活性挂膜、灭活挂膜、未挂膜和无填料滤床)对不同形态、构型(MC-LR、MC-RR)的微囊藻毒素的去除实验,探讨其去除效率、途径和机理.结果表明,火山石自然曝气生物滤床对微囊藻毒素的去除是微生物降解和基质吸附共同作用的结果.胞外毒素和胞内毒素的总去除率分别为58％和91％.其中,胞外毒素主要通过微生物降解作用途径去除,占胞外毒素总去除率的(41±4.2)％,胞内毒素则主要通过基质吸附途径去除,占胞内毒素总去除率的(64±5.1)％.生物膜吸附、光降解等其他途径无明显作用.另外,不同构型的微囊藻毒素在火山石自然曝气生物滤床中均能有效去除,MC-LR和MC-RR的去除率分别为68％和54％.     

改性膨润土颗粒对微污染水中有机物和氨氮的吸附

采用粘结剂聚乙烯醇(PVA)、造孔剂碳酸氢钠(NaHCO3)和微波强化Al改性膨润土(以下简称M-Al-Bt)制备改性膨润土颗粒(以下简称MBG),研究MBG对微污染水中有机物和氨氮(NH4-N)的吸附效果,考察了不同投加量、反应时间、pH值对腐殖酸(HA)和NH4-N的去除效果影响.结果表明,投加量3 g/L,反应时间20 min,pH =7时,MBG对微污染水中20 mg/L HA和5mg/L NH4-N的去除率分别可达98％和20％以上.HA和NH4-N共存时,存在竞争吸附,HA影响了MBG对NH4-N的去除.     

Nitrogen regulation of the climate-carbon feedback: evidence from a long-term global change experiment

Modeling studies have shown that nitrogen (N) strongly regulates ecosystem responses and feedback to climate warming. However, it remains unclear what mechanisms underlie N regulation of ecosystem-climate interactions. To examine N regulation of ecosystem feedback to climate change, we have conducted a warming and clipping experiment since November 1999 in a tallgrass prairie of the Great Plains, USA. Infrared heaters were used to elevate soil temperature by an average of 1.96 degrees C at a depth of 2.5 cm from 2000 to 2008. Yearly biomass clipping mimicked hay or biofuel feedstock harvest. We measured carbon (C) and N concentrations, estimated their content and C:N ratio in plant, root, litter, and soil pools. Warming significantly stimulated C storage in aboveground plant, root, and litter pools by 17%, 38%, and 29%, respectively, averaged over the nine years (all P < 0.05) but did not change soil C content or N content in any pool. Plant C:N ratio and nitrogen use efficiency increased in the warmed plots compared to the control plots, resulting primarily from increased dominance of C4 plants in the community. Clipping significantly decreased C and N storage in plant and litter pools (all P < 0.05) but did not have interactive effects with warming on either C or N pools over the nine years. Our results suggest that increased ecosystem nitrogen use efficiency via a shift in species composition toward C4 dominance rather than plant N uptake is a key mechanism underlying warming stimulation of plant biomass growth.     

Sustainable wood-based nanotechnologies for photocatalytic degradation of organic contaminants in aquatic environment

•Wood and its reassemblies are ideal substrates to develop novel photocatalysts. •Synthetic methods and mechanisms of wood-derived photocatalysts are summarized. •Advances in wood-derived photocatalysts for organic pollutant removal are summed up. •Metal doping, morphology control and semiconductor coupling methods are highlighted. •Structure-activity relationship and catalytic mechanism of photocatalysts are given. Wood-based nanotechnologies have received much attention in the area of photocatalytic degradation of organic contaminants in aquatic environment in recent years, because of the high abundance and renewability of wood as well as the high reaction activity and unique structural features of these materials. Herein, we present a comprehensive review of the current research activities centering on the development of wood-based nanocatalysts for photodegradation of organic pollutants. This review begins with a brief introduction of the development of photocatalysts and hierarchical structure of wood. The review then focuses on strategies of designing novel photocatalysts based on wood or its recombinants (such as 1D fiber, 2D films and 3D porous gels) using advanced nanotechnology including sol-gel method, hydrothermal method, magnetron sputtering method, dipping method and so on. Next, we highlight typical approaches that improve the photocatalytic property, including metal element doping, morphology control and semiconductor coupling. Also, the structure-activity relationship of photocatalysts is emphasized. Finally, a brief summary and prospect of wood-derived photocatalysts is provided.     

Lagged effect of exports,industrialization and urbanization on carbon footprint in Southeast Asia

The study aims to examine lagged causal effect of economic development policies on the carbon footprint of Southeast Asia. This study employs unit root test, cointegration test and panel data analysis methods to examine endogeneity concerns in observational data. The study applies panel data analysis methods to address unobserved country effect in the model. The balanced panel data includes a total of 240 observations with five cross sections of five nations in Southeast Asia and with 48 time-specific periods of 1970–2017. The results indicate that (1) exports, industrialization, urbanization and economic growth have lagged negative effect on the carbon footprint of the region in the short-run, and (2) there exists a long-run equilibrium relationship among exports, industrialization, urbanization, economic growth and carbon footprint in the region. The findings suggest that the economic growth, exports, industrialization and urbanization of the developing countries in Southeast Asia have been achieved at the cost of increasing the carbon footprint of the region. The findings imply that the environmental policy of the export-led growth countries never have been effective so far since the nations have achieved their economic growth at the high cost of harming the environment of the nations.     

Variations in δ13C of water–soluble leaf and phloem organic matter of Platycladus orientalis: influences of photosynthetic and post–photosynthetic fractionation

Analysis of variations in water–soluble organic matter (WSOM) δ¹³C of leaves and phloem can efficiently describe the δ¹³C distributions within plants and identify the temporal variation of δ¹³C. In this study, WSOM δ¹³C values of both leaves and phloem (twig, stem, and root) of Platycladus orientalis were measured during seven sunny days, including 2–hour interval measurements at three days for diel pattern analysis and 6–hour interval measurements at the remaining four days for day–to–day variation analysis. Analysis of WSOM δ¹³C in different plant organs showed that ¹³C was generally depleted from leaves to twigs, then enriched in stems and subsequently depleted in roots. Stems were significantly ¹³C–enriched compared to twigs (p?<?0.05), while δ¹³C differences between stems and other organs and among leaves, twigs and roots were not significant (p?>?0.05). No clear diel patterns in δ¹³C of leaves and phloem were found. Daily average δ¹³C values indicated that all plant organs had more positive values on sunny days during the dry season than during the wet season. Both photosynthetic and post–photosynthetic fractionation influence variations in WSOM δ¹³C. These results have implications for research on plant physiology and plant water use.     

长江口及其邻近海域悬浮物浓度和浊度的对应关系

长江三峡工程一期蓄水自2003年6月1日开始,到6月10日结束,为了研究长江三峡工程蓄水对长江口环境的影响,在2003年6月15日至6月24日期间组织了长江口及其邻近海域环境的综合调查．根据该次调查所取得的悬浮体浓度和浊度的实测资料,探讨了不同水体中两可能存在的相关性,以期达到根据易得的浊度数据获得更多悬浮体浓度分布规律的目的．同时,分析了两关系的主要影响因素和关系式的适用范围．结果表明：长江口及其邻近海域不同水体悬浮体浓度和浊度之间均存在有较好的相关性,即浓度和浊度之间存在对数线性关系。