Sorption and degradation of wastewater-associated non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics in soils

Presence of pharmaceuticals at trace levels in recycled water is an emerging issue impacting the beneficial reuse of treated wastewater, including practices such as irrigation and groundwater recharge in arid and semi-arid regions. To assess the environmental risks of irrigation with recycled water containing such micropollutants, in this study we evaluated sorption and degradation of five pharmaceuticals that are antibiotic and anti-inflammatory drugs in two soils collected from arid regions. Naproxen and trimethoprim showed moderate to strong sorption, while the sorption of diclofenac, ibuprofen and sulfamethoxazole was negligible in both soils. Under aerobic conditions, the studied compounds were susceptible to microbial degradation with half-lives varying from 4.8 to 69.3 d. Apart from sulfamethoxazole, the other compounds were relatively persistent under anaerobic conditions as indicated by a negligible loss over 84 d of incubation or half-lives >50 d. The degradation of the selected pharmaceuticals was influenced by microbial activities, oxygen status in the soil, soil type and compound characteristics. The poor sorption and relative persistence of diclofenac and ibuprofen under anaerobic conditions suggest that the two chemicals may pose a high leaching risk when using recycled for irrigation or groundwater replenishment.     

Virgin and recycled engine oil differentiation: a spectroscopic study

As a result of the changes that occur during their use, used engine oils tend to differ in chemical and physical composition from a virgin oil. In general recycled oils have: much higher water and sediment levels than virgin oil; relatively higher concentrations of organic compounds (oxidation products); and relatively higher levels of metals such as Fe, Cd, Cr, Pb, etc. Therefore, the aim of this work was to investigate, assess and to observe, by means of the physical and the chemical properties of the oils, atomic absorption (AA), inductive couple plasma (ICP) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analyses the extent of the differences occurring between the virgin and recycled oil. In important part of this work was also the development of analytical techniques based on the use of FTIR spectroscopy; in relation to the rapid analysis of lubricants; in particular for the differentiation of virgin and recycled oil. The results obtained were expected to be useful for differentiation purposes, providing information on whether the metal concentrations and oxidation products could be an appropriate feature for differentiating a particular oil sample from the others. This work is categorized into a two-step procedure. Firstly, an evaluation of a typical FTIR spectrum of an engine oil sample (mono- and multigrade) is presented. The broad feature centered at 1716 cm(-1) is due to the presence of carbonyl containing degradation products of oil. A band observed at 1732, 1169, 1154 and 1270 cm(-1) assigned to the polymethacrylate stretching vibrations, allows the determination of viscosity modifier and pour point depressant additives. The observed differences in the specific spectral bands (1732, 1169, 1154 and 1270 and 1716 cm(-1)) are investigated and discussed. Secondly, an analytical technique for the measurement of the levels of the wear metals is also applied.     

Estimating the value of foresight: aggregate analysis of natural hazard mitigation benefits and costs

Hazard mitigation planners claim that foresighted present actions and investments produce significant future benefits. However, they have difficulty in supporting their claims, since previously their evidence typically was derived from individual case studies. Constituents and decision makers are often sceptical, believing that individual cases are either inapplicable to their situation or non-randomly selected to support a particular view. Planners need objective evidence based on a large body of experience to support the case for mitigation. Such is the unique contribution of a recent U.S. study that found that each dollar spent in three federal natural hazard mitigation grant programs (the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, Project Impact, and the Flood Mitigation Assistance Program) saves society an average of $4 in future avoided losses. Complementing the aggregate benefit-cost analysis with community-based evaluations, the study yielded insights on how planners can improve long-term community resilience in the face of extreme events. Valuable lessons for mitigation planners and policy makers emerged: the need to consider a wide variety of losses, the importance of mixing qualitative with quantitative analysis, the value of averaging results over a large number of projects, and the need to more explicitly address social issues and data collection in order to reduce vulnerability and enhance resilience to cope with twenty-first century hazards.     

贡湖湾退渔还湖区的基底稳定性的时空特征

2012年11月至2014年5月期间季度性对无锡贡湖湾退渔还湖生态修复工程进行跟踪调查与检测,就贡湖湾湿地土壤环境退渔还湖修复工程前后的理化性质进行了分析比较,用以评估修复工程实施后退渔还湖区基底的改善效果.结果表明:退渔还湖区内基底化学性质,有机质、总氮、总磷比退渔还湖初期分别提高241.59％、98.61％和162.86％.其中,有效氮和有效磷的均值为102.31 mg/kg和15.10 mg/kg,满足土壤养分分级标准Ⅲ级标准.有关基底稳定性物理性质与退渔还湖初期相比,土壤容重减少17.84％,pH值稳定在5.8 ～6.5之间,土壤缓冲能力明显提高,修复区南部(人为种植植物)的土壤团聚体稳定性恢复状况最好,西部(自然恢复)次之,北部(基底状况差,无植物种植)恢复状况低于前述两区.总之,贡湖退渔还湖修复区在经过17个月后,其基底的整体质量趋于良好,土壤各项养分及团聚体稳定性指标逐步达到合理水平,土壤环境已具有良好的生态功能.     

