Modification of Fe–Mn mixed oxide COS removal sorbent by rare-earth oxides addition

In order to develop highly active sorbent for COS removal, Fe–Mn mixed oxides doped with CeO₂, La₂O₃ or Sm₂O₃ were studied. The effects of these promoters on the structural properties of Fe–Mn oxides were investigated by XRD, BET, TPR and TEM techniques. XRD results revealed that the degree of crystallinity of Fe–Mn oxide phase decreased due to the addition of rare-earth oxides. Doping with CeO₂, La₂O₃ or Sm₂O₃ led to an increase in BET surface area of the sample. TPR studies showed that the reactivity of the reduction of doped samples increased in the temperature range of 300–450 °C. In addition, the desulfurization test was performed at 325 °C with a gas hourly space velocity of 1000 h⁻¹. It was found that the addition of 3% La₂O₃ greatly improved the absorption sulfur capacity of the sorbent, while the sorbent doped 3% CeO₂ achieved a sufficiently high purifying degree before breakthrough.     

Removal of Cr(VI) from simulative contaminated groundwater by iron metal

The Cr(VI) removal from simulative contaminated groundwater using zero-valent iron (Fe⁰) filings, Fe⁰ powder and nanoscale Fe⁰ in batch experimental mode was studied. Cr(VI) is a primary pollutant of some soils and groundwater. Zero-valent iron, an important natural reductant, could transform Cr(VI) to Cr(III) which is much less toxic and immobile. The Cr(VI) removal percentage was 87% at a metal to solution ratio of 6 g l⁻¹ for commercial iron powder (200 mesh) in 120 min, and 100% Cr(VI) was removed when the metal to solution ratio was 10 g l⁻¹. The results demonstrates that the Cr(VI) removal percentage was affected apparently by pH, the amount of Fe powder and the reaction temperature. The Cr(VI) removal percentage with nanoscale Fe⁰ was much higher than those with Fe⁰ filings or Fe⁰ powder at the same reaction time. Electrochemical analysis of the reaction process led to the conclusion that the Cr(VI) trended to form Cr(III) hydroxide under the reaction conditions. The kinetics analysis showed that Cr(VI) reduction by Fe⁰ could be described as a pseudo-first-order kinetics model.     

Land desertification monitoring and assessment in Yulin of Northwest China using remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS)

The objective of this study is to develop techniques for assessing and analysing land desertification in Yulin of Northwest China, as a typical monitoring region through the use of remotely sensed data and geographic information systems (GIS). The methodology included the use of Landsat TM data from 1987, 1996 and 2006, supplemented by aerial photos in 1960, topographic maps, field work and use of other existing data. From this, land cover, the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), farmland, woodland and grassland maps at 1:100,000 were prepared for land desertification monitoring in the area. In the study, all data was entered into a GIS using ILWIS software to perform land desertification monitoring. The results indicate that land desertification in the area has been developing rapidly during the past 40 years. Although land desertification has to some extent been controlled in the area by planting grasses and trees, the issue of land desertification is still serious. The study also demonstrates an example of why the integration of remote sensing with GIS is critical for the monitoring of environmental changes in arid and semi-arid regions, e.g. in land desertification monitoring in the Yulin pilot area. However, land desertification monitoring using remote sensing and GIS still needs to be continued and also refined for the purpose of long-term monitoring and the management of fragile ecosystems in the area.     

紫外分光光度法在水中阴离子表面活性剂标准样品研制中的应用

研究了阴离子表面活性剂水溶液的紫外吸收特性,并将研究结果用于阴离子表面活性剂水质标样的稳定性,均匀性和定值工作,简化了操作手续,获得了准确的分析结果。     

关于推行清洁生产有关问题的探讨

阐述了清洁生产是可持续局长战略思想的具体体现,是实现可持续发展战略的必由之路。并提出了推行清洁生产的一些建议和设想。     

Spatial succession modeling of biological communities: a multi-model approach

Strong spatial correlation may exist in the spatial succession of biological communities, and the spatial succession can be mathematically described. It was confirmed by our study on spatial succession of both plant and arthropod communities along a linear transect of natural grassland. Both auto-correlation and cross-correlation analyses revealed that the succession of plant and arthropod communities exhibited a significant spatial correlation, and the spatial correlation for plant community succession was stronger than arthropod community succession. Theoretically it should be reasonable to infer a site's community composition from the last site in the linear transect. An artificial neural network for state space modeling (ANNSSM) was developed in present study. An algorithm (i.e., Importance Detection Method (IDM)) for determining the relative importance of input variables was proposed. The relative importance for plant families Gramineae, Compositae and Leguminosae, and arthropod orders Homoptera, Diptera and Orthoptera, were detected and analyzed using IDM. ANNSSM performed better than multivariate linear regression and ordinary differential equation, while ordinary differential equation exhibited the worst performance in the simulation and prediction of spatial succession of biological communities. A state transition probability model (STPM) was proposed to simulate the state transition process of biological communities. STPM performed better than multinomial logistic regression in the state transition modeling. We suggested a novel multi-model framework, i.e., the joint use of ANNSSM and STPM, to predict the spatial succession of biological communities. In this framework, ANNSSM and STPM can be separately used to simulate the continuous and discrete dynamics.     

