Magnesium-rich minerals in sediment and suspended particulates of South Florida water bodies: implications for turbidity

Fine sediments in shallow water bodies such as Lake Okeechobee are prone to resuspension. Predominantly inorganic "mud" sediment that covers approximately 670 km2 of the lake has been recognized as a persistent source of turbidity. The objective of this study was to determine if mineral components of sediments in Lake Okeechobee and water conveyances of the northern Everglades also occur as suspended sediment and hence constitute a potential abiotic contributor to turbidity. Sediment samples were collected from nine stations within the lake and eight locations north of Water Conservation Area 2A in the Everglades. Water samples were also collected at selected locations. The silt and clay mineralogy of sediment and suspended particles was determined using X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry, scanning-electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray elemental microanalysis, and high-resolution transmission-electron microscopy. Clay fractions of the lake sediment contained the Mg silicate minerals sepiolite and palygorskite, along with smectite, dolomite, calcite, and kaolinite. Sediment silt fractions were dominated by carbonates and/or quartz, with smaller amounts of Ca phosphates and sepiolite. Mineralogy of the mud sediment was similar to that reported for geologic phosphate deposits. This suggests that the mud sediment might have accumulated by stream transport of minerals from these deposits. Suspended solids and mud-sediment mineralogy were similar, except that smectite was more abundant in suspended solids. Everglade samples also contained Mg-rich minerals. The small size, low density, and fibrous or platy nature of the prevalent mud sediment minerals make them an abiotic, hydrodynamically sensitive source of persistent turbidity in a shallow lake. Mitigation efforts focused exclusively on P-induced biogeochemical processes do not address the origin or effects of these minerals. Ecological management issues such as turbidity control, P retention, geologic P input, and suitability of dredging are related to mud-sediment properties and provenance.     

Indoor and outdoor BTX levels in Barcelona City metropolitan area and Catalan rural areas

Five aromatic hydrocarbons (benzene, toluene, and three isomeric xylenes) were monitored in indoor and outdoor air of 7 public buildings and 54 private homes, located in Barcelona City metropolitan area and in several rural areas of Catalonia. The sampling was carried out over four periods: spring-summer and winter of 2000, and summer and winter of 2001. Passive ORSA 5 Dra¨ger samplers were used for benzene, toluene, and xylenes (BTX) adsorption. BTX were extracted with carbon disulphide and analysed using ...     

硬木地板材料和棉花秆的变氧浓度热解燃烧表观动力学的实验研究

本文采用TG-FTIR分析方法深入研究了火场中硬木地板材料和棉花秆变氧浓度燃烧过程,深入分析了氧浓度对纤维物质燃烧表观热失重影响;通过大量的动力学参数计算得出了可燃物的表观活化能与实际氧浓度成线性关系;分析了氧浓度对木材燃烧气体产物的影响,并探索了氧浓度影响热解和燃烧的机理。     

Cost comparison between private and public collection of residual household waste: Multiple case studies in the Flemish region of Belgium

The rising pressure in terms of cost efficiency on public services pushes governments to transfer part of those services to the private sector. A trend towards more privatizing can be noticed in the collection of municipal household waste. This paper reports the findings of a research project aiming to compare the cost between the service of private and public collection of residual household waste. Multiple case studies of municipalities about the Flemish region of Belgium were conducted. Data concerning the year 2009 were gathered through in-depth interviews in 2010. In total 12 municipalities were investigated, divided into three mutual comparable pairs with a weekly and three mutual comparable pairs with a fortnightly residual waste collection. The results give a rough indication that in all cases the cost of private service is lower than public service in the collection of household waste. Albeit that there is an interest in establishing whether there are differences in the costs and service levels between public and private waste collection services, there are clear difficulties in establishing comparisons that can be made without having to rely on a large number of assumptions and corrections. However, given the cost difference, it remains the responsibility of the municipalities to decide upon the service they offer their citizens, regardless the cost efficiency: public or private.     

Fate and transport of the β-adrenergic agonist ractopamine hydrochloride in soil–water systems

The feed additive ractopamine hydrochloride was fortified at four concentrations into batch vials containing soils that differed in both biological activity and organic matter(OM).Sampling of the liquid layer for 14 days demonstrated that ractopamine rapidly dissipated from the liquid layer. Less than 20% of the fortified dose remained in the liquid layer after 4 hr,and recoveries of dosed ractopamine ranged from 8 to 18% in the liquid layer at 336 hr. Sorption to soil was the major fate for ractopamine in soil:water systems, i.e., 42%–51% of the dose at14 days. The major portion of the sorbed fraction was comprised of non-extractables; a smaller fraction of the sorbed dose was extracted into water and acetone, portions which would be potentially mobile in the environment. Partitioning coefficients for all soils suggested strong sorption of ractopamine to soil which is governed by hydrophobic interactions and cation exchange complexes within the soil OM. Ractopamine degradation was observed, but to mostly non-polar compounds which had a higher potential than ractopamine to sorb to soil. The formation of volatiles was also suggested. Therefore, despite rapid and extensive soil sorption,these studies indicated a portion of ractopamine, present in manures used to fertilize soils,may be mobile in the environment via water-borne events.     

