Long-term declining in carbon monoxide(CO) at a rural site of Beijing during 2006–2018 implies the improved combustion efficiency and effective emission control

Carbon monoxide(CO) is primarily the result of incomplete combustion, which has important impacts on the atmospheric chemical cycle and climate. Improved quantitative characterization of long-term CO trends is important for both atmospheric modeling and the design and implementation of policies to efficiently control multiple pollutants. Due to the limitations of high time-resolution and high-quality long-term observational data, studies on long-term trends in the CO concentration in China are q...     

Enhancement of solar-driven photocatalytic activity of oxygen vacancy-rich Bi/BiOBr/Sr2LaF7:Yb3+,Er3+ composites through synergetic strategy of upconversion function and plasmonic effect

For better use of solar energy,the development of efficient broadband photocatalyst has attracted extraordinary attention.In this study,a ternary composite consisting of Sr₂ LaF₇:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺ upconversion(UC) nanocrystals and Bi nanoparticles loaded BiOBr nanosheets with oxygen vacancies(OVs,SLFBB) was designed and synthesized by multistep solvent-thermal method.Mechanisms of in-situ formation of Bi nanoparticles and OVs in BiOBr/Sr₂ LaF_7<...     

Historical trends in the anthropogenic heavy metal levels in the tidal flat sediments of Lianyungang, China

The sedimentation of metals can preserve the historical record of contaminant input from local and regional sources and provide information on the historical changes in regional water and sediment quality. We report the ²¹⁰Pb activities and the heavy metal (Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn) depth profiles from sediment cores retrieved in 2010. The mean sedimentation rates of 0.85-1.5 cm/yr are determined by ²¹⁰Pb dating. The sediments in the tidal flat have recorded heavy metal deposition and thus allow the establishment of a connection between the temporal evolution of the heavy metal pollution and the historical changes in the economic development of Lianyungang. The enrichment factors (EF) are calculated to estimate the level of contamination stored in these sediments. The results show that in the studied sites, Cr and Cu display low EF values and are mainly from lithogenic origin. For the other studied trace metals, a great variability in the sedimentary record is observed. Significant anthropogenic enrichment over the last 50 years is revealed at the tidal flat that receives fluvial inputs. Zinc is the element with the highest EF values, followed by the order of Pb > Cd > Mn > Cu and Cr. The temporal variations of the heavy metals peak during the late 1980s to the early 2000s and show a decreasing trend afterward. The pollution intensity of the tidal flat is determined by using EF and the geo-accumulation index (I_geo), which show that, based on the I_geo scale, the tidal flat of Haizhou Bay is unpolluted to moderately polluted.     

Influence of Chironomid Larvae on oxygen and nitrogen fluxes across the sediment-water interface (Lake Taihu, China)

The microscale distribution of oxygen,the nitrogen flux and the denitrification rates in sediment inhabited by chironomid larvae(Tanypus chinensis) were measured in eutrophic Lake Taihu,China.The presence of the chironomids in the sediment increased the oxygen diffusional flux from 10.4 ± 1.4 to 12.7 ± 2.5 mmol O 2 /(m 2 ·day).The burrows of the larvae represented "hot spots" and strongly influenced the nitrogen cycles and diagenetic activity in the sediment.The results indicate that the bioturbation effects of Tanypus chinensis chironomid larvae increased the capacity of the sediment as a sink for nitrate and a source for ammonium.Nitrate influx and ammonium outflux were increased 8.8 and 1.7 times,respectively.Under bioturbation,the amount of nitrate consumed was greater than the amount of ammonium released.The total denitrification rate was also enhanced from 0.76 ± 0.34 to 5.50 ± 1.30 mmol N/(m 2 ·day).The net effect was that the bioturbated sediments acted as a net sink for inorganic nitrogen under direct and indirect bioturbation effects compared to the control.     

Speciation of organic phosphorus in a sediment profile of Lake Taihu I: Chemical forms and their transformation

Organic phosphorus(nonreactive P,NRP)is a major component of P in sediments,but information about its chemical forms and dynamic transformation is limited.The chemical forms and dynamic behaviors of NRP in a sediment profile from Lake Taihu,a freshwater and eutrophic lake in China,were investigated.Five forms of NRP in the sediments were extracted based on a chemical fractionation technique,including easily labile NRP(NaHCO3-NRP),reactive metal oxide-bound NRP(HCl-NRP),humic acid-associated NRP(NaOH-NRPHA),fulvic acid-associated NRP(NaOH-NRPFA)and residual NRP(Res-TP).There were notable transformations with increasing sediment depth from the labile NaHCO3-NRP and NaOH-NRP pools to the recalcitrant HCl-NRP and Res-TP pools,which caused the NRP to become increasingly recalcitrant as the early diagenetic processes proceeded.Further analyses showed that the relative changes in contents of organic matter and reactive Fe oxides in the sediment profile triggered a competition for binding NRP fractions and led to the transformation of NRP.The results highlighted the importance of abiotic processes in regulating the diagenesis of organic P and its stability in sediments.     

Response of anaerobes to methyl fluoride, 2-bromoethanesulfonate and hydrogen during acetate degradation

To use the selective inhibition method for quantitative analysis of acetate metabolism in methanogenic systems,the responses of microbial communities and metabolic activities,which were involved in anaerobic degradation of acetate,to the addition of methyl fluoride(CH3F),2-bromoethanesulfonate(BES)and hydrogen were investigated in a thermophilic batch experiment.Both the methanogenic inhibitors,i.e.,CH3F and BES,showed their effectiveness on inhibiting CH4 production,whereas acetate metabolism other than acetoclastic methanogenesis was stimulated by BES,as reflected by the fluctuated acetate concentration.Syntrophic acetate oxidation was thermodynamically blocked by hydrogen(H2),while H2-utilizing reactions as hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis and homoacetogenesis were correspondingly promoted.Results of PCR-DGGE fingerprinting showed that,CH3F did not influence the microbial populations significantly.However,the BES and hydrogen notably altered the bacterial community structures and increased the diversity.BES gradually changed the methanogenic community structure by affecting the existence of different populations to different levels,whilst H2 greatly changed the abundance of different methanogenic populations,and induced growth of new species.     

