Natural and anthropogenic sources of lead, zinc, and nickel in sediments of Lake Izabal, Guatemala

Sediments in Lake Izabal, Guatemala, contain substantial lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), and nickel (Ni). The lack of historical data for heavy metal concentrations in the sediments makes it difficult to determine the sources or evaluate whether inputs of metals to the lake have changed through time. We measured the relative abundances and concentrations of Pb, Zn, and Ni by X-Ray Fluorescence core scanning and by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry in three sediment cores to explore stratigraphic distributions of metals in the lake deposits. High amounts of Pb and Zn in the core taken near the Polochic Delta suggest that galena and sphalerite mining increased Pb and Zn delivery to Lake Izabal between ~1945 and 1965 CE. An up-core Ni increase in the core taken near a different mine on the north shore of Lake Izabal suggests that recent nickel mining operations led to an increase in Ni concentrations in the local sediments, but amounts in the other cores indicate that Ni is not widely distributed throughout the lake. Sediment cores from Lake Izabal are reliable recorders of heavy metal input to the lake, and were measured to establish background metal levels, which would otherwise be unavailable. Concentrations of Pb, Zn, and Ni in older, pre-20th-century Lake Izabal sediments reflect input from natural erosion of bedrock. Our results provide previously unavailable estimates of background metal concentrations in Lake Izabal before the onset of mining. These results are necessary for future monitoring related to mining contamination of the lake ecosystem.     

闽三角地区碳排放时空差异及影响因素研究

以闽三角地区为研究对象,以2005~2017年为研究期,构建城市尺度的碳排放清单,应用对数平均迪氏指数分解方法从时间维度的纵向比较和典型年份城市横向比较两个维度开展了驱动因素的分解分析及评价,探讨了闽三角碳排放变化影响因素的时空差异.结果显示：研究期内闽三角CO₂排放增长较快,从2005年的74.08Mt增加到2017年169.48Mt,增幅为128.75%.其中,泉州贡献最大,占比为67.93%.碳排放变化趋势分析来看,产业结构和经济增长为导致闽三角地区碳排放量增长的主要因素,累计贡献度分别为30.38%和12.21%,能源结构为抑制碳排放的重要影响因素,累计贡献度为-45.76%.时空差异上看,能源结构效应在研究期内均表现为抑制效应,最大贡献率为52.95%;而产业结构效应均表现为促进效应,最大贡献率为33.85%.在研究期内,漳州市碳减排力度最大,最大净减排148.27Mt.而泉州市经济增长和产业结构效应贡献率较大,未来仍具有较大的减排空间.厦门市经济增长和产业结构效应贡献率均低于参考值,且在研究期内变动幅度较小,碳减排压力较低.研究结果深化了闽三角地区碳排放的时空格局及影响因素的科学认识,为闽三角地区及相似城市群的减排治理提供了有益借鉴.     

中国旅游业碳排放的影响因素分解及脱钩效应

采用广义迪氏指数分解法（GDIM）分解2000~2017年中国旅游业碳排放的影响因素,并在此基础上采用Tapio脱钩因果链模型分析旅游业碳排放的脱钩效应.结果表明：旅游业增加值、旅游业能源消耗量和旅客人次数是旅游业碳排放的促增因素,增加值能源强度和人均旅游业增加值是旅游业碳排放的促降因素,增加值碳强度、能源消耗碳强度和人均旅游业碳排放对旅游业碳排放的促增和促降作用在研究期间均有出现;旅游业能源消耗量的累积促增效应最大,为2030.13万t,增加值能源强度的累积促降效应最大,为103.29万t;旅游业碳排放的脱钩状态不佳,但近年来有所改善;人均脱钩弹性波动剧烈,节能弹性的变化是其波动的主要原因.     

