Risk assessment for safety of soils and vegetables around a lead/zinc mine

Concentrations of heavy metals (Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu) were determined in soils and vegetables (chrysanthemum, spinach and four cultivars of Chinese cabbage from the area adjacent to a Pb/Zn mine in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province, China, and compared with the Chinese National Standards for Soil Environmental Quality. The accumulation of heavy metals in cabbage cv. Siyuegreen was investigated at different distances from the center of the mine. The vegetable plantation soils were polluted with Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn, especially by Pb and Cd. The levels of Pb and Cd were 20 and 30 times higher than the permitted standards, indicating that this Pb/Zn mining area is unsuitable for agricultural use. Chinese cabbage, chrysanthemum and spinach had different enrichment coefficients. The enrichment coefficient of Cd from soil to roots of chrysanthemum was >80% and from roots to leaves of cabbage cv. Shanghaigreen was >120%. These vegetables were polluted by heavy metals and could not be regarded as safe for human consumption. Environmental accumulation of heavy metals in the vegetable plantation soils was proportional to heavy metal accumulation in vegetables and both were inversely proportional to the distance from the lead/zinc mine.     

Complexes of fulvic acid on the surface of hematite, goethite, and akaganeite: FTIR observation

The present work extended our knowledge on the binding and complexation of a fulvic acid (FA) derived from leonardite and the iron oxides (hematite, goethite and akaganeite) by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). As a prerequisite, the iron oxides were firstly prepared and characterized by transmission electron micrograph (TEM). All iron phases were single and well-described crystalloid. The FTIR data obtained by two different sampling preparation methods gave the consisting evidences that under our experimental conditions the interaction mechanism was to the ligand-exchange involving carboxylic functional groups of the FA and the surfaces sites of both hematite and goethite, while no complexation can be evidenced in the case of akaganeite, only surface adsorption. In general, the binding affinities of the iron oxides with the FA was in the order of hematite>goethite>akaganeite. The present method, although associated with some uncertainties, provided an opportunity to increase the knowledge in the field of the humic chemistry.     

加油站火灾爆炸故障树分析

采用安全系统工程的方法,对加油站的火灾爆炸事故进行了故障树分析。通过故障树分析,得出4个最小径集,指明了预防事故发生的可能途径;从而确定出加油站火灾爆炸事故的预防措施,并做出安全检查表,以供现场实施参考。     

Crash frequency analysis of different types of urban roadway segments using generalized additive model

IntroductionThis paper utilizes generalized additive model to explore the potential non-linear relationship between crash frequency and exposure on different types of urban roadway segments.MethodsGeneralized additive models are used to analyze crash frequency data and compared with the commonly used crash rate method and generalized linear models using a five-year crash data set from Houston, Texas.ResultsThe study shows that the relationship between crash frequency and exposure varies by segment type and the linearity may only approximately exist in certain segment types. In addition, the generalized additive modeling results suggest that such relationship curves may not be monotonic. Finally, this study demonstrates that generalized additive models in general provide better flexibility and modeling performance than generalized linear models.Impact on IndustryThe generalized additive model provides a very promising alternative for crash frequency modeling and other safety studies.     

Comparison of CNT-PVA membrane and commercial polymeric membranes in treatment of emulsified oily wastewater

CNT-PVA membrane was fabricated and compared with polymeric membranes. The separation performance was evaluated by homemade and cutting fluid emulsions. The three membranes show similar oil retention rates. CNT-PVA membranes have higher permeation fluxes compared with polymeric membranes. CNT-PVA membrane shows higher fouling resistance. Membrane separation is an attractive technique for removal of emulsified oily wastewater. However, polymeric membranes which dominate the current market usually suffer from severe membrane fouling. Therefore, membranes with high fouling resistance are imperative to treat emulsified oily wastewater. In this study, carbon nanotube-polyvinyl alcohol (CNT-PVA) membrane was fabricated. And its separation performance for emulsified oily wastewater was compared with two commercial polymeric membranes (PVDF membrane and PES membrane) by filtration of two homemade emulsions and one cutting fluid emulsion. The results show that these membranes have similar oil retention efficiencies for the three emulsions. Whereas, the permeation flux of CNT-PVA membrane is 1.60 to 3.09 times of PVDF membrane and 1.41 to 11.4 times of PES membrane, respectively. Moreover, after five consecutive operation circles of filtration process and back flush, CNT-PVA membrane can recover 62.3% to 72.9% of its initial pure water flux. However, the pure water flux recovery rates are only 24.1% to 35.3% for PVDF membrane and 6.0% to 26.3% for PES membrane, respectively. Therefore, CNT-PVA membrane are more resistant to oil fouling compared with the two polymeric membranes, showing superior potential in treatment of emulsified oily wastewater.     

