Effects of heavy metals on growth and arsenic accumulation in the arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata L

The effects of Cd, Ni, Pb, and Zn on arsenic accumulation by the arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata were investigated in a greenhouse study. P. vittata was grown for 8 weeks in an arsenic-contaminated soil (131 mg As kg(-1)), which was spiked with 50 or 200 mg kg(-1) Cd, Ni, Pb, or Zn (as nitrates). P. vittata was effective in taking up arsenic (up to 4100 mg kg(-1)) and transporting it to the fronds, but little of the metals. Arsenic bioconcentration factors ranged from 14 to 36 and transfer factors ranged from 16 to 56 in the presence of the metals, both of which were reduced with increasing metal concentration. Fern biomass increased as much as 12 times compared to the original dry weight after 8 weeks of growth (up to 19 g per plant). Greater concentrations of Cd, Ni, and Pb resulted in greater catalase activity in the plant. Most of the arsenic in the plant was present as arsenite, the reduced form, indicating little impact of the metals on plant arsenic reduction. This research demonstrates the capability of P. vittata in hyperaccumulating arsenic from soils in the presence of heavy metals.     

环太平洋地震带地震活动对中国大陆地震活动的影响分析

本文对1900年以来全球逐年发生的7.0级以上地震的活动图像进行详细分析,找出历史上地震活动与本年度地震活动分布相类似的年份,对这些年份之后的1～2年内发生在中国大陆、大华北、华东及安徽地区的中强震进行对比分析,力求得到较为合理的结论,为下年度的中国大陆、大华北、华东及安徽地区的地震趋势预测提供较为可靠的依据.分析得知:震后次年对中国大陆(主要是西部地区)影响最为明显;其次是对大华北地区的影响;然后是对华东地区(主要是海域)的影响;对安徽地区的影响较小.     

泥水平衡顶管技术在川气东送管道工程中的应用

介绍了泥水平衡顶管施工中采取的改进措施,实践证明,改进后未发生任何安全事故,且比预期提前了18天。     

光纤光栅感温火灾探测及报警系统在原油库的应用

1光纤光栅感温火灾探测系统 1．1光纤光栅测温原理 光纤光栅测温法是美国联合技术研究中心于1989年提出的。它是将温度测量和信息传输分开,利用光栅探头测温,采用一般光纤进行信息传输,光栅探头和相连的光纤合称光纤光栅测温。光栅是在一块石英玻璃片上以光刻方式,刻以一系列等宽间距的平行狭缝即条纹     

Degradation and detoxification of microcystin-LR in drinking water by sequential use of UV and ozone

Microcystins (MCs) produced by cyanobacteria are strong hepatotoxins and classified as possible carcinogens.MCs pose a considerable threat to human health through tainted drinking and surface waters.Herein filtrated water from a waterworks in Harbin,China,was spiked with microcystin-LR (MC-LR) extracted from a toxic scum of microcystis aeruginosa,and the spiked sample waters were treated using UV irradiation with consequent ozonation process (UV/O3),compared with ozonation at a dose range commonly applied in water treatment plants,UV irradiation at 254 nm and UV irradiation combined with ozonation (UV+O3),respectively.The remaining of toxins were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography and also determined using a protein phosphatase type 2A inhibition assay,which was utilized to evaluate the reduction in toxicity.Results indicated that in comparison to other three processes (O3,UV,and UV+O3),UV/O 3 process could effectively decrease both the concentration and toxicity of MC-LR at 100 μg/L level after 5 min UV irradiation with consequent 5 min ozonation at 0.2 mg/L (below 1 μg/L),while 0.5 mg/L ozone dose was required for the level below 0.1 μg/L.The addition of an UV treatment step to the existing treatment train may induce significant transformation of micropollutants and breaks down the natural organic matters into moieties unfavorable for ozone decomposition,stabilizing the ozone residual.These findings suggested that sequential use of UV and ozone may be a suitable method for the removal of these potentially hazardous microcystins from drinking water.     

Iron-doped Mn-Ce/TiO2 catalyst for low temperature selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3

The catalysts of iron-doped Mn-Ce/TiO 2(Fe-Mn-Ce/TiO 2) prepared by sol-gel method were investigated for low temperature selective catalytic reduction(SCR) of NO with NH 3.It was found that the NO conversion over Fe-Mn-Ce/TiO 2 was obviously improved after iron doping compared with that over Mn-Ce/TiO 2.Fe-Mn-Ce/TiO 2 with the molar ratio of Fe/Ti = 0.1 exhibited the highest activity.The results showed that 96.8% NO conversion was obtained over Fe(0.1)-Mn-Ce/TiO 2 at 180°C at a space velocity of 50,000 hr 1.Fe-Mn-Ce/TiO 2 exhibited much higher resistance to H 2 O and SO 2 than that of Mn-Ce/TiO 2.The properties of the catalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction(XRD),N 2 adsorption,temperature programmed desorption(NH 3-TPD and NOx-TPD),and Xray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) techniques.BET,NH3-TPD and NOx-TPD results showed that the specific surface area and NH3 and NOx adsorption capacity of the catalysts increased with iron doping.It was known from XPS analysis that iron valence state on the surface of the catalysts were in Fe3+ state.The doping of iron enhanced the dispersion and oxidation state of Mn and Ce on the surface of the catalysts.The oxygen concentrations on the surface of the catalysts were found to increase after iron doping.Fe-Mn-Ce/TiO2 represented a promising catalyst for low temperature SCR of NO with NH3 in the presence of H2 O and SO2.     

