The dissipation rates of trichlorfon and its degradation product dichlorvos in cabbage and soil

The residual levels and dissipation rate of trichlorfon, and its degradation product, dichlorvos, in cabbage crops and the soil in which these were grown, were determined by gas chromatography at two geographically distant experimental sites, one in Kunming and one in Beijing, China. Trichlorfon was applied at two dosages (900 g ai ha⁻¹ and 1350 g ai ha⁻¹). Maximum final residues of trichlorfon in soil and cabbage were 1.23 mg kg⁻¹ and 1.81 mg kg⁻¹ respectively at Kunming, and 0.35 mg kg⁻¹ and 0.70 mg kg⁻¹ respectively at Beijing. However, the final residues of dichlorvos in both cabbage and soil was only 0.04 mg kg⁻¹ at Kunming, and only 0.03 mg kg⁻¹, or “not detectable”, at Beijing. The mean half-life of trichlorfon in cabbage was 1.80 d with a dissipation rate of 90% over 5 d, while that in soil was 3.05 d with a dissipation rate of 90% over 14 d at one experimental site. The dissipation rates of trichlorfon and its degradation product dichlorvos at the two experimental sites were different, suggesting that degradation of these pesticides was affected by local soil characteristics and climate. When applied at both the recommended dosage and at 1.5 times this, no detectable residues of either trichlorfon or dichlorvos were found in soil or cabbage at harvest. Although trichlorfon can easily degrade into dichlorvos, which is highly toxic to humans and other animals, the observed low residual levels of dichlorvos suggest that trichlorfon is safe when applied at the recommended dosage.     

Photodegradation of azithromycin in various aqueous systems under simulated and natural solar radiation: kinetics and identification of photoproducts

This article describes the photolysis of azithromycin, a macrolide antibiotic with reported occurrence in environmental waters, under simulated solar radiation. The photodegradation followed first-order reaction kinetics in five matrices examined. In HPLC water, the degradation rate was the slowest (half-life: 20 h), whereas in artificial freshwater supplemented with nitrate (5 mg L⁻¹) or humic acids (0.5 mg L⁻¹) the degradation of azithromycin was enhanced by factors of 5 and 16, respectively, which indicated the role of indirect photolysis involving the formation of highly reactive species. Following chromatographic separation on a UPLC system, the characterization of the transformation products was accomplished using high-resolution QqToF-MS analysis. The presence of seven photoproducts was observed and their formation was postulated to originate from (bis)-N-demethylation in the desosamine sugar, O-demethylation in the cladinose sugar, combinations thereof, as well as from hydrolytic cleavages of the desosamine and/or cladinose residue. Two of these photoproducts could also be detected in natural photodegradation process in river water which was spiked with azithromycin.     

Accumulation and quantitative estimates of airborne lead for a wild plant (Aster subulatus)

Foliar uptake of airborne lead is one of the pathways for Pb accumulation in plant organs. However, the approximate contributions of airborne Pb to plant organs are still unclear. In the present study, aerosols (nine-stage size-segregated aerosols and total suspended particulates), a wild plant species (Aster subulatus) and the corresponding soils were collected and Pb contents and isotopic ratios in these samples were analyzed. Average concentration of Pb was 96.5 ± 63.5 ng m⁻³ in total suspended particulates (TSP) and 20.4 ± 5.5 ng m⁻³ in the fine fractions of size-segregated aerosols (SSA) (<2.1 μm), higher than that in the coarser fractions (>2.1 μm) (6.38 ± 3.71 ng m⁻³). Enrichment factors show that aerosols and soils suffered from anthropogenic inputs and the fine fractions of the size-segregated aerosols enriched more Pb than the coarse fractions. The order of Pb contents in A. subulatus was roots > leaves > stems. The linear relationship of Pb isotope ratios (²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb and ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁶Pb) among soil, plant and aerosol samples were found. Based on the simple binary Pb isotopic model using the mean ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb ratios in TSP and in SSA, the approximate contributions of airborne Pb into plant leaves were 72.2% and 65.1%, respectively, suggesting that airborne Pb is the most important source for the Pb accumulation in leaves. So the combination of Pb isotope tracing and the simple binary Pb isotope model can assess the contribution of airborne Pb into plant leaves and may be of interest for risk assessment of the exposure to airborne Pb contamination.     

规模效率和技术进步对CO2排放影响的实证

本文利用DEA的方法从全要素生产率中分解出规模效率、技术进步和纯技术效率三个指标,然后基于1998-2008年的省际面板数据分析了不同地区的工业规模效率及技术进步对CO2排放影响的程度及差异化的原因.研究结果显示:从总体来看,技术进步对单位GDP的CO2排放有抑制作用,而规模效率则与CO2排放呈正向关系,但各个地区的情况不同,东中部地区的技术进步对单位GDP的CO2排放起到了抑制作用,东北地区和西部地区的技术进步则对单位GDP的CO2排放起到了促进作用;东中部地区的规模效率对单位GDP CO2排放的影响程度要远小于东部地区和西部地区;产生这些差异的原因可能是与我国区域间技术进步与规模效率所属的种类不同有关,东部地区的技术进步可能属于节能型技术进步,而西部地区则属于耗能型的技术进步;东北地区和西部地区规模效率的提升可能更多地依靠能源消耗,中东部地区则有所改善.     