Carbon nanotubes-incorporated MIL-88B-Fe as highly efficient Fenton-like catalyst for degradation of organic pollutants

CNTs were incorporated into MIL-88B-Fe to get a new Fenton-like catalyst (C@M). Fe(II) was introduced in C@M to get a fast initiation of Fenton-like reaction. Fe(II) content in C@M was related with oxygen-containing functional groups on CNTs. C@M shows efficient catalytic degradation of pollutants over a wide pH range. Iron-based metal organic frameworks have been verified to be efficient heterogeneous Fenton catalysts due to their open pore channels and highly uniform distribution of metallic centers. In these catalysts, however, the iron element is mainly in the form of Fe(III), which results in a process required to reduce Fe(III) to Fe(II) to initiate Fenton reaction. To address this problem, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with electron-rich oxygen-functional groups on the surface were incorporated into the metal organic frameworks (MIL-88B-Fe) to improve Fe(II) content for an enhanced Fenton-like performance. The prepared CNT@MIL-88B-Fe (C@M) showed much stronger catalytic ability toward H₂O₂ than MIL-88B-Fe. The pseudo-first-order kinetic constant for phenol degradation by C@M (0.32 min^–1) was about 7 times that of MIL-88B-Fe, and even higher than or comparable to the values of reported heterogeneous Fenton-like catalysts. Moreover, the Fenton-like system could effectively degrade various kinds of refractory organic pollutants and exhibited excellent catalytic activity over a wide pH range (4–9). XPS analysis confirmed that Fe(II) content of the catalyst gradually increased with CNT loadings. Electron spin resonance analysis showed that the signal intensity (•OH) of C@M was much higher than MIL-88B-Fe, which was consistent with the degradation efficiency of pollutants. Furthermore, the Fe(II) content of the catalyst gradually increased along with the oxygen-functional group content of CNTs. The result demonstrated that oxygen-containing functional groups of CNTs have a significant impact on the enhanced catalytic performance of C@M. This study provides a new insight to enhance Fenton reaction by using nanocarbon materials.     

Do trace metal(loid)s in road soils pose health risks to tourists? A case of a highly-visited national park in China

Nowadays, more people tend to spend their recreational time in large national parks, and trace metal(loid)s in soils have attracted long-term attention due to their possible harm to human health. To investigate the pollution levels, potential sources and health risks of trace metal(loid)s in road soils, a total of eight trace metal(loid)s (including As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn and Hg) from 47 soil samples along roads were studied in the Huangshan National Park in Southeast China. The results showed that the concentrations of As, Cd, Pb, Zn and Hg appeared different degrees of pollution compared with their corresponding background values. According to the pollution indices, Hg and Cd were recognized as significant pollutants presenting moderate to high ecological risk. Combining principal component analysis and positive matrix factorization model, the results showed that traffic, industrial, agricultural and natural sources were the potential origins of trace metal(loid)s in this area, with contribution rates of 39.93%, 25.92%, 10.53% and 23.62%, respectively. Non-carcinogenic risks were all negligible, while the carcinogenic risk of As was higher than the limit (1 $\times$ 10⁻⁶). Moreover, children were more susceptible to trace metal(loid)s by ingestion which appeared to be a more important exposure pathway than dermal contact and inhalation. The contribution rates of different sources to non-carcinogenic risks and carcinogenic risks were similar among children and adults, while traffic and industrial sources have a significant impact on health risks. This study will give more insights to control the environmental risks of trace metal(loid)s in national parks.     

粉末活性污泥处理含铀废水的特性

以生活污水处理厂剩余活性污泥为原料,制备粉末活性污泥(PAS)作为生物吸附剂,考察p H值,PAS投加量,U(Ⅵ)初始浓度和吸附时间对PAS吸附U(Ⅵ)的影响,探讨了PAS吸附U(Ⅵ)的作用机理。实验结果表明,在U(Ⅵ)初始浓度为10 mg/L时,其最佳吸附p H值为3,去除率97.77%,吸附平衡时间120 min;吸附过程较好地拟合了准二级动力学模型(R2≈1)和Freundlich等温模型(R2≈1);X射线能谱和离子交换实验分析表明,离子交换为其主要吸附方式,参与交换的主要离子为Ca2+;红外光谱分析表明,PAS吸附U(Ⅵ)后自身结构未发生改变。以0.1 mol/L的HCl溶液作为解吸液,初次解吸率达92.83%,循环利用3次仍具有较好的吸附效果。     

催化荧光法测定痕量亚硝酸根

本文研究了在稀磷酸介质中，亚硝酸根对溴酸钾氧化中笥红的反应，建立了催化荧光法测定痕量亚硝酸根的方法，实验表明，亚硝酸根在０．０５－０．４０μｇ．２５ｍｌ＾－１范围内与ΔＦ成线性关系，大多数常见的共存离子不影响其测定。本法用于水样中亚硝酸根的测定，结果比较满意。     

山西省五台山区土壤氟元素的环境背景值及分布规律

对山西省五台山区垂直土壤主要土类的氟元素背景值进行了调查与分析，揭示了五台山区土壤氟元素区域背景的分布特征和变化趋势。结果表明：五台山区土壤氟背景值略高于我国平均水平，多数土壤Ｂ层含氟量最高。