Influence of iron-bearing phyllosilicates on the dechlorination kinetics of 1,1,1-trichloroethane in Fe(II)/cement slurries

This study examines the effect of iron-bearing phyllosilicates on dechlorination rates of chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons (CAHs) in iron-based degradative solidification/stabilization (DS/S-Fe(II)). Laboratory batch experiments were conducted to evaluate dechlorination rates of 1,1,1-trichloroethane (1,1,1-TCA) in a mixture solution of Fe(II), cement and three different iron-bearing phyllosilicates (biotite, vermiculite, and montmorillonite). A first-order rate model was generally used to describe the dechlorination kinetics and the rate constants were dependent on soil mineral type (biotite, vermiculite, and montmorillonite), Fe(II) dose, and the mass ratio of cement to soil mineral. The pseudo-first-order rate constant for montmorillonite was lower than that for biotite and vermiculite by factors of 11-27 when the mass ratio of cement to phyllosilicates was fixed at one. The presence of biotite and vermiculite increase and the presence of montmorillonite decrease the degradation rate that would be observed in their absence. The effect of cement/mineral ratio on rate constants with three different soil minerals indicates that biotite was more reactive than the other two phyllosilicates. This may be due to high accessible natural Fe(II) content in biotite. Montmorillonite appears to inhibit dechlorination by either inactivating Fe(II) by ion exchange or by physically blocking active sites on cement hydration products.     

Interactions between chloride and sulfate or silica removals from wastewater using an advanced lime-aluminum softening process: equilibrium modeling.

Interactions among chloride, sulfate, and silica removals from recycled industrial wastewater using an ultra-high lime with aluminum process (UHLA) were studied. An equilibrium model that is able to accurately predict the chemical behavior and interactions between chloride and sulfate or silica with UHLA at various initial conditions and chemical reagents was developed. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis was conducted to identify the precipitated solids formed in the UHLA process. Model predictions indicated that simultaneous removal of sulfate and chloride can be best described by the formation of a solid solution containing calcium chloroaluminate, calcium sulfoaluminate (ettringite), calcium monosulfate, tricalcium hydroxyaluminate, and tetracalcium hydroxyaluminate. However, simultaneous removal of silica and chloride can be best described by precipitation of calcium silicate and calcium aluminosilicate in addition to a solid solution containing calcium chloroaluminate, tricalcium hydroxyaluminate, and tetracalcium hydroxyaluminate. The XRD results indicated the presence of the same solids assumed by the equilibrium model.     

Further investigation of the heavy metal content of the teeth of the bank vole as an exposure indicator of environmental pollution in Poland

The content of heavy metals in mineralised dental tissues is an indicator of the exposure of their mineral phase to heavy metals during the time of tooth development and dental tissue formation. Therefore, teeth have been used as bio-indicators which accurately reflect the environmental or dietary exposure of animals and humans to heavy metals. This study follows from the earlier work in which it was demonstrated that the teeth from bank voles inhabiting various environmentally polluted and non-polluted forests in Southern Poland were reliable indicators of exposure to heavy metals. Using analytical techniques employed in the earlier study heavy metal concentrations were obtained in the teeth of bank voles trapped in 1998-2000 to determine if efforts to clean up the environment could be detected in changes in heavy metal concentrations in the teeth. The results show that these efforts are reflected in lower concentrations of heavy metals in the teeth but that cross border contamination remains a problem.     

Carbon isotope fractionation during reductive dechlorination of TCE in batch experiments with iron samples from reactive barriers

Reductive dechlorination of trichloroethene (TCE) by zero-valent iron produces a systematic enrichment of 13C in the remaining substrate that can be described using a Rayleigh model. In this study, fractionation factors for TCE dechlorination with iron samples from two permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) were established in batch experiments. Samples included original unused iron as well as material from a barrier in Belfast after almost 4 years of operation. Despite the variety of samples, carbon isotope fractionations of TCE were remarkably similar and seemed to be independent of iron origin, reaction rate, and formation of precipitates on the iron surfaces. The average enrichment factor for all experiments was -10.1 per thousand (+/- 0.4 per thousand). These results indicate that the enrichment factor provides a powerful tool to monitor the reaction progress, and thus the performance, of an iron-reactive barrier over time. The strong fractionation observed may also serve as a tool to distinguish between insufficient residence time in the wall and a possible bypassing of the wall by the plume, which should result in an unchanged isotopic signature of the TCE. Although further work is necessary to apply this stable isotope method in the field, it has potential to serve as a unique monitoring tool for PRBs based on zero-valent iron.     

In Memoriam

ABSTRACT

A feasibility study of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) removal from contaminated soils using microwave-generated steam (MGS) was performed. Initial experimental results show that MGS effectively removed PCBs from contaminated soil with an overall removal efficiency of greater than 98% at a steam-to-soil mass ratio of 3:1. Removal efficiency was found to be dependent upon the amount of steam employed, expressed as a mass ratio of steam applied to soil mass. Evaporation was identified as a major mechanism in removing PCBs from the soil. Rapid expansion and evaporation of pore water by microwave dielectric heating accelerated evaporation rates of PCB molecules. Increased solubility of PCBs into the heated aqueous phase is also hypothesized. Together these effects increase mass-transfer rates, thus enhancing removal of PCBs from the soil.     

Computer and Electronics Product Stewardship: Policy Options

Several policy options offer a potential pathway toward extended product responsibility for obsolete computers and electronic waste. © 2001 by Cate Gable, Axioun Books. Used with permission.     

Fundamental trade-offs generating the worldwide leaf economics spectrum

Recent work has identified a worldwide "economic" spectrum of correlated leaf traits that affects global patterns of nutrient cycling and primary productivity and that is used to calibrate vegetation-climate models. The correlation patterns are displayed by species from the arctic to the tropics and are largely independent of growth form or phylogeny. This generality suggests that unidentified fundamental constraints control the return of photosynthates on investments of nutrients and dry mass in leaves. Using novel graph theoretic methods and structural equation modeling, we show that the relationships among these variables can best be explained by assuming (1) a necessary trade-off between allocation to structural tissues versus liquid phase processes and (2) an evolutionary tradeoff between leaf photosynthetic rates, construction costs, and leaf longevity.     

Potential Environmental Benefits from Increased Use of Bioenergy in China

Because of its large population and rapidly growing economy, China is confronting a serious energy shortage and daunting environmental problems. An increased use of fuels derived from biomass could relieve some demand for nonrenewable sources of energy while providing environmental benefits in terms of cleaner air and reduced emissions of greenhouse gases. In 2003, China generated about 25.9 × 10⁸ metric tons of industrial waste (liquid + solid), 14.7 × 10⁸ metric tons/year (t/y) of manure (livestock + human), 7.1 × 10⁸ t/y of crop residues and food-processing byproducts, 2 × 10⁸ t/y of fuelwood and wood manufacturing residues, and 1.5 × 10⁸ t/y of municipal waste. Biofuels derived from these materials could potentially displace the use of about 4.12 × 10⁸ t/y of coal and 3.75 × 10⁶ t/y of petroleum. An increased bioenergy use of this magnitude would help to reduce the emissions of key air pollutants: SO₂ by 11.6 × 10⁶ t/y, NO_X by 1.48 × 10⁶ t/y, CO₂ by 1.07 × 10⁹ t/y, and CH₄ by 50 × 10⁶ t/y. The reduced SO₂ emissions would be equivalent to 54% of the national emissions in 2003, whereas those for CO₂ are 30%. It is important to recognize, however, that large increases in the use of biomass fuels also could result in socioeconomic and environmental problems such as less production of food and damage caused to natural habitats.