Fate and transport of N-nitrosamines under conditions simulating full-scale groundwater recharge operations.

The key objective of this study was to investigate the attenuation mechanisms of seven N-nitrosamine compounds at environmental concentrations and under conditions relevant to groundwater recharge operations. The study used a combination of controlled laboratory-scale soil-column experiments and groundwater monitoring at a full-scale river-bank filtration facility. Findings of the controlled column experiments suggest that N-nitrosodimethylamine and six other N-nitrosamines (N-nitrosodiethylamine, N-nitrosomethylethylamine, N-nitroso-n-propylamine, N-nitrosodi-n-butylamine, N-nitrosopiperidine, and N-nitrosopyrrolidine) are biodegradable under oxic and anoxic oxidation-reduction conditions. Half lives determined in this study for the targeted compounds varied between 1.3 and 7 days, which will ensure a removal to below detection limits (< 2 ng/L) within short travel times in groundwater recharge systems. Findings of this study suggest that complete removal of N-nitrosamines requires the presence of an adapted biocommunity, which will be established over several weeks to months.     

Ecotoxicology,where do you come from and where do you go? (2 pp)

-

Does ecotoxicology really contribute to our knowledge about the function of an ecosystem or environment? Is ecotoxicology really a science of its own? The answers to these questions must be NO. The reasons lie in the origin and past of ecotoxicology.Like medicine, ecotoxicology does not have its own scientific theory, but rather borrows from other disciplines: the scientific theory of medicine is biology, and that of ecotoxicology is ecology and pharmacology. Neither medicine nor ecotoxicology see the normal status and routine function of their objects under study. Ecotoxicology regards the environment as being adversely impacted by anthropogenic noxes, mainly chemicals, perhaps based on a paradigm of permanent guilt.

     

Ferrioxalate-mediated photodegradation and mineralization of 4-Chlorophenol

INTENTION, GOAL, SCOPE, BACKGROUND: Advanced oxidation processes are powerful methods which are capable of transforming refractory, nonbiodegradable and/or toxic organic compounds into harmless end products such as carbon dioxide and water. However, one commen problem of all advanced oxidation processes is the high demand of electrical energy for ultraviolet lamps, which causes high operational costs. Minimization of the required irradiation time, and therefore the energy consumption, by optimization of other reaction conditions such as catalyst-oxidant type and concentration, pH, temperature, pollutant/oxidant ratio etc., therefore continues to gain importance. OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this study was the minimization of the required irradiation time through optimization of the use of a newly patented catalyst, ferrioxalate, and also to compare the performance of this catalyst with the performance of other AOPs. METHODS: Oxidation of 4-chlorophenol by photo-Fenton process using potassium ferrioxalate as a mediator was studied in a lab scale photoreactor. The influence of parameters such as hydrogen peroxide and ferrioxalate concentrations, initial pH, power-output, oxalate/iron ratio and different iron sources was evaluated. An upflow photoreactor equipped with a 1000 Watt high-pressure mercury vapour lamp and operating in a recirculation mode was used during photodegradation experiments. The extent of the reduction of 4-chlorophenol, Total Organic Carbon and Chemical Oxygen Demand was used to evaluate the photodegradation reaction. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The optimum pH range observed was found to be 2.7-3. The efficiency of 4-chlorophenol oxidation increased with increasing concentrations of hydrogen peroxide and ferrioxalate, reaching a plateau after the addition of 10 and 0.072 mM of those reagents, respectively. Using an Oxalate/iron ratio of 12 was 18% less efficient than using a ratio of 3:1. The efficiency increased with increasing radiation power. However, this increase was not linear. The UV/ferrioxalate/H2O2 process, by which complete mineralization of 100 mg l(-1) 4-chlorophenol was achieved in 20 min of total reaction time, was the most efficient process among the alternatives applied. CONCLUSIONS: The use of ferrioxalate as the catalyst was found to be more efficient than the use of Fe(II) and Fe(III) iron species. It was possible to completely mineralize 4-chlorophenol. RECOMMENDATION AND OUTLOOK: The results of this study demonstrate that the ferrioxalate-mediated degradation of 4-chlorophenol requires less irradiation times than other advanced oxidation processes. There are mainly 19 phenol isomers and other toxic and nonbiodegradable organic compounds. We recommend that similar studies should be performed on many such compounds in order to attain a clear understanding of the performance of this catalyst. Because of its light sensitivity, this catalyst should be used immediately after its preparation. The use of low pressure mercury vapour lamps in this process should also be considered, since low power outputs may be enough for the process.     