Response of PM2.5-bound elemental species to emission variations and associated health risk assessment during the COVID-19 pandemic in a coastal megacity

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is disrupting the world from many aspects. In this study, the impact of emission variations on PM_2.5-bound elemental species and health risks associated to inhalation exposure has been analyzed based on real-time measurements at a remote coastal site in Shanghai during the pandemic. Most trace elemental species decreased significantly and displayed almost no diel peaks during the lockdown. After the lockdown, they rebounded rapidly, of which V and Ni even exceeded the levels before the lockdown, suggesting the recovery of both inland and shipping activities. Five sources were identified based on receptor modeling. Coal combustion accounted for more than 70% of the measured elemental concentrations before and during the lockdown. Shipping emissions, fugitive/mineral dust, and waste incineration all showed elevated contributions after the lockdown. The total non-carcinogenic risk (HQ) for the target elements exceeded the risk threshold for both children and adults with chloride as the predominant species contributing to HQ. Whereas, the total carcinogenic risk (TR) for adults was above the acceptable level and much higher than that for children. Waste incineration was the largest contributor to HQ, while manufacture processing and coal combustion were the main sources of TR. Lockdown control measures were beneficial for lowering the carcinogenic risk while unexpectedly increased the non-carcinogenic risk. From the perspective of health effects, priorities of control measures should be given to waste incineration, manufacture processing, and coal combustion. A balanced way should be reached between both lowering the levels of air pollutants and their health risks.     

Fate of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes in a full-scale restaurant food waste treatment plant: Implications of the roles beyond heavy metals and mobile genetic elements

Is our food safe and free of the crisis of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance(AR)?And will the derived food waste(FW) impose AR risk to the environment after biological treatment? This study used restaurant FW leachates flowing through a 200 tons-waste/day biological treatment plant as a window to investigate the fate of antibiotics and antibiotic-resistance genes(ARGs) during the acceptance and treatment of FW. Sulfonamides(sulfamethazine, sulfamethoxazole) and quinolones(ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, ofloxacin) were detected during FW treatment, while tetracyclines, macrolides and chloramphenicols were not observable. ARGs encoding resistance to sulfonamides, tetracyclines and macrolides emerged in FW leachates.Material flow analysis illustrated that the total amount of antibiotics(except sulfamethazine) and ARGs were constant during FW treatment processes. Both the concentration and total amount of most antibiotics and ARGs fluctuated during treatment, physical processes(screening, centrifugation, solid–liquid and oil–water separation) did not decrease antibiotic or ARGs concentrations or total levels permanently; the affiliated wastewater treatment plant appeared to remove sulfonamides and most ARGs concentrations and total amount. Heavy metals Ni,Co and Cu were important for disseminating antibiotics concentrations and MGEs for distributing ARGs concentrations. Humic substances(fulvic acids, hydrophilic fractions), C-associated and N-associated contents were essential for the distribution of the total amounts of antibiotics and ARGs. Overall, this study implied that human food might not be free of antibiotics and ARGs, and FW was an underestimated AR pool with various determinants. Nonetheless, derived hazards of FW could be mitigated through biological treatment with well-planned daily operations.     

Spatiotemporal Variation of Karst Ecosystem Service Values and Its Correlation with Environmental Factors in Northwest Guangxi,China

In this investigation we analyzed the spatiotemporal variation of ecosystem service values (ESVs) and its correlation with numerous environmental factors (EFs) for the karst region of Northwest Guangxi, China, from 1985 to 2005 using remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS) and statistical techniques. The results indicate that historically ESVs for this karst region decreased from 1985 (109.652 billion Yuan) to 1990 (88.789 billion Yuan) and then increased at the turn of the twenty-first century. However, the ESVs in both 2000 (103.384 billion Yuan) and 2005 (106.257 billion Yuan) never achieved the level recorded in 1985. The total of nutrient cycling, organic production and gas regulation combined were 72.69, 64.57, 70.18 and 72.10% of ESVs in 1985, 1990, 2000 and 2005, respectively. In contrast, the ESVs of water conservation, soil reservation, recreation and culture were determined to be relatively low contributing only 17.44, 23.82, 19.26 and 24.76% of total ESVs, respectively, during these four years. With regards to the spatial distribution of ESVs, larger values were recorded in the west and smaller ones recorded in the east. The most significant factors that were deemed to influence ESVs are annual rainfall, per capita cropland, slope and vegetation coverage. Annual rainfall and slope exert a negative force, whereas per capita cropland and vegetation coverage exert a positive force on ESVs. The results of the study would suggest that ecosystem conditions of this important karst region have been improved as the result of the implementation of rocky desertification control policies.     

Seasonal variation effects on the formation of trihalomethane during chlorination of water from Yangtze River and associated cancer risk assessment

For the system of water samples collected from Yangtze River,the effects of seasonal variation and Fe(III) concentrations on the formation and distribution of trihalomethanes (THMs) during chlorination have been investigated.The corresponding lifetime cancer risk of the formed THMs to human beings was estimated using the parameters and procedure issued by the US EPA.The results indicated that the average concentration of THMs (100.81 μg/L) in spring was significantly higher than that in other seasons,which ...