Sequestration of organochlorine pesticides in soils of distinct organic carbon content

In the present study, five soil samples with organic carbon contents ranging from 0.23% to 7.1% and aged with technical dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) for 15 months were incubated in a sealed chamber to investigate the dynamic changes of the OCP residues. The residues in the soils decreased over the incubation period and finally reached a plateau. Regression analysis showed that degradable fractions of OCPs were negatively correlated with soil organic carbon (SOC) except for α-HCH, while no correlation was found between degradation rate and SOC, which demonstrated that SOC content determines the OCP sequestration fraction in soil. Analysis of the ratio of DDT and its primary metabolites showed that, since it depends on differential sequestration among them, magnitude of (p,p′-DDE + p,p′-DDD)/p,p′-DDT is not a reliable criterion for the identification of new DDT sources.     

Risks of using membrane filtration for trace metal analysis and assessing the dissolved metal fraction of aqueous media--a study on zinc, copper and nickel

Membrane filtration is commonly performed for solid-liquid separation of aqueous solutions prior to trace metal analysis and when assessing “dissolved” metal fractions. Potential artifacts induced by filtration such as contamination and/or adsorption of metals within the membrane have been investigated for different membrane materials, metals, applied pressures and pre-cleaning steps. Measurements have been conducted on aqueous solutions including well-defined metal standards, ultrapure water, and on runoff water from corroded samples.Filtration using both non-cleaned and pre-cleaned filters revealed contamination and adsorption effects, in particular pronounced for zinc, evident for copper but non-significant for nickel. The results clearly show these artifacts to be non-systematic both for non-cleaned and pre-cleaned membranes. The applied pressure was of minor importance.Measurements of the labile fraction by means of stripping voltammetry clearly elucidate that membrane filtration followed by total metal analysis cannot accurately assess the labile or the dissolved metal fraction.     

Distribution and bioaccumulation of steroidal and phenolic endocrine disrupting chemicals in wild fish species from Dianchi Lake, China

The distribution and bioaccumulation of steroidal and phenolic endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) were studied in various tissues of wild fish species from Dianchi Lake, China. In muscle tissue, 4-tert-octylphenol, 4-cumylphenol, 4-nonlyphenol and bisphenol A were detected in fish from each sampling site, with maximal concentrations of 4.6, 4.4, 18.9 and 83.5 ng/g dry weight (dw), respectively. Steroids (estrone, 17β-estradiol 17α-ethynylestradiol and estriol) were found at lower levels (<11.3 ng/g dw) and less frequently in muscle samples. The highest concentrations of steroids and phenols were found in liver, followed by those in gill and the lowest concentration was found in muscle. The field bioconcentration factors (BCFs) of phenols were calculated in fish species ranged from 18 to 97. Moreover, the measured tissue concentrations were utilized in order to estimate water concentration of steroids (4.4-18.0 ng/L). These results showed that steroidal and phenolic EDCs were likely ubiquitous contaminants in wild fish.     

Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) in riverine and marine sediments of the Laizhou Bay area, North China

PCN congeners were analyzed in marine and riverine sediments of the Laizhou Bay area, North China. Concentrations of PCNs ranged from 0.12 to 5.1 ng g⁻¹ dry weight (dw) with a mean value of 1.1 ng g⁻¹ dw. The levels of PCNs varied largely, with industrial group approximately ten folds higher than those of the rural in riverine sediment. A strong impact by direct discharge from local factories was suggested. Similar compositional profiles were found within groups. High resemblance of compositional profiles between industrial samples and Halowax 1014 was observed. It was indicated that PCNs in riverine sediments were mainly from release of industrial usage, with additional contributions from industrial thermal process at certain sites. In marine sediments, it was suggested that PCNs along the coast of Laizhou Bay were mainly controlled by riverine input. While in the central bay, PCN distributions were possibly impacted by combined multiple factors.     

Tissue distribution of Dechlorane Plus and its dechlorinated analogs in contaminated fish: high affinity to the brain for anti-DP

Information on tissue distribution of Dechlorane Plus (DP) and its dechlorinated analogs in wildlife is scarce. DP isomers and two dechlorinated compounds, anti-Cl₁₁-DP and anti-Cl₁₀-DP, were examined in the muscle, liver, and brain tissues of two bottom fish species collected from an electronic waste recycling site, South China. The median levels of syn-, anti-, and anti-Cl₁₁-DP isomers in the tissues ranged 0.18-39.1, 0.22-52.9, and 0.01-5.63 ng/g wet wt, respectively. Anti-Cl₁₀-DP was only detected in one muscle sample of mud carp (0.01 ng/g wet wt), although it was consistently detected in the sediments (0.42-0.83 ng/g dry wt). Preferential distribution in liver relative to muscle was observed for syn-DP and anti-Cl₁₁-DP. However, a high persistent retention in the brain compared to the liver was observed for anti-DP, suggesting that this isomer can across the blood-brain barrier of fish, and may cause adverse effects to the nervous system in the exposed biota.     

Biodegradation of nicotine by a novel Strain Shinella sp. HZN1 isolated from activated sludge

The nicotine-degrading bacterium HZN1 was isolated from activated sludge and identified as Shinella sp. based on its physiological characteristics and analysis of 16S rDNA gene. Strain HZN1 is capable of using nicotine as the sole carbon source in the mineral salts medium. The optimum temperature and pH for strain HZN1 growth and nicotine degradation were 30°C and 7.0, respectively. It could degrade approximately 100 % of 0.5 g L(-1) of nicotine within 9 h. Three intermediate metabolites were produced by the strain HZN1 and identified as cotinine, myosmine and nicotyrine using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. This is the first report of nicotine-degrading strain from the genus of Shinella. The results showed that strain HZN1 could be potentially employed in bioremediation of nicotine. Our findings would provide a new insight into the biodegradation of nicotine.