Understand the local and regional contributions on air pollution from the view of human health impacts

• PM_2.5-related deaths were estimated to be 227 thousand in BTH & surrounding regions. • Local emissions contribute more to PM_2.5-related deaths than PM_2.5 concentration. • Local controls are underestimated if only considering its impacts on concentrations. • Rural residents suffer larger impacts of regional transport than urban residents. • Reducing regional transport benefits in mitigating environmental inequality. The source-receptor matrix of PM_2.5 concentration from local and regional sources in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) and surrounding provinces has been created in previous studies. However, because the spatial distribution of concentration does not necessarily match with that of the population, such concentration-based source-receptor matrix may not fully reflect the importance of pollutant control effectiveness in reducing the PM_2.5-related health impacts. To demonstrate that, we study the source-receptor matrix of the PM_2.5-related deaths instead, with inclusion of the spatial correlations between the concentrations and the population. The advanced source apportionment numerical model combined with the integrated exposure–response functions is used for BTH and surrounding regions in 2017. We observed that the relative contribution to PM_2.5-related deaths of local emissions was 0.75% to 20.77% larger than that of PM_2.5 concentrations. Such results address the importance of local emissions control for reducing health impacts of PM_2.5 particularly for local residents. Contribution of regional transport to PM_2.5-related deaths in rural area was 22% larger than that in urban area due to the spatial pattern of regional transport which was more related to the rural population. This resulted in an environmental inequality in the sense that people staying in rural area with access to less educational resources are subjected to higher impacts from regional transport as compared with their more resourceful and knowledgeable urban compatriots. An unexpected benefit from the multi-regional joint controls is suggested for its effectiveness in reducing the regional transport of PM_2.5 pollution thus mitigating the associated environmental inequality.     

Assessment of soil washing for heavy metal contaminated paddy soil using FeCl3 washing solutions

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - In this study, soil washing is applied for the remediation of heavy-metal (Pb, Cu and Zn) contaminated paddy soil located near an abandoned mine area. FeCl3...     

Sonication and grinding pre-treatments on <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gelidium amansii</Emphasis> seaweed for the extraction and characterization of Agarose

Various pretreatments methods including sonication and grinding were performed on red seaweed Gelidium amansii for the subsequent extraction of agarose. The agarose products are usually extracted from agar powder products from seaweeds. In this study, the agarose was extracted using a direct polyethylene glycol (PEG) method without the need to first process the agar from seaweed. The agar extract was frozen then thawed and mixed directly with PEG solution to precipitate the agarose. The quality of agarose obtained was evaluated through physico-chemical properties analysis which includes spectral technique (FTIR), melting and boiling point, gel strength and sulfate content. These properties were compared with a non-pretreated sample and it was found that the addition of pretreatment steps improved the quality of agarose but gave a slightly lower yield. The gel strength of pretreated samples was much higher and the sulfate content was lower compared to non-pretreated samples. The best pretreatment method was sonication which gave gel strength of 742 g cm^-2 and sulfate content of 0.63%. The extraction of agarose can be further improved with the use of different neutralizing agents. Pretreating the seaweed shows potential in improving the quality of agarose from seaweed and can be applied for future extraction of the agarose.

Open image in new window

     

