Aquatic toxicity of glyphosate-based formulations: comparison between different organisms and the effects of environmental factors

Glyphosate-based herbicides (e.g. Roundup) are extensively used in the aquatic environment, but there is a paucity of data on the toxicity of the formulated products and the influences by environmental factors. In this study, the acute toxicity of technical-grade glyphosate acid, isopropylamine (IPA) salt of glyphosate, Roundup and its surfactant polyoxyethylene amine (POEA) to Microtox bacterium (Vibrio fischeri), microalgae (Selenastrum capricornutum and Skeletonema costatum), protozoa (Tetrahymena pyriformis and Euplotes vannus) and crustaceans (Ceriodaphnia dubia and Acartia tonsa) was examined and the relative toxicity contributions of POEA to Roundup were calculated. The effects of four environmental factors (temperature, pH, suspended sediment and algal food concentrations) on the acute toxicity of Roundup to C. dubia were also examined. Generally, the toxicity order of the chemicals was: POEA>Roundup>glyphosate acid>IPA salt of glyphosate, while the toxicity of glyphosate acid was mainly due to its high acidity. Microtox bacterium and protozoa had similar sensitivities towards Roundup toxicity (i.e. IC50 from 23.5 to 29.5 mg AE/l). In contrast, microalgae and crustaceans were 4-5 folds more sensitive to Roundup toxicity than bacteria and protozoa. Except photosynthetic microalgae, POEA accounted for more than 86% of Roundup toxicity and the toxicity contribution of POEA was shown to be species-dependent. Increase in pH (6-9) and increase of suspended sediment concentration (0-200 mg/l) significantly increased the toxicity of Roundup to C. dubia, but there were no significant effects due to temperature change and food addition.     

Accumulation, distribution and transformation of DDT and PCBs by Phragmites australis and Oryza sativa L.: II. Enzyme study

Two wetland plant species, Phragmites australis and Oryza sativa, were grown in a glasshouse under hydroponics conditions. Enzyme extracts from different parts of the plants were used to determine the transformation rate of o,p′-DDT, p,p′-DDT and PCBs. The organic pollutants were directly spiked into the enzyme extracts, and samples were collected every 30 min and analyzed with a GC-ECD. Root extracts of P. australis readily degraded and transformed DDT and some PCB congeners with a low degree of chlorination. In contrast, crude extracts of O. sativa showed no appreciable degradation or transformation of DDT or PCBs. Inhibition studies indicated that the degradation and transformation of both DDT and PCBs by P. australis enzymes were partly mediated by peroxidase and the plant P-450 system. PCBs with a high degree of chlorination were highly resistant to transformation or degradation by plant enzymes. Both wetland plant species accumulated substantial quantities of the persistent organic chemicals but had different degradation capacities. The enzyme systems in P. australis were much more effective that those in rice in the degradation and transformation of the organic pollutants.     

Enhancement of ozone oxidation and its associated processes in the presence of surfactant: degradation of atrazine

In this study, the degradation of atrazine (ATZ) by ozone (O3) oxidation and its associated processes (i.e. UV, UV/O3) in the presence and absence of surfactant was investigated and compared. A non-ionic surfactant, Brij 35, was selected. It was found that the presence of a low concentration of surfactant could improve the removal of ATZ by increasing the dissolution of ozone and the indirect generation of hydroxyl radicals. The saturated ozone level and the reaction rate constants were increased with increasing the concentration of surfactant and then decreased at higher surfactant doses at pH level of 2.5. A similar trend was observed at pH level of 7.0 in the presence of bicarbonate ion, because it is capable of deactivating the hydroxyl radicals generating at higher pH level. However, when the radical reactions become dominant in the ozonation (at pH 7.0 without bicarbonate), the saturated ozone level was higher than that with bicarbonate and the kinetic rate constants were increased first and levelled off with increasing of the dose of surfactant. Through the examining of a proposed unit performance index, the low concentration of surfactant is surely beneficial to the ozonation process. Besides, the direct photolysis and photo-assisted ozonation were compared to the ozonation. A significant enhancement on the decay rate of ATZ was resulted exclusively by adding the surfactant. An enhancement index for quantifying the improvement of the various processes was developed.     

长江口潮间带湿地涨退潮期N2O的排放通量研究

随着河口区接收上游人为氮排放量的增加,为这一区域氧化亚氮（N2O）的排放增加了很大不确定性。选择长江河口潮间带湿地为研究对象,分别采用原位静态箱法和静态顶空法,从2011年1月至12月对长江口沉积物 大气界面以及涨潮水 大气界面的N2O排放通量进行了为期一年的现场观测和研究。研究结果表明,沉积物 大气界面N2O通量有着显著的时空差异。N2O排放通量在日变化以及季节变化上都表现出明显的源汇转变,就年平均排放通量,光滩带沉积物 大气界面达到了599 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h),而海三棱藨草盐沼带与大气间N2O交换则十分微弱,为060 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h)。对长江口涨退潮期光滩和草滩上覆水体 大气界面N2O排放通量的研究表明,长江口涨退潮期在夏季和秋季,无论是光滩还是草滩均表现为大气N2O的稳定排放源,其中夏季平均253 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h),秋季平均排放通量为207 μgN2O/(m2〖DK〗·h)。作为河口区上游排放氮素的直接接收者,和沉积物 大气界面N2O排放相比,长江口涨潮水 大气界面N2O排放稳定而又显著,是长江口N2O排放的主要贡献者,应成为这一区域N2O排放的关注热点     

