Present status of the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment in Korea

In Korea due to rapid economical growth followed by urbanisation, breakage of large traditional families into small nuclear families, continuous changes in equipment features and capabilities causes tremendous increase in sale of new electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and decrease in sale of used EEE. Subsequently, the ever-increasing quantity of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has become a serious social problem and threat to the environment. Therefore, the gradual increase in the generation of WEEE intensifies the interest for recycling to conserve the resources and protect the environment. In view of the above, a review has been made related to the present status of the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment in Korea. This paper describes the present status of generation and recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment, namely TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, personal computers and mobile phones in Korea. The commercial processes and the status of developing new technologies for the recycling of metallic values from waste printed circuit boards (PCBs) is also described briefly. Since 1998, three recycling centers are in full operation to recycle WEEE such as refrigerators, washing machines and air conditioners, having the total capacity of 880,000 units/year. All waste TVs are recently recycled on commission basis by several private recycling plants. The recycling of waste personal computers and mobile phones is insignificant in comparison with the amount of estimated obsolete those. Korea has adopted and enforced the extended producer responsibility (EPR) system. Korea is making consistent efforts to improve the recycling rate to the standards indicated in the EU directives for WEEE. Especially environmentally friendly and energy-saving technologies are being developed to recycle metal values from PCBs of WEEE.     

THE IMPACT OF URBANIZATION ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF HEAVY METALS IN BOTTOM SEDIMENTS OF THE SADDLE RIVER1

ABSTRACT: A three-year study has been conducted on a 4.6 mile stretch of the Saddle River near Lodi, New Jersey. The primary objectives of this investigation were (1) to provide baseline information on the concentration and distribution of heavy metals in bottom sediments of the Saddle River; (2) to qualitatively evaluate which parameters affect this distribution; and (3) to determine the effect of urbanization on the concentration and distribution of these materials. Significant enrichments of several heavy metals were observed in bottom sediments of the lower Saddle River near Lodi, New Jersey, as compared to the upper Saddle River. Attempts to correlate metal concentrations in bottom sediments with chemical-oxygen demand were not successful in demonstrating a relationship between these two factors. Metal concentrations were found to be strongly dependent upon particle size. In general, metal concentrations in bottom sediments increased with decreasing partical diameter. However, metals enrichment was observed to be considerably greater in the larger sediment fractions studied (>420μ) than the smaller sediment fractions as one proceeded downstream through the urban area. Since the larger sediment fractions are least effected by scour and transport they may best reflect the effect of urbanization on the distribution of heavy metals over an extended period of time at a given location.     

Air quality assessment along Dhanbad - Jharia road

Road ambient air pollution status along Dhanbad – Jharia road isstudied and presented in this article. The selection of this areais made considering the importance of the road in Dhanbad district and the nature of activities taking place along the road, which reflect that the portion of road upto Dhansar can be considered as having commercial areas on both sides and that from Dhansar to Jharia as having industrial areas on both sides.For the assessment of the ambient air quality along the road monitoring is done at the following five locations: Indian Schoolof Mines (ISM), main gate; Bankmore; Dhansar police check post; Dhansar opencast project agent office and a residential house beside the Rajapur opencast project. The location of ISM, maingate is specially chosen as this represents a commercial shoppingcomplexes and the situation can be compared with that at Bankmore. Monitoring of ambient air quality is done following thestandard procedure prescribed in IS: 5182. In addition the concentration of lead, zinc, copper, iron, manganese, cadmium metals in SPM is also monitored. The ambient air quality is monitored in the months of September and November 1999, respectively, to represent monsoon and winter seasons. The SPM concentration observed at all the five locations in the winterseason is more than the permissible limits for commercial andindustrial areas. However, in the monsoon season, the SPM concentration is higher than the permissible limit at the twocommercial locations, i.e., ISM gate and Bankmore, while it isless than the prescribed limit for industrial areas at the remaining three locations. At the ISM gate and Bankmore the SPM generation is mainly by vehicular traffic while at other three locations it was in addition due to mining and other activities.     