植酸掺杂聚苯胺对水中Cr(Ⅵ)的去除研究

为实现对废水中Cr（Ⅵ）的高效去除,利用PA（植酸）掺杂PANI（聚苯胺）制备了一种新型三维多孔吸附剂PANI/PA,探究PA的掺杂浓度、pH、反应时间、反应温度、共存金属离子和无机阴离子对Cr（Ⅵ）去除率的影响.首先,采用SEM、FTIR、XPS等表征手段证实PA成功掺杂到PANI上形成三维多孔结构,并进一步利用吸附动力学、吸附等温线、吸附热力学模型分析PANI/PA对Cr（Ⅵ）的吸附特性.结果表明:①0.05 mol/L PA掺杂的吸附材料具有最优吸附效果.当pH为4.0时,吸附剂可以实现对Cr（Ⅵ）最有效的去除.②吸附动力学符合准二级动力学模型,表明化学吸附是控制反应速率的主要因素.Langmuir等温吸附模型对等温吸附过程实现较准确拟合,在318 K时达最大吸附容量（99.0 mg/g）,优于普通PANI吸附剂.③吸附机理主要是表面静电吸附、络合作用和还原作用.④在其他金属离子和无机阴离子共存下,PANI/PA对Cr（Ⅵ）具有较强的选择吸附性.研究显示,PANI/PA吸附材料成功制备并具有稳定结构,能够对水中Cr（Ⅵ）实现有效去除,并具有较强的选择吸附性,因此对废水中Cr（Ⅵ）的去除具有潜在的应用价值.      

燃煤电厂大气污染物“近零排放”技术研究及工程应用

在燃煤电厂实现大气污染物“近零排放”过程中,烟尘控制技术是关键,通过对除尘、脱硫、脱硝等先进环保技术的系统比较,提出了燃煤电厂大气污染物“近零排放”技术路线. 在地处长三角的国华舟山电厂4号机组采用高效低氮燃烧+SCR(选择性催化还原法)脱硝+旋转电极除尘+海水脱硫+湿式静电除尘的技术路线,ρ(烟尘)、ρ(SO₂)、ρ(NO_x)的实际排放值分别为2.46、2.76、19.80 mg/m3;在地处京津冀的国华三河电厂1号机组,采用高效低氮燃烧+SCR脱硝+低温省煤器+静电除尘(高效电源)+湿法脱硫+湿式静电除尘的技术路线,ρ(烟尘)、ρ(SO₂)、ρ(NO_x)的实际排放值分别为5、9、35 mg/m3. 实践表明,立足国情走煤炭清洁高效利用之路,燃煤电厂可以在低成本下实现大气污染物的“近零排放”. 通过对技术路线优化、低浓度污染物在线测量技术及“近零排放”中存在的一些问题进行分析和探讨,提出了燃煤电厂大气污染物控制技术的研究和发展方向. 估算结果表明,如果全国燃煤机组自2015年起采用“近零排放”技术,5 a内烟尘、SO₂、NO_x年均减排率分别可达19.0%、18.9%、18.5%.      

Electricity generation from cattle dung using microbial fuel cell technology during anaerobic acidogenesis and the development of microbial populations

A microbial fuel cell (MFC) was constructed to investigate the possible generation of electricity using cattle dung as a substrate. After 30 days of operation, stable electricity was generated, and the maximum volumetric power density was 0.220 W/m(3). The total chemical oxygen demand (TCOD) removal and coulombic efficiency (CE) of the MFC reached 73.9±1.8% and 2.79±0.6%, respectively, after 120 days of operation. Acetate was the main metabolite in the anolyte, and other volatile fatty acids (VFAs) (propionate and butyrate) were present in minor amounts. The PCR-DGGE analysis indicated that the following five groups of microbes were present: Proteobacteria, Bacteroides, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were the dominant phyla in the sample; specifically, 36.3% and 24.2% of the sequences obtained were Proteobacteria and Firmicutes, respectively. Clostridium sp., Pseudomonas luteola and Ochrobactrum pseudogrignonense were the most dominant groups during the electricity generation process. The diversity of archaea dramatically decreased after 20 days of operation. The detected archaea were hydrogenotrophic methanogens, and the Methanobacterium genus disappeared during the periods of stable electricity generation via acidogenesis.     