Assessment of sunflower germplasm for phytoremediation of lead-polluted soil and production of seed oil and seed meal for human and animal consumption

Phytoremediation is a valuable technology for mitigating soil contamination in agricultural lands, but phytoremediation without economic revenue is unfeasible for land owners and farmers. The use of crops with high biomass and bioenergy for phytoremediation is a unique strategy to derive supplementary benefits along with remediation activities. Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is a high-biomass crop that can be used for the phytoremediation of polluted lands with additional advantages (biomass and oil). In this study, 40 germplasms of sunflower were screened in field conditions for phytoremediation with the possibility for oil and meal production. The study was carried out to the physiological maturity stage. All studied germplasms mopped up substantial concentrations of Pb, with maximum amounts in shoot?>?root?>?seed respectively. The phytoextraction efficiency of the germplasm was assessed in terms of the Transfer factor (TF), Metal removal efficiency (MRE) and Metal extraction ratio (MER). Among all assessed criteria, GP.8585 was found to be most appropriate for restoring moderately Pb-contaminated soil accompanied with providing high biomass and high yield production. The Pb content in the oil of GP.8585 was below the Food safety standard of China, with 59.5% oleic acid and 32.1% linoleic acid. Moreover, amino acid analysis in meal illustrated significant differences among essential and non-essential amino acids. Glutamic acid was found in the highest percentage (22.4%), whereas cysteine in the lowest percentage (1.3%). Therefore, its efficient phytoextraction ability and good quality edible oil and meal production makes GP.8585 the most convenient sunflower germplasm for phytoremediation of moderately Pb-contaminated soil, with fringe benefits to farmers and landowners.     

Variations in concentrations and bioavailability of heavy metals in rivers caused by water conservancy projects: Insights from water regulation of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir in the Yellow River

Water regulation of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir of the Yellow River was chosen as a case to investigate variations in concentrations and bioavailability of heavy metals caused by water conservancy projects in rivers. Water and suspended sediment (SPS) samples were collected at downstream sampling sites along the river during this period. Concentrations and speciation of Zn, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb in water and SPS samples were analyzed, and their bioaccumulation was studied with Daphnia magna. This study indicated that the exchangeable and carbonate-bound fractions of heavy metals in SPS decreased along the studied stretch, and the dissolved heavy metal concentrations increased along the river with 1.6–15 folds. This is because sediment resuspension increased along the river during water regulation, giving rise to the increase of heavy metal release from SPS. The dissolved Zn, Cu, Ni, and Pb concentrations were significantly positively correlated with SPS concentrations, and their increase along the river was greater than Cr. The body burdens of heavy metals in D. magna exposed into samples collected from the reservoir outlet were 1.3–3.0 times lower than those from downstream stations, suggesting that the heavy metal bioavailability increased during water regulation. This should be considered in the reservoir operation.     

Facile one-step synthesis of functionalized biochar from sustainable prolifera-green-tide source for enhanced adsorption of copper ions

The use of biochars formed by hydrothermal carbonization for the treatment of contaminated water has been greatly limited,due to their poorly developed porosity and low content of surface functional groups.Also,the most common modification routes inevitably require post-treatment processes,which are time-consuming and energy-wasting.Hence,the objective of this research was to produce a cost-effective biochar with improved performance for the treatment of heavy metal pollution through a facile one-step hydrothermal carbonization process coupled with ammonium phosphate,thiocarbamide,ammonium chloride or urea,without any posttreatment.The effects of various operational parameters,including type of modification reagent,time and temperature of hydrothermal treatment,and ratio of modification reagent to precursor during impregnation,on the copper ion adsorption were examined.The adsorption data fit the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model quite well.The maximum adsorption capacities(mg/g) of the biochars towards copper ions followed the order of 40-8 h-1.0-APBC(95.24) 140-8 h-0-BC(12.52) 140-8 h-1.0-TUBC(12.08) 140-8 h-1.0-ACBC(7.440) 140-8 h-1.0-URBC(5.277).The results indicated that biochars modified with ammonium phosphate displayed excellent adsorption performance toward copper ions,which was 7.6-fold higher than that of the pristine