Risk assessment and binding mechanisms of potentially toxic metals in sediments from different water levels in a coastal wetland

The excessive accumulation of potentially toxic metals (Pb and Cd) in coastal wetlands is among the main factors threatening wetland ecosystems. However, the effects of water table depth (WTD) on the risk and binding mechanisms of potentially toxic metals in sediments remain unclear. Here, sediments from different WTD obtained from a typical coastal wetland were evaluated using a newly developed strategy based on chemical extraction methods coupled with high-resolution spectroscopy. Our findings indicated that the WTD of the coastal wetland fluctuates frequently and the average enrichment factor for Pb was categorized as minor, whereas Cd enrichment was categorized as moderate. High-resolution spectroscopy techniques also demonstrated that organic functional groups and partly inorganic compounds (e.g., Fe-O/Si-O) played a vital role in the binding of Pb and Cd to surface sediments. Additionally, mineral components rather than organic groups were mainly bound to these metals in the bottom sediments. Collectively, our findings provide key insights into the potential health effects and binding characteristics of potentially toxic metals in sediments, as well as their dynamic behavior under varying sediment depths at a microscale.     

Insights into multisource sludge distributed in the Yangtze River basin, China: Characteristics, correlation, treatment and disposal

Sludge is the by-product of wastewater treatment process. Multisource sludge can be defined as sludge from different sources. Based on the sludge properties of five typical cities in the Yangtze River basin, including Jiujiang, Wuhu, Lu'an, Zhenjiang and Wuhan, this study investigated and summarized the characteristic variations and distribution differences of multiple indicators and substances from municipal sludge, dredged sludge, and river and lake sediments. The results demonstrated pH of multisource sludge was relatively stable in the neutral range. Organic matter and water content among municipal sludge were high and varied considerably between different wastewater treatment plants. Dredged sludge had an obviously higher sand content and wider particle distribution, which could be considered for graded utilization depending on its size. The nutrients composition of river and lake sediments was usually stable and special, with lower nitrogen and phosphorus content but higher potassium levels. The sources of heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants in multisource sludge were correlated, generally much higher among municipal sludge than dredged sludge and river and lake sediments, which were the most important limitation for final land utilization. Despite various properties of multisource sludge, the final fate and destination have some overall similarities, which need to be supplemented and improved by standards and laws. The study provided a preliminary analysis of suitable technical routes for municipal sludge, dredged sludge, river and lake sediments based on their different characteristics respectively, which was of great significance for multisource sludge co-treatment and disposal in the future of China.     

Mobility and sulfidization of heavy metals in sediments of a shallow eutrophic lake, Lake Taihu, China

The technique of DGT (diffusive gradients in thin films) using three diffusive gel thicknesses was applied to estimate the mobility and bioavailability of heavy metals in sediments and porewater of Lake Taihu, China. The DGT results showed significantly positive correlations between Co, Pb, Cd and Mn, and Ni and Fe concentrations in porewater. Cu and Zn showed a significantly negative correlation with Mn, due to Cu combination with carbonates and Zn derived from agricultural pollution, respectively. The rank order of average concentrations of Co, Ni and Cd at each station was DGT_1.92 > DGT_0.78 > DGT_0.39, suggesting stronger resupply from sediments to porewater when using thicker diffusive gels. Comparing centrifugation and DGT measurements, Co, Ni and Cd are highly labile; Mn and Fe are moderately labile; and Cu, Zn and Pb are slightly labile. The variations of AVS concentrations in sediment cores indicate that metal sulfides in deeper layers are easily diffused into surface sediments.     

