Insights into the mercury(II) adsorption and binding mechanism onto several typical soils in China

To better understand the Hg(II) adsorption by some typical soils and explore the insights about the binding between Hg(II) and soils, a batch of adsorption and characteristic experiments was conducted. Results showed that Hg(II) adsorption was well fitted by the Langmuir and Freundlich. The maximum adsorption amount of cinnamon soil (2094.73 mg kg^?1) was nearly tenfold as much as that of saline soil (229.49 mg kg^?1). The specific adsorption of Hg(II) on four soil surface was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) owing to the change of elemental bonding energy after adsorption. However, the specific adsorption is mainly derived from some substances in the soil. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated that multiple oxygen-containing functional groups (O–H, C=O, and C–O) were involved in the Hg(II) adsorption, and the content of oxygen functional groups determined the adsorption capacity of the soil. Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy combined with X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM–EDS) more intuitive revealed the binding of mercury to organic matter, metal oxides, and clay minerals in the soil and fundamentally confirmed the results of XPS and FTIR to further elucidate adsorptive phenomena. The complexation with oxygen-containing functional groups and the precipitation with minerals were likely the primary mechanisms for Hg(II) adsorption on several typical soils. This study is critical in understanding the transportation of Hg(II) in different soils and discovering potential preventative measures.     

Impacts of hydrologic variations on chemical weathering and solute sources in the Min River basin,Himalayan–Tibetan region

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Feedback between hydrologic variations and chemical weathering is thought to play a crucial role in modulating global carbon cycling. The mechanisms...     

Role of illumination intensity in microcystin development using Microcystis aeruginosa as the model algae

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Microcystis aeruginosa (M. aeruginosa) is one of the most common genera of cyanobacteria in algal blooms. In the present work, the impact of the...     

Microbial community composition and electricity generation in cattle manure slurry treatment using microbial fuel cells: effects of inoculum addition

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a sustainable technology to treat cattle manure slurry (CMS) for converting chemical energy to bioelectricity. In this...     

电网发展、清洁电源接入与地区能源效率

鉴于我国已经建成全球规模最大的超高压和特高压电网,彻底弥补了电力跨区配置的电网基础设施短板,并且为清洁电源并入电网和跨区消纳提供了完善的基础设施,不仅克服我国电力负荷中心和能源基地的区域布局不协调,而且有益于缓解日益严峻的能源利用率低下和环境污染问题。本文利用1991—2012年全国29个省市面板数据实证研究了清洁电源并网对地区全要素能源效率的影响。为保证实证结果稳健性分别在线性和非线性实证框架下采用系统广义矩估计(SYS-GMM)和面板平滑转换模型(PSTR)两种方法估计了清洁电源接入高压、超高压和特高压电网的地区全要素能源效率异质性效应。实证结果显示:(1)我国电网基础设施对地区全要素能源效率具有明显的增进效应,特别是超高压电网在促进全要素能源效率提升上表现的最为突出,在特高压骨干网架尚未形成的情况下起到了支柱性作用。(2)高压、超高压、特高压与清洁电源交互项的估计系数始终位于负数区间,反映清洁电源并网的能源效率绩效并不明显,受限于并网规模和机制缺陷,还没有发挥出全要素能源效率提升作用。(3)随着人均GDP的不断提高,各等级电网对地区能源效率的益处越来越明显,并且存在着门槛效应。(4)特高压电网对地区能源效率的积极作用主要表现在东部沿海高收入省份,这些省份作为电力消费负荷中心,大规模接入清洁电源对能源效率改善裨益明显。接下来,需要根据地区的能源禀赋结构选择清洁电源的并网模式,完善的电网基础设施、合理的电源结构还需要配置以高效的清洁电源并网机制才能不断增进地区全要素能源效率。     

Experimental thermal storage research of organic binary phase change materials in building environment

This paper aims to reveal the heat transfer mechanism of low-temperature phase change material (PCM) and design PCM heat storage device in building heating environment. Firstly, low-temperature binary PCMs of lauric acid and stearic acid are prepared, and their thermal properties are investigated by DSC. Then, shell and tube latent heat thermal energy storage units are conducted, and heat transfer experiments are carried out to analyze the heat transfer mechanism of PCM. The results demonstrate that natural convection plays an important role in heat transfer process, and the heat storage efficiency of PCMs can be significantly enhanced by increasing the fin width and improving the inlet heat transfer fluid (HTF) temperature. Furthermore, some proposals are put forward to guide the design of PCM storage device in building heating environment.     