An assessment of heavy metals contributed by industry in urban atmosphere from Nanjing, China

The present work aims to study the Zooplankton seasonal distribution and diversity in Karanja reservoir, Bidar district for the period of two years from October 2001 to September 2003. We have recorded 36 species of which, 15 species belongs to rotifera, 11 species belongs to cladocera, nine species belongs to copepoda and ostracoda three species. Among zooplankton, particularly rotifera was the dominant group throughout the study period and highest count was recorded in the month of March 2003. Cluster analysis was also revealed by dendrogram and Shannon diversity index is also presented. Zooplankton community is also correlated with physicochemical parameters.     

Disturbance of Dabao highway construction on plant species and soil nutrients in Longitudinal Range Gorge Region (LRGR) of Southwestern China

The disturbance of highway construction upon surrounding vulnerable ecosystems is a common threat in the Longitudinal Range Gorge Region of southwestern China. We evaluated the disturbance of highway on plant species richness and diversity and soil nutrients from adjacent to the highway to 300 m upslope and 100 m downslope in forests and grasslands by setting 12 belt transects in forests and grasslands (six belt transects and six control belt transects, respectively). The results showed that there were some significant variances in belt transects with respective control belt transects for species richness and diversity in both forests and grasslands. Species richness and diversity of trees were lower within a 50-m distance from the highway and more noticeable on the downslope portion. Species richness and diversity of shrubs and herbs appeared higher near highway edge. Both species richness and diversity of herbs were similar in forests. In addition, exotic species, such as Eupatorium adenophorum, were further from the road and more widely dispersed in grasslands. Soil nutrients except total potassium (TK) were lower in the downslope area adjacent to highway edge and showed a significant increase with increasing distance from the highway in both forests and grasslands. This indicates that grasslands acted as microhabitats for exotic species and are more easily to be invaded than forests, especially if disturbed. Once destroyed, plant species and soil nutrients will require a significant amount of time to be restored to control levels. This work illustrates that the effects extend considerably to distances upslope and downslope from the construction site. Given that these changes occurred relatively quickly, the study suggests that the environmental "footprint" grows far beyond the road and adjacent zone of disruption.     

Risk assessment and distribution of soil Pb in Guangdong, China

In this study, the spatial distributions of soil lead (Pb) concentration in three horizontal soils in Guangdong, China, were surveyed and analyzed using geostatistics and geography information systems (GIS). Findings indicated that the Pb geometric mean concentration of 23.3 mg/kg in surface soils was found to be higher than those in global soils, which ranged from 2.3–235 mg/kg. In addition, the Pb geometric mean concentrations from A- to C-horizon were found to be 23.3, 27.2, and 28.6 mg/kg, respectively. The classification of a soil Pb environmental risk in an area was likewise presented based on the different levels of environmental quality of Pb and was done by GIS technology. Accordingly, there is a higher local concentration of Pb in the surrounding areas of Guangzhou where there is higher population density and in the north of Guangdong, which is a historic mining area. The results obtained by the environmental risk assessment reveal that about 46% of total surveyed area was above the background value, that is, 2.7% of the total area was at risk of pollution.     

Exploring the relationship between vegetation spectra and eco-geo-environmental conditions in karst region, Southwest China

Remote sensing of local environmental conditions is not accessible if substrates are covered with vegetation. This study explored the relationship between vegetation spectra and karst eco-geo-environmental conditions. Hyperspectral remote sensing techniques showed that there were significant differences between spectral features of vegetation mainly distributed in karst and non-karst regions, and combination of 1,300- to 2,500-nm reflectance and 400- to 680-nm first-derivative spectra could delineate karst and non-karst vegetation groups. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) successfully assessed to what extent the variation of vegetation spectral features can be explained by associated eco-geo-environmental variables, and it was found that soil moisture and calcium carbonate contents had the most significant effects on vegetation spectral features in karst region. Our study indicates that vegetation spectra is tightly linked to eco-geo-environmental conditions and CCA is an effective means of studying the relationship between vegetation spectral features and eco-geo-environmental variables. Employing a combination of spectral and spatial analysis, it is anticipated that hyperspectral imagery can be used in interpreting or mapping eco-geo-environmental conditions covered with vegetation in karst region.