Assessment of global industrial-age anthropogenic arsenic contamination

Arsenic, a carcinogenic trace element, threatens not only the health of millions of humans and other living organisms, but also global sustainability. We present here, for the first time, the global industrial-age cumulative anthropogenic arsenic production and its potential accumulation and risks in the environment. In 2000, the world cumulative industrial-age anthropogenic arsenic production was 4.53 million tonnes. The world-wide coal and petroleum industries accounted for 46% of global annual gross arsenic production, and their overall contribution to industrial-age gross arsenic production was 27% in 2000. Global industrial-age anthropogenic As sources (as As cumulative production) follow the order: As mining production >As generated from coal >As generated from petroleum. The potential industrial-age anthropogenic arsenic input in world arable surface in 2000 was 2.18 mg arsenic kg^–1, which is 1.2 times that in the lithosphere. The development of substitute materials for arsenic applications in the agricultural and forestry industries and controls of arsenic emissions from the coal industry may be possible strategies to significantly decrease arsenic pollution sources and dissipation rates into the environment.     

Dancing to different tunes: heterospecific deciphering of the honeybee waggle dance

Although the structure of the dance language is very similar among species of honeybees, communication of the distance component of the message varies both intraspecifically and interspecifically. However, it is not known whether different honeybee species would attend interspecific waggle dances and, if so, whether they can decipher such dances. Using mixed-species colonies of Apis cerana and Apis mellifera, we show that, despite internal differences in the structure of the waggle dances of foragers, both species attend, and act on the information encoded in each other’s waggle dances but with limited accuracy. These observations indicate that direction and distance communication pre-date speciation in honeybees.     

Dimensional analysis and scaling in mechanical mixing for fabrication of metal matrix nanocomposites

For a successful enhancement of mechanical properties of metal matrix nanocomposites, a homogeneous nanoparticle dispersion and distribution in the solidified metal is required. Mechanical mixing can be used for initial break-up of agglomerates, and its study can be simplified with dimensional analysis. Using this technique, mixing time and vortex height were assessed while varying fluid properties, impeller angle, and angular speed. Three relevant dimensionless numbers were recognized: the Reynolds (Re), Froude and Galilei (Ga) numbers. Based on blade and impeller shaft angles, a modified Froude number (Fr*) was defined. These parameters were calculated experimentally, varying angular speed from 200 to 1000 rpm for three different impeller angles: 0°, 15° and 30°. This procedure was performed with three fluids: water, and two aqueous glycerin solutions (25% and 50% by volume). Digital images were taken and processed to measure vortex height. Mixing time was measured for water at 0° impeller angle, angular speed ranging from 200 to 1200 rpm. Results showed an optimal dimensionless mixing time with respect to Re. A linear relationship was found between dimensionless vortex height and Fr*. The first had a second order polynomial relationship with the product ReFr*, regardless of impeller angle. This relationship, together with the Ga, specific for each fluid, allows scaling the results to other fluids such as molten pure aluminum. This study allows experimenting in simpler systems that involve transparent fluids, room temperature and low cost, to then elaborate a prediction of vortex height in fluids where measurements are difficult and costly, such as molten metals.     

海水入侵指标对比分析与评价—以珠江口地下水含水层为例

合理评价海水入侵对于地下水含水层管理和居民生活健康有着重要的意义。当前海水入侵评价应用较广泛的为包含单一因子和基于统计分析的多种水化学方法。本文综合阐述了海水入侵评价中所用的水化学指标、原理与方法,包括在国内评价体系中少见的一些方法,并以珠江口地下水含水层为例,对比了各种指标的有效性,评价了各类方法的优缺点以及在实际应用中可能产生的问题。结果显示,以Cl-和TDS作为简单直接的单因子可以快速评价海水入侵,尤其对于大范围的海水入侵评价十分有效。而和Ca2+,HCO₃-,SO₄2-等变化有关的指标具有地域性,在研究区对海水入侵的指示并不是十分敏感。在复杂评价因子中,与离子交换有关SAR,BEX以及GQI_SWI与Cl-相关性较高,可以较好的指示海水入侵及水岩相互作用。经过分析,受到地下含水层和地表水道双重介质入侵的影响,研究区海水入侵范围在过去几个年代有向北推进的趋势。本研究对于高速经济发展下的沿海地下水含水层管理和评价有重要的指导意义。     

Designing a policy package for the promotion of servicising: A case study of vineyard crop protection in Galicia (Spain)

The servicising approach in vineyard protection is considered a valid alternative to achieve decoupling between the economic and environmental performance of viticulture. In this paper, a policy package is designed to promote the uptake of a servicised model of vineyard protection in an area of smallholding viticulture. In doing so, a specific methodology based on a step by step protocol has been followed that aims to come up with a package that is effective, implementable and socially as well as politically acceptable. The paper concludes on the importance of combining several policy instruments in a policy package to realise the political objective. The proposed viable policy package includes incentives that support the companies’ shift towards offering crop protection solutions, further development of IPM solutions and instruments that encourage farmers to reduce the use of pesticides and collectively hire crop protection services.