Nontarget screening using passive air and water sampling with a level Ⅱ fugacity model to identify unregulated environmental contaminants

It is thought that there are many unregulated anthropogenic chemicals in the environment.For risk assessment of chemicals, it is essential to estimate the predicted environmental concentrations. As an effort of identifying residual organic contaminants in air and water in Korea, nontarget screening using two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry(GC × GC-TOFMS) was conducted at 10 sites using polyurethane foam passive air sampler and at 6 sites using polydimethyl siloxane(PDMS) passive water sampler in three different seasons in 2014. More than 600 chemical peaks were identified satisfying the identification criteria in air and water samples, respectively, providing a list for further investigation. Chemical substances with reported national emission rates in2014(n = 149) were also screened for potential existence in the environment using a level Ⅱ fugacity model. Most of chemical substances classified as not detectable were not identified with detection frequency greater than 20% by nontarget screening, indicating that a simple equilibrium model has a strong potential to be used to exclude chemicals that are not likely to remain in the environment after emissions from targeted monitoring.     

Phytoremediation potential of indigenous plants from Thai Nguyen province, Vietnam

This study was focused on determining Arsenic (As), Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd) and Zinc (Zn) in 33 indigenous plants and 12 soil in-situ plant samples in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam. The results showed that the soils of surveyed mining areas contained 181.2- 6754.3 mg kg(-1) As, 235.5-4337.2 mg kg(-1) Pb, 0.8- 419 mg kg(-1) Cd and 361.8-17565.1 mg kg(-1) Zn depending on the characteristics of each mining site. These values are much higher than those typical for normal soil. The heavy metal uptake into shoots and roots of 33 indigenous plant species was also determined. Two species of the plants investigated, Pteris vittata L. and Pityrogramma calomelanos L. were As hyperaccumulators, containing more than 0.1% heavy metals in their shoots. Eleusine indica L., Cynodon dactylon L., Cyperus rotundus L. and Equisetum ramosissimum (Vauch) accumulate very high Pb (0.15-0.65%) and Zn (0.22-1.56%) concentration in their roots. Additional experiments to clarify the potential of six these plants as good candidates for phytoremediation of heavy metal pollution soil are being carried out in our laboratory.     

Effects of silicon on copper toxicity in Erica andevalensis Cabezudo and Rivera: a potential species to remediate contaminated soils

The influence of silicon on responses to copper excess was studied in plants of Erica andevalensis. Plantlets were grown in nutrient solutions containing two Cu (1 and 500 μM) and three Si concentrations (0, 0.5 and 1 mM). Plant growth, water content, and mineral nutrient concentration were determined. Plants grown with 500 μM Cu showed differences in growth and shoot water content depending on Si supply. The addition of 1 mM Si in high-Cu nutrient solutions significantly improved plant growth and reduced water loss preventing plant death related to Cu-excess. Silicon supply reduced significantly leaf Cu concentration (up to 32%) and increased Cu concentration in roots. Phytoliths isolated from leaves were analysed by scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Such phytoliths consisted in silica deposits associated with Cu and other elements (K, Ca, P). Improvement by Si of Cu tolerance in E. andevalensis was clearly related to the inhibition of Cu upward transport. The leaf phytoliths formed in Si-treated plants might have some contribution to tolerance by Cu immobilisation and inactivation.     

Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) B.S.G. and Pleurozium schreberi (Brid.) Mitt. as trace element bioindicators: Statistical comparison of bioaccumulative properties

The principal objective of this study was to compare bioaccumulative properties of two terrestrial moss species Hylocomium splendens and Pleurozium schreberi from the Kielce area (south-central Poland), using various statistical techniques. Forty-six moss samples from 23 sampling sites located within the city limits were analyzed for 33 trace elements. The results indicated that 17 elements (Ba, Ce, Co, Cu, Eu, Fe, Gd, Hg, La, Mo, Nd, Ni, Pb, Pr, Sm, V, Y) dominated in H. splendens, whereas only three elements (Mn, Sr, Zn) occurred in excessive amounts in P. schreberi. No differences in the distribution pattern of Dy, Er, Ho, Sn, Tb, Th and Yb were observed. The element concentration ratio (PI/Hy) varied from 0.50 to 1.19. For 14 elements (Ce, Co, Cu, Fe, Gd, Hg, La, Mo, Nd, Ni, Pb, Sm, Th, V), PI/Hy < 1; for 4 elements (Cd, Mn, Sr, Zn), PI/Hy > 1; for 7 elements (Ba, Dy, Er, Eu, Pr, Y, Yb), PI/Hy = equalled 1. Czekanowski’s method showed similarities in rare earth element concentrations for both moss species. The cluster analysis exhibited three significant clusters at D link /D max × 100 < 50 for both moss species. Strong positive Spearman correlations between both moss species were recorded for the following pairs:Ba-Ba, Co-Co, Er-Er, Eu-Eu, Gd Gd, Mn-Mn, Ni-Ni, Pb-Pb, Pr-Pr, Sm-Sm, Th-Th, Y-Y, and Yb-Yb. Nonparametric tests (Sign test, Wilcoxon tests) showed statistically significant differences only for Cd, Ce, Co, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb and Sr. The scanning electron microscope study of H. splendens and P. schreberi revealed a different morphology of these species with no injuries.     