Metal chlorides loaded on activated carbon to capture elemental mercury

Activated carbon (AC) was considered to be an effective sorbent to control mercury in combustion systems. However, its capture capacity was low and it required a high carbon-to-mercury mass ratio. AC loaded with catalyst showed a high elemental mercury (Hg0) capture capacity due to large surface area of AC and high oxidization ability of catalyst. In this study, several metal chlorides and metal oxides were used to promote the sorption capacity of AC. As a result, metal chlorides were better than metal oxides loaded on AC to remove gaseous mercury. X-ray diffractometer (XRD), thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) and specific surface area by Brunauer- Emmett-Teller method (BET) analysis showed the main mechanisms: first, AC had an enormous surface area for loading enough MClx; second, Cl and MxOy were generated during pyrogenation of MClx; finally, there were lots of active elements such as Cl and MxOy which could react with elemental mercury and convert it to mercury oxide and mercury chloride. The HgO and HgCl2 might be released from AC’s porous structure by thermo regeneration. A catalytic chemisorption mechanism predominates the sorption process of elemental mercury. As Co and Mn were valence variable metal elements, their catalytic effect on Hg0 oxidization may accelerate both oxidation and halogenation of Hg0. The sorbents loaded with metal chlorides possessed a synergistic function of catalytic effect of valence variable metal and chlorine oxidation.     

How do children learn to cross the street? The process of pedestrian safety training

Objective: Pedestrian injuries are a leading cause of child death and may be reduced by training children to cross streets more safely. Such training is most effective when children receive repeated practice at the complex cognitive–perceptual task of judging moving traffic and selecting safe crossing gaps, but there is limited data on how much practice is required for children to reach adult levels of functioning. Using existing data, we examined how children's pedestrian skills changed over the course of 6 pedestrian safety training sessions, each composed of 45 crossings within a virtual pedestrian environment.

Methods: As part of a randomized controlled trial on pedestrian safety training, 59 children ages 7–8 crossed the street within a semi-immersive virtual pedestrian environment 270 times over a 3-week period (6 sessions of 45 crossings each). Feedback was provided after each crossing, and traffic speed and density were advanced as children's skill improved. Postintervention pedestrian behavior was assessed a week later in the virtual environment and compared to adult behavior with identical traffic patterns.

Results: Over the course of training, children entered traffic gaps more quickly and chose tighter gaps to cross within; their crossing efficiency appeared to increase. By the end of training, some aspects of children's pedestrian behavior was comparable to adult behavior but other aspects were not, indicating that the training was worthwhile but insufficient for most children to achieve adult levels of functioning.

Conclusions: Repeated practice in a simulated pedestrian environment helps children learn aspects of safe and efficient pedestrian behavior. Six twice-weekly training sessions of 45 crossings each were insufficient for children to reach adult pedestrian functioning, however, and future research should continue to study the trajectory and quantity of child pedestrian safety training needed for children to become competent pedestrians.     

水解酸化/催化铁耦合+A~2O工艺在镇江市新区第二污水厂的应用

镇江市新区第二污水厂采用水解酸化/催化铁耦合+A2O工艺,一期处理规模为2×104 m3/d,进水主要是新区化工园区的混合化工废水。文章详细介绍了该污水厂的工艺流程、相关设备及构筑物设计参数。运行结果表明,用水解酸化/催化铁耦合+A2O工艺处理混合化工废水,处理效果良好,出水水质基本达标。     

Feedforward control for nitrogen removal in a pilot-scale anaerobic-anoxic-oxic plant for municipal wastewater treatment

To improve the efficiency of nitrogen removal with lower energy consumption, the study of feedforward control was carried out on a pilot-scale anaerobic-anoxicoxic (AAO) plant for the treatment of municipal wastewater. The effluent qualities of the pilot plant under different control strategies were investigated. The results indicated that the change of external recycle was not a suitable approach to regulate the sludge concentration of plug-flow reactors; adjusting the aeration valve and dissolved oxygen set-point according to ammonia load could overcome the impact of influent fluctuation; and the denitrification potential could be estimated based on the transit time of anoxic zone and the relative content of carbon resource entering the anoxic zone. Simple feedforward control strategies for aeration and internal recycle were subsequently proposed and validated. The nitrogen removal was successfully improved in the pilot plant. The effluent total nitrogen had decreased by 29.9% and was steadily controlled below 15 mg·L⁻¹. Furthermore, approximately 38% of the energy for aeration had been saved.