铅锌冶炼厂周边农田土壤、苕子与荠菜的重金属污染特征

在云南某铅锌矿冶炼厂周边农田,采集当地主要绿肥(苕子)与野菜(荠菜)的植株和根部土壤样品,测定重金属(Pb、Zn、Cu和Cd)的全量和DTPA提取的有效态质量比,并进行污染评价.结果表明:1)综合污染指数评价显示,铅锌冶炼厂周边农田土壤以重度和中度重金属污染为主,Cd质量比为GB 15618-1995《土壤环境质量标准》三级标准限值的1.94～8.30倍,污染程度最重,其次为Pb和Zn;2)荠菜植株Pb、Zn和Cd质量比的最大值、平均值均大于苕子;荠菜对Cd的富集系数大于1,对Pb、Zn和Cd的转移系数大于或接近1;3)苕子和荠菜地上部与土壤的Cd、Pb质量比,苕子地下部与土壤的Pb质量比,荠菜地上部与土壤的Zn质量比均呈显著或极显著正相关.研究表明:铅锌冶炼厂周边农田存在严重的重金属污染,Cd是主要污染因子;苕子和荠菜植株重金属质量比高,且荠菜对重金属的富集能力大于苕子.     

柠檬酸对重金属复合污染土壤的浸提效果研究

以浙江富阳某炼铜厂附近受Cd、Cu、Pb和Zn复合污染的土壤为研究对象,采用振荡、静置和超声3种不同浸提方式,通过研究柠檬酸在不同浸提方式下对重金属的去除效果,筛选出最佳柠檬酸浓度、处理时间及功率,并采用Tessier连续提取法分析浸提前后4种重金属形态变化.结果表明,柠檬酸对4种重金属均具有较好的去除效果,其中对Zn的去除效果最好,Cd的去除效果最差,而Cu和Pb的去除效果相当.Pb和Zn的去除率均随着柠檬酸浓度的增加而增加,但增幅随之减小,Cu的去除率则先增加后基本保持不变,而Cd的去除率变化不明显.综合考虑成本和浸提效果后,选用0.2 mol·L-1柠檬酸浸提2次为最优条件,最佳振荡时间和静置时间分别为4 h和24 h,最佳超声时间和功率分别为30 min和500 W.柠檬酸能够在很大程度上改变土壤中重金属的形态分布,主要去除以可交换态和碳酸盐结合态形式存在的Cd及以碳酸盐结合态和铁锰氧化物结合态形式存在的Cu、Pb和Zn.通过对比3种浸提方式,在同等去除效果的前提下,静置浸提相比振荡浸提需要更长的时间,而将超声波应用于重金属污染土壤淋洗,所需时间较少,因此,超声波辅助浸提土壤中重金属是可行的,具有良好的应用前景.     

苏州地区水稻土重金属污染源解析及端元影响量化研究

利用国家土壤质量标准和当地背景值评价了苏州地区表层水稻土重金属(Pb、Cd、As、Hg、Cu、Zn、Ni、Cr)的污染(富集)状况.结果发现,苏州地区土壤Cd、Hg、As、Pb、Zn、Cu、Cr和Ni平均含量分别是0.23、0.23、9.14、35.36、103.36、35.75、77.12和33.18μg·g-1;除As外,其余7种重金属平均含量皆明显高于当地土壤背景值.通过与中国土壤环境质量标准(GB15618—1995)相比,发现苏州地区土壤中Cd和Hg是8种重金属中风险最高的.地质累积指数分析表明,苏州水稻土重金属Cd、Hg、Pb、Cu和Zn出现了污染,其中以Cd和Hg的污染程度最突出,约80%的土壤样品出现了Pb轻度污染.因子得分-多元回归法(PCS-MLR)估算表明,70%的土壤Cd来自与有色金属或磷有关的人为活动;土壤中约50%的Pb和72%的Hg源于大气沉降的贡献;土壤的Zn和Cu污染主要来自与有色金属或磷有关的人为活动,该端元对土壤Zn和Cu的影响率分别为53%和45%.     

石墨烯材料去除重金属及放射性核素的研究

石墨烯及其改性材料具有比表面积大、吸附能力强、抗辐射性能好、耐高温、耐酸碱等优点,近年来在去除重金属和放射性核素领域得到了广泛关注.本文简要介绍了石墨烯的合成及改性方法,综述了石墨烯材料去除水中重金属离子和放射性核素的研究进展,包括吸附容量、影响因素、吸附动力学、吸附热力学模型和吸附机理,分析了该研究领域目前存在的问题,探讨了今后的研究方向.