Hygroscopicity of particles generated from photooxidation of α-pinene under diferent oxidation conditions in the presence of sulfate seed aerosols

Smog chamber experiments were conducted to investigate the hygroscopicity of particles generated from photooxidation of α-pinene/NOx with diferent sulfate seed aerosols or oxidation conditions. Hygroscopicity of particles was measured by a tandem diferential mobility analyzer(TDMA) in terms of hygroscopic growth factor(Gf), with a relative humidity of 85%. With sulfate seed aerosols present, Gf of the aerosols decreased very fast before notable secondary organic aerosols(SOA) formation was observed, indicating a heterogeneous process between inorganic seeds and organic products might take place as soon as oxidation begins, rather than only happening after gas-aerosol partition of organic products starts. The final SOA-coated sulfate particles had similar or lower Gf than seed-free SOA. The hygroscopicity of the final particles was not dependent on the thickness but on the hygroscopicity properties of the SOA, which were influenced by the initial sulfate seed particles. In the two designed aging processes, Gf of the particles increased more significantly with introduction of OH radical than with ozone. However, the hygroscopicity of SOA was very low even after a long time of aging, implying that either SOA aging in the chamber was very slow or the Gf of SOA did not change significantly in aging. Using an aerosol composition speciation monitor(ACSM) and matrix factorization(PMF) method, two factors for the components of SOA were identified, but the correlation between SOA hygroscopicity and the proportion of the more highly oxidized factor could be either positive or negative depending on the speciation of seed aerosols present.     

环境视角调整能源供应和消费模式研究

近期大气环境问题突出,严重损害人民群众身体健康。随着工业化、城镇化深入推进,能源资源消耗总量短期难以下降,而改善空气质量又需显著降低大气污染物排放量。因此,改善空气质量必须调整现有能源供应体系,提高能源利用效率,改善居民能源消费模式,使得经济发展、能源消耗和污染排放之间协调可持续发展。能源供应朝着进一步反映市场供求、资源稀缺以及环境损害的定价机制转变,显著提高清洁能源比例、电煤比例和使用效率;能源消费朝着节能、低碳、绿色消费模式转变,提高公共交通出行比例,推行节能建筑,显著降低人均能源消耗量。     

Numerical simulation of flow hydrodynamics of struvite pellets in a liquid–solid fluidized bed

Phosphorus recovery in the form of struvite has been aroused in recent decades for its dual advantages in eutrophication control and resource protection.The usage of the struvite products is normally determined by the size which is largely depended on the hydrodynamics.In this study,flow behavior of struvite pellets was simulated by means of Eulerian–Eulerian two-fluid model combining with kinetic theory of granular flow in a liquid–solid fluidized bed reactor(FBR).A parametric study including the mesh size,time step,discretization strategy,turbulent model and drag model was first developed,followed by the evaluations of crucial operational conditions,particle characteristics and reactor shapes.The results showed that a cold model with the mesh resolution of 16 × 240,default time step of 0.001 sec and first order discretization scheme was accurate enough to describe the fluidization.The struvite holdup profile using Syamlal–O'Brien drag model was best fitted to the experimental data as compared with other drag models and the empirical Richardson–Zaki equation.Regarding the model evaluation,it showed that liquid velocity and particle size played important roles on both solid holdups and velocities.The reactor diameter only influenced the solid velocity while the static bed height almost took no effect.These results are direct and can be applied to guide the operation and process control of the struvite fluidization.Moreover,the model parameters can also be used as the basic settings in further crystallization simulations.     

Development pattern and enhancing system of automotive components remanufacturing industry in China

Along with the increasing number of automotive output and End-of-Life vehicles (ELVs) in China, resources shortage and environmental pollution are aggravating, so the tremendous need to reuse automotive components gives birth to the industry. The Chinese government becomes to realize that it is necessary to build a conservation-oriented and environment-friendly harmonious society. As the ultimate form of recycling, remanufacturing will be an effective method to promote the development of Chinese circular economy. The automotive remanufacturing industry in China is just at the preliminary stage, this paper presents some problems before remanufacturing, during remanufacturing and after remanufacturing, and then it points out several barriers, such as restrictive policies and regulations, consumer acceptance, scarcity of technologies, etc. Like many other developed countries, Chinese remanufacturing industry will also experience the primary stage, growth stage and developed stage. while the emphasis of resources input will not be the same. By analyzing the resources input characteristics at different development stages, three development patterns, such as the Government Incenting Pattern, Technology Driving Pattern and Market Leading Pattern, are put forward. At present, the cooperation of the government, industry, universities and research institutes, etc, will jointly construct the enhancing system of automotive components remanufacturing industry in China. Finally, it concludes with a summary and some suggestions in the field.     

溢油污染处置技术现状分析

大规模的海洋溢油常常导致非常严重的环境污染事件和生态灾难,溢油事故应急是世界应急技术领域面临的重大技术难题。文章通过引用典型事故案例和国内事故概况说明了溢油事故的巨大风险及其危害,分析油品入水、扩散、漂移以及着陆四个不同事故演化阶段的污染特征,系统梳理溢油事故应急的物理、化学和生物处置方法,并通过对比各类方法的适用范围和优缺点,总结当前溢油应急处置技术、应急能力以及环境适应性等方面存在的不足,提出加强溢油应急处置能力应该在提高应急装备能力、开发新技术产品、建立全球联动机制等方面加强努力。