对氯酚的生物降解及其污染土壤的生物修复探索

从天津农芭厂混合土壤中分离到一株能够降解对氯酚的黄单胞菌Ｄ－１,在此基础上,研究了该菌株对对氯酚的降解特性和将Ｄ－１菌株加入模拟对氯污染土壤中的生物修复试验。     

林火预防与扑救投资的成本效益分析

针对某一林区,确定其林木管理目标,以及为达到此目标对林火监测与扑救系统的要求,从而确定森林防火的资金投入。分析了加大森林防火投入前后森林火灾损失与扑求费用的变化。     

Ozonation of aromatic monomer compounds in water: factors determining reaction outcomes

● p- CNB and IBP were selected, to explore factors determining ozonation outcomes. ● •OH contributed only 50 % to IBP removal, compared to the 90 % for p -CNB removal. ● IBP achieved fewer TOC removal and more by-product types and quantities. ● A longer ring-opening distance existed during the degradation of IBP. ● Multiple positions on both branches of IBP were attacked, consuming more oxidants. For aromatic monomer compounds (AMCs), ozonation outcomes were usually predicted by the substituents of the benzene ring based on the electron inductive effect. However, the predicted results were occasionally unreliable for complex substituents, and other factors caused concern. In this study, p-chloronitrobenzene (p-CNB) and ibuprofen (IBP) were selected for ozonation. According to the electron inductive theory, p-CNB should be less oxidizable, but the opposite was true. The higher rates of p-CNB were due to various sources of assistance. First, the hydroxyl radical (•OH) contributed 90 % to p-CNB removal at pH 7.0, while its contribution to IBP removal was 50 %. Other contributions came from molecular O₃ oxidation. Second, p-CNB achieved 40 % of the total organic carbon (TOC) removal and fewer by-product types and quantities, when compared to the results for IBP. Third, the oxidation of p-CNB started with hydroxyl substitution reactions on the benzene ring; then, the ring opened. However, IBP was initially oxidized mainly on the butane branched chain, with a chain-shortening process occurring before the ring opened. Finally, the degradation pathway of p-CNB was single and consumed fewer oxidants. However, both branches of IBP were attacked simultaneously, and three degradation pathways that relied on more oxidants were proposed. All of these factors were determinants of the rapid removal of p-CNB.     

Fine particulate speciation profile and emission factor of municipal solid waste incinerator established by dilution sampling method

In this study, fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) emitted from a municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) was collected using dilution sampling method. Chemical compositions of the collected PM_2.5 samples, including carbon content, metal elements, and water-soluble ions, were analyzed. Traditional in-stack hot sampling was simultaneously conducted to compare the influences of dilution on PM_2.5 emissions and the characteristics of the bonded chemical species. The results, established by a dilution sampling method, show that PM_2.5 and total particulate matter (TPM) emission factors were 61.6 ± 4.52 and 66.1 ± 5.27 g ton-waste^?1, respectively. The average ratio of PM_2.5/TPM is 0.93, indicating that more than 90% of PM emission from the MSWI was fine particulate. The major chemical species in PM_2.5 included organic carbon (OC), Cl^?, NH₄⁺, elemental carbon (EC) and Si, which account for 69.7% of PM_2.5 mass. OC was from the unburned carbon in the exhaust, which adsorbed onto the particulate during the cooling process. High Cl^? emission is primarily attributable to wastes containing plastic bags made of polyvinyl chloride, salt in kitchen refuse and waste biomass, and so on. Minor species that account for 0.01–1% of PM_2.5 mass included SO₄^2-, K⁺, Na, K, NO₃^?, Al, Ca²⁺, Zn, Ca, Cu, Fe, Pb, and Mg. The mean ratio of dilution method/in-stack hot method was 0.454. The contents of water-soluble ions (Cl^?, SO₄^2-, NO₃^?) were significantly enriched in PM_2.5 via gas-to-particle conversion in the dilution process. Results indicate that in-stack hot sampling would underestimate levels of these species in PM_2.5.

Implications: PM_2.5 samples from a municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) were collected simultaneously by a dilution sampling technique and a traditional in-stack method. PM_2.5 emission factors and chemical speciation profiles were established. Dilution sampling provides more reliable data than in-stack hot sampling. The results can be applied to estimate the PM_2.5 emission inventories of MSWI, and the source profile can be used for contribution estimate of chemical mass balance modeling.