Status and fuzzy comprehensive assessment of combined heavy metal and organo-chlorine pesticide pollution in the Taihu Lake region of China

The status of combined heavy metal and organo-chlorine pesticide (OCPs; i.e. HCH and DDT) pollution was investigated and the soil environmental quality of the Taihu Lake watershed, one of the most developed regions in China, was evaluated using a fuzzy comprehensive assessment. Statistical analyses showed the presence of combined pollution in the soil. At many sampling sites, heavy metal concentrations were above corresponding background values, indicating the effects of extraneous pollutants. It has been over 20 years since China banned the use of OCPs, but they can still be found in soil samples of this region. HCH levels at all investigated sites were below the Chinese Environmental Quality Standard for Soils. Fuzzy comprehensive assessment showed that the overall soil quality in this region could be categorized as class I. Nevertheless, the high coefficients of variation for levels of DDT, Cd and Hg indicated the existence of some point-source pollution. Continuous monitoring and further studies of the region are recommended to prevent pollution of farmland from these sources.     

Facile Preparation of Chitosan Films for High Performance Removal of Reactive Blue 19 Dye from Aqueous Solution

This study aimed at finding effective strategies for high-performance removal of reactive blue 19 (RB19) dye from aqueous solution. Chitosan (CS) films had been prepared by using solvent casting with mild drying for this purpose. The CS films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The performance of RB19 removal using CS were evaluated by varying contact time, solution pH, initial dye concentration, and adsorbent dosage. Adsorption isotherms, kinetics, and desorption were investigated by batch experiments. Results showed that CS films exhibited the optimal adsorption performance for RB19 removal and high maximum adsorption capacities of RB19, which were 799 and 822.4 mg g^?1 at 20 and 40 °C, respectively. Adsorption kinetic data were well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. FTIR analyses further indicated that interactions between RB19 and the CS film occurred during adsorption. The CS films also exhibited satisfactory desorption of RB19 at about 80 % after 30 min of desorption at pH 11. Our study demonstrated that the CS films can be easily prepared and applied for effective removal of RB19 in treatment of wastewater.     

Report on the fifth meeting of INRA’s national network of ecotoxicologists,ECOTOX

The fifth meeting of INRA’s national network of ecotoxicologists took place on 25 to 27 November 2014 in Biarritz, France. The main aim of the meeting was to bring together ecotoxicologists from INRA and associated partners, providing them ample opportunity to share and discuss their latest scientific results as well as the national policy of research in ecotoxicology and to precise perspectives for the network.     

基于IFS-动态加权的地下综合体深基坑施工风险评价

为控制地下综合体深基坑施工风险,提出了一种基于直觉模糊集(IFS)-动态加权的风险评价方法.从地质条件、建筑环境、岩土设计、施工方案和偶然风险5个方面分析地下综合体深基坑施工风险因素,构建了综合风险评价指标体系.采取施工风险5级划分方法,利用IFS理论确定指标风险;以偏大型正态加权函数确定指标权重,得到系统综合风险.以西安市某地下综合体深基坑施工实际为背景,进行方法应用.结果表明,该西安市地下综合体深基坑施工系统风险等级为显著风险.其中,指标"邻近建筑""地下管网"的风险等级为高度风险,"道路交通""基坑边坡稳定性""降排水实施"为显著风险,对此提出了相应的安全措施.     

Research on the experiment of the enhancement removal of fine sand by hydrocyclone in sewage treatment plant

The content of fine sand (< 200 μm) in primary sludge is relatively high in Chongqing sewage treatment plant owing to the part of rainwater will be mixed with sand and discharged into the municipal pipe network. Due to the insufficient separation of the sand, different obstacles to subsequent treatment processes may increase equipment wear, reduce effective volume of the tank, or shorten the cleaning cycle. There is a common use of grit chamber for the separation. Nevertheless, the use of hydrocyclone shows an outstanding performance in cost effectiveness and ease operation. The primary sludge in a sewage plant in Chongqing was monitored, and the average concentration of total suspend solids (TSS), total sand content, and volatile suspended solid (VSS) were 40.25 g/L, 17.51 g/L, and 13.41 g/L, respectively. The size of sand in the sludge was small, and the sand below 30 μm accounted for about 70% of the total sand. It formed flocs with organic matter and was removed in subsequent process units. While the size between 30–200 μm, called fine sand, was the main separation object, accounted for about 28.5%. According to XRF and XRD analysis, the sludge composition was mainly composed of quartz (SiO₂), plagioclase (Na(AlSi₃O₈)), and calcite (CaCO₃), which were similar to the main mineral composition of surface sediments and mountain rocks in the main urban area of Chongqing. A single-factor experiment on two types (FX100 and FX50) of hydrocylones was conducted to determine their abilities concerning the separation of fine sand and enrichment of organic matters from primary sludge. FX100 and FX50 showed best performance in the case of P = 0.17 Mpa, underflow diameter (Du) = 18 mm and P = 0.20 Mpa, Du = 6 mm, respectively. The removal efficiency of fine sand by hydrocyclone FX50 was 71.39%. While, it had poor performance on organic matter enrichment and the removal efficiency of which was 17.38%. By contrast, the removal rate by FX100 reached 61.89% for fine sand and only 6.89% for organic matters detached. The superimposition effect did not appear in the serial experiments on hydrocylone FX100 and FX50, but the power is 3.5 times of that of single-stage hydrocylone FX100. Comprehensive consideration of the processing capacity per unit time and operating power, the hydrocylone FX100 was more suitable for actual operation.

     

Occurrence of dioxin-like POPs in soils from urban green space in a metropolis,North China: implication to human exposure

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Urban green space is a special space for urban life and natural contact and has an important impact on human health. However, little information is...     

The temporal stability and developmental differences in the environmental impacts of militarism: the treadmill of destruction and consumption-based carbon emissions

This study examines the relationship between national-level militarism and consumption-based carbon dioxide emissions. We analyze panel data from 1990 to 2010 for 81 nations to determine whether the magnitude of the effects of (1) military expenditures as percent of total gross domestic product and (2) military personnel as percent of total labor force on carbon emissions change over time. Results of two-way fixed effects models highlight the temporal stability of the environmental impacts of both national-level military characteristics. The findings also reveal that the effect of military expenditures on emissions is larger in the more developed OECD nations than in the developing non-OECD nations. Overall, the results support the treadmill of destruction perspective, which suggests that the nations’ militaries are an important social institution to consider in sustainability science research on the human drivers of global environmental change.