Effect of arsenic and mercury speciation on inhibition of respiration rate in activated sludge systems

The inhibition effect of arsenite, As(III), arsenate, As(V), inorganic mercury, Hg(II) and methylmercury, MeHg, on the respiration rate of activated heterotrophic sludge microorganisms was evaluated. As(III) and MeHg were much more toxic to activated sludge than As(V) and Hg(II) respectively. The effect of various experimental parameters on the toxicity, such as sludge age, concentration of suspended solids and exposure time, was investigated. An increase of sludge age or the concentration of suspended solids reduces the observed inhibition. Longer exposure seems to dramatically increase the inhibition of As(III), MeHg and Hg(II) during the first hours of exposure, while the later inhibition increases at a slower rate. On the contrary, in the presence of As(V), 24 hours after exposure, the respiration rate was similar to that of the control biomass.     

Aromatic photonitration in homogeneous and heterogeneous aqueous systems

This work describes the nitration of aromatics upon near-UV photolysis of nitrate and nitrite in aqueous solution and upon photocatalytic oxidation of nitrite in TiO2 suspensions. Phenol is used in this work as a model aromatic molecule and as a probe for *NO2/N2O4. The photoinduced nitration of phenol in aqueous systems occurs upon the reaction between phenol and *NO2 or N2O4, and is enhanced by the photocatalytic oxidation of nitrite to *NO2 by TiO2. Aromatic photonitration in the liquid phase can play a relevant role in the formation of nitroaromatics in natural waters and atmospheric hydrometeors, thus being a potential pathway for the condensed-phase nitration of aromatics. Furthermore, the photoinduced oxidation of nitrite to nitrogen dioxide suggests a completely new role for nitrite in natural waters and atmospheric aerosols.     

Studies in the Biodegradation of 5 PAHs (Phenanthrene,Pyrene, Fluoranthene,Chrysene und Benzo(a)pyrene) in the Presence of Rooted Poplar Cuttings

Cuttings of Populus nigra L. cv. Loenen were cultivated in sand treated with one of the following PAHs: phenanthrene (Phen), fluoranthene (Flt), pyrene (Pyr), chrysene (Chr) and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP). The PAHs were applied at varying levels of concentration to each test series. After 6 weeks the concentration and the distribution of the PAHs in the substrate of the various sets of tests were compared with the concentration in the substrate of the control. Additionally the substrate and the plant roots were tested for evidence of degradation products of PAHs. The results revealed that the levels of concentration of Phen and Pyr detected in the substrate surrounding the roots was in some cases significantly lower than in the corresponding section of substrate in the unplanted set (= control). This phenomenon did not occur for Flt and BaP and in the case of Chr only in those substrates, which had been treated with the highest levels of concentration. As the presence of lesser amounts of Phen and Pyr in the plant pots cannot only be attributed to their accumulation and metabolism in the roots, it is fair to assume that the chemical transformation of these three PAHs took place outside the roots. The set of tests treated with Phen revealed the presence of 2- or 3-hydroxy-Phen (main components), a hydroxy-methoxy-Phen, 9,10-Phenanthrenequinone and one unidentified compound in metabolite form. Altogether eleven metabolites of Pyr were identified in the root extracts, which can be divided into three groups: 1-Hydroxy-Pyr and derivatives, dihydroxy-Pyr and derivatives and ring fission products (4-Hydroxy-Pyr and a derivative of the 4-Phen-carbonic acid). However, the metabolite mass detected for Phen and Pyr represents only an insignificant percentage in comparison with the lesser amounts of PAHs observed in the planted set of tests. This indicates that the three PAHs were reduced to lower molecular compounds, which are methodically impossible to record, and subsequently translocated to other parts of the plant and integrated into the biomass. Although no lesser amount for Flt and BaP was found in the plant pots, 1-Hydroxy-Flt, an unidentified compound of Flt and 1-Methoxy-BaP were detected. These are presumably end products which were enhanced in the roots. It was not possible to identify any transformation products of Chr. It can be assumed that the majority of metabolites were not synthesised in the roots but are a result of microbial degradation in the rhizosphere. The test plants improved the conditions for the biotransformation of Phen and Pyr significantly and accumulated Flt, Pyr, Chr and BaP in their roots. It can therefore be concluded that the use of plants in the bioremediation of contaminated soils is a promising option.