RPB-O3/H2O2法处理硝基苯模拟废水

在超重力场中,研究了硝基苯模拟废水的臭氧/双氧水(O3/H2O2)法处理效果,考察了超重力因子β、H2O2浓度、初始p H、液体流量及处理时间等因素对硝基苯去除率的影响。结果表明,硝基苯去除率随超重力因子β和处理时间的增加而增大,而随H2O2浓度、初始p H和液体流量的增加呈先增大后降低的趋势。当硝基苯初始浓度300 mg/L,工艺条件β=80、p H=10.0、臭氧质量浓度约为40 mg/L、H2O2浓度为4.9 mmol/L、液体流量为120 L/h时,循环处理35 min硝基苯去除率可达96.7%。处理时间60 min后,废水中硝基苯含量1.4 mg/L,COD为39 mg/L,达国家一级排放标准(GB 8978-1996)。在此条件下,硝基苯的降解过程符合准一级反应动力学。     

Decline of traditional rice farming constrains the recovery of the endangered Asian crested ibis (Nipponia nippon)

Traditional agriculture benefits a rich diversity of plants and animals. The winter-flooded rice fields in the Qinling Mountains, China, are the last refuge for the endangered Asian crested ibis (Nipponia nippon), and intensive efforts have been made to protect this anthropogenic habitat. Analyses of multi-temporal satellite data indicate that winter-flooded rice fields have been continuously reduced across the current range of crested ibis during the past two decades. The rate of loss of these fields in the core-protected areas has unexpectedly increased to a higher level than that in non-protected areas in the past decade. The best fit (R² = 0.87) numerical response model of the crested ibis population shows that a reduction of winter-flooded rice fields decreases population growth and predicts that the population growth will be constrained by the decline of traditional winter-flooded rice fields in the coming decades. Our findings suggest that the decline of traditional rice farming is likely to continue to pose a threat to the long-term survival and recovery of the crested ibis population in China.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13280-015-0649-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Manganese concentrations in maternal–infant blood and birth weight

Manganese (Mn) is an essential mineral nutrient in mammals. The physiological role of Mn in animal models is well documented, but little is known about the adverse effects of Mn deficiency or overexposure in humans, including pregnancy outcomes such as birth weight. We examined the relationship of the maternal and cord blood Mn levels with birth weight in a cohort of 172 mother–infant pairs born in Shanghai, China. Non-linear spline and quadratic regression models were used to test the hypothesis of an inverted U-shaped association between the Mn levels and birth weight. The median (range) levels of Mn in the maternal and cord blood were 5.38 (2.34–30.37) μg/dL and 7.66 (2.57–34.23) μg/dL, respectively. An inverted U-shaped relationship was observed between maternal Mn and birth weight after adjusting for potential confounders. The birth weight increased with Mn levels up to 4.18 μg/dL, and a slight reduction in weight was observed at higher levels. The cord blood Mn levels were not found to be associated with birth weight. Both lower and higher Mn exposures are associated with lower birth weight, which may influence important developmental parameters; the association of higher Mn levels with lower weight was weak and imprecise.     

Estimation of building-related construction and demolition waste in Shanghai

One methodology is proposed to estimate the quantification and composition of building-related construction and demolition (C&D) waste in a fast developing region like Shanghai, PR China. The varieties of structure types and building waste intensities due to the requirement of progressive building design and structure codes in different decades are considered in this regional C&D waste estimation study. It is concluded that approximately 13.71 million tons of C&D waste was generated in 2012 in Shanghai, of which more than 80% of this C&D waste was concrete, bricks and blocks. Analysis from this study can be applied to facilitate C&D waste governors and researchers the duty of formulating precise policies and specifications. As a matter of fact, at least a half of the enormous amount of C&D waste could be recycled if implementing proper recycling technologies and measures. The appropriate managements would be economically and environmentally beneficial to Shanghai where the per capita per year output of C&D waste has been as high as 842 kg in 2010.