Advanced fabrication and multi-properties of aluminium hydroxide aerogels from aluminium wastes

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Over 60 million tons of aluminium are produced annually, requiring sustainable and eco-friendly recycling methods of aluminium waste. In this work,...     

Highly concentrated phenolic wastewater treatment by the photo-Fenton reaction, mechanism study by FTIR-ATR

Phenol degradation by Photo-Fenton reaction has been studied in highly concentrated wastewaters and most intermediate species have been identified by Fourier Transform IR-Spectroscopy with ATR device. During the photodegradation of highly concentrated phenol solutions, the formation of dissolved and precipitate tannin has been observed. The possibility of a Fe3+-Pyrogallol complex formation, previous to the tannin formation, has been proposed too. The complex formation involving Fe3+ ions could be related to the observed Photo-Fenton activity decrease. Tannin formation inhibits the complete mineralization of phenol because *OH radicals attack will produce further condensation steps and the polymer size increase. This fact limits the applicability of the process for highly concentrated phenolic wastes mineralization. However, the tannin precipitation allows its separation from the solution by conventional filtration, and reduction of the corresponding dissolved organic carbon. These observations have been proved from the identification of primary degradation products, catechol and hydroquinone. Catechol is considered to be the first step for the formation of tannins. Degradation process for phenol, catechol and hydroquinone have been monitored by total organic carbon (TOC) measurements along the reaction time span. From these results, a global mechanism for the Photo-Fenton degradation of phenol is proposed.     

Electrocoagulation of some reactive dyes: a statistical investigation of some electrochemical variables

In this study, the decolorization of strong colored solutions containing the reactive textile dyes by electrocoagulation was investigated. The experiments were statistically designed and carried out according to a 2(4) full factorial design with two replicate and four center points. This design was extended with eight additional axial points. Then, the non-linear regression was applied on the data by using MINITAB software. The variables chosen for this work are mixing rate, cell voltage, electrolysis time and current density. Results showed that the effective variables on decolorization process are cell voltage, electrolysis time and current density. In addition, to determine the effect of dye and electrode type on decolorization, the additional experiments were carried out. It was determined the dye and electrode type are important on the decolorization process.     

Selective uptake of major and trace elements in Erica andevalensis, an endemic species to extreme habitats in the Iberian Pyrite Belt

To assess the ecophysiological traits and the phytoremediation potential of the endemic heather Erica andevalensis,we determined the concentrations of major and trace elements in different plant parts and in rizosphere soils from Riotinto mining district (Huelva,Spain).The results showed that E.andevalensis may grow on substrates with very high As,Cu,Fe and Pb concentrations (up to 4114,1050,71900 and 15614 μg/g dry weight,respectively),very low availability of macro-and micronutrients and with pH values ra...     

Bibliometric analysis of European publications between 2001 and 2016 on concentrations of selected elements in mushrooms

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This article presents a bibliometric study of 200 European publications released between 2001 and 2016, about the contamination of mushrooms by...     

Odor dispersion modeling with CALPUFF: Case study of a waste and residue treatment incineration and utilization plant in Kocaeli,Turkey

This study addresses the odor problem at a waste and residue treatment incineration and utilization plant located within the borders the Alikahya district of the Kocaeli province in Turkey. In the first stage of the study, odor measurements were made at designated sampling points, while in the second stage, odor concentrations were determined at the receptor points through dispersion modelling using a USEPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) certified long-range (>50 km) CALPUFF lagrangian puff model. In the final stage, an analysis of the predicted and observed values was carried out using such statistical methods as geometric mean bias (MG), geometric variance (VG) and fractions of predictions within a factor of two observations (FAC2).

During the modelling study, the highest one-hour concentration level was found to be 1868.10 OU (Odor Units), and the 24-hour concentration level was found to be 1316 OU, representing a decrease of approximately 30 percent. According to the measurement made, the maximum concentration value was 2455 OU. Odor measurements were carried out at 13 points within the area in order to assess the prediction results. When the results were assessed using the MG, VG and FAC2 statistical methods, it was observed that an acceptable model performance was not achieved for the whole sampling point. When the reason for this was investigated, it was concluded that the observed values were lower than the predicted values due to the fact on the measurement days, the odor was dispersed by wind. It was further concluded that the observed values were higher than the predicted values as a result of odors emitted by other plants in the area. When the measurements in residential areas were examined to identify the effect of the odors, it was determined that although the primary density of settlement is to the southwest of the plant, it was not this area that was affected most, but rather the area to the northeast, where there is a lower settlement density.