水稻秸秆还田对福州平原稻田土壤水稳性团聚体分布及稳定性影响

为阐明早稻与晚稻生长期土壤水稳性团聚体分布及其稳定性对秸秆还田的响应,以福州平原红壤水稻田为研究对象,对秸秆还田后早稻田和晚稻田土壤水稳性团聚体分布特征及其稳定性,包括粒径0.25 mm团聚体的百分含量R0.25、平均质量直径(MWD)、平均几何直径(GMD)和分型维数(D)进行测定与分析.研究结果表明,秸秆还田和对照样地,0~40 cm土层中早稻与晚稻生长期土壤均表现为水稳性团聚体组成以微团聚体(0.25 mm粒级团聚体)为主,团聚体粒级越大,含量越少;秸秆还田对0~40 cm土层中早稻田土壤水稳性大团聚体和微团聚体总含量的影响均不显著,但秸秆还田显著增加了晚稻田土壤水稳性大团聚体(粒径0.25 mm)含量(p0.05),并显著减少了土壤水稳性微团聚体含量(p0.05);秸秆还田对早稻田土壤水稳性团聚体MWD、GMD和D值影响均不显著,但显著增加了晚稻田土壤水稳性团聚体MWD和GMD值,显著降低了土壤水稳性团聚体D值(p0.05);秸秆还田对早稻田土壤水稳性团聚体稳定性影响不显著,但显著增加了晚稻田土壤水稳性团聚体稳定性(p0.05).     

再生水中阴离子表面活性剂对土壤结构与水流运动的影响

为揭示再生水回灌农田所引入的阴离子表面活性剂对土壤结构性质与水流运动特征的影响,通过室内灌水入渗试验研究了再生水中阴离子表面活性剂浓度（0、0.001、0.01和0.1倍临界胶束浓度）、灌水频率（1d1次、2d1次、3d1次）、再生水-清水交替灌溉模式（纯再生水灌溉、再生水-清水交替灌溉）条件下受灌土壤容重、非毛管孔隙比、团聚体稳定性、土壤斥水性、地表入渗性能和入渗水流运动非均匀特征的变化规律.结果表明,随着再生水中的阴离子表面活性剂浓度的增大和灌溉频率的增大,受灌土壤容重减小、非毛管孔隙比和土壤团聚体稳定性增大、土壤斥水性增强、地表入渗能力降低、优先流运动非均匀程度增大,从而也增大了农田灌水管理难度;当再生水-清水交替灌溉中的清水淋洗频率增大时,受灌土壤容重增大、非毛管孔隙比和土壤团聚体稳定性降低,但却降低了土壤的斥水性、增大了地表入渗能力并降低了土壤优先流运动的非均匀程度,有利于节省灌水时间、提高灌水效率.     

废弃物施加对福州平原稻田土壤团聚体分布及其稳定性的影响

为了阐明废弃物施加对稻田土壤团聚体分布及其稳定性的影响,以福州平原稻田为研究对象,对对照、石膏、贝壳、生物炭和炉渣5种处理样地0~10 cm、10~20 cm、20~30 cm土层土壤团聚体分布及其稳定性,包括0.25 mm团聚体含量(DR0.25)、平均质量直径(MWD)、几何平均直径(GMD)、分形维数(D)进行了测定和分析.结果表明,与对照样地相比,石膏、贝壳、生物炭和炉渣施加后均增加了土壤团聚体DR0.25、MWD和GMD值,其中,石膏施加后土壤团聚体DR0.25、MWD和GMD值分别增加了12.76%、12.13%和12.17%,贝壳施加后分别增加了32.65%、31.83%和33.86%,生物炭施加后分别增加了12.07%、9.32%和11.70%,炉渣施加后分别增加了19.70%、13.59%和18.10%,但与对照样地相比,石膏、贝壳、生物炭和炉渣施加后土壤团聚体分形维数均表现为减小的趋势,分别减小了4.02%、11.65%、4.37%、9.29%.从土壤团聚体DR0.25、MWD、GMD值和分形维数的变化特征来看,石膏、贝壳、生物炭和炉渣施加均提高了土壤团聚体的稳定性.     

混凝絮凝体的分形与沉降特性实验研究

在混凝絮凝体的分形与沉降特性实验研究中,通过自行设计的絮凝体混凝、沉降、观测功能的一体装置,求出了在不同混凝工况下所形成混凝絮凝体的分形维数和沉降速度,并分析了相应的变化趋势和原因。     

乌鲁木齐地区再生骨料混凝土的应用初探

再生骨料混凝土的研究和应用能解决日益发展的建筑业带来的环境问题,通过对乌鲁木齐地区建筑业进行调研,具体分析了乌鲁木齐地区废弃混凝土的现状,提出其再生骨料混凝土技术在乌鲁木齐地区推广应用中存在的问题,进行了再生骨料混凝土应用的技术经济可行性分析,并对乌鲁木齐地区再生骨料混凝土的应用提出相应对策。     

圆钢管轻集料混凝土梁与混凝土桥墩连接节点试验研究

为了解决圆钢管轻集料混凝土梁与混凝土桥墩的整体连接问题,共设计了穿心钢筋、穿心钢筋加弯矩传递板和穿心工字钢3种节点连接形式,采用拟静力试验研究了刚节点在低周反复荷载作用下的抗震耗能性能。试验结果表明,3种节点都具有良好的抗震耗能性能,等效粘滞阻尼系数都超过了钢筋混凝土结构要求的0.1,延性系数都大于规范规定的2;在节点屈服以后,3种节点仍然具有一定的承载力,其中穿心钢筋和穿心工字钢节点的延性系数和等效粘滞阻尼系数基本相同,穿心钢筋加弯矩传递板较其他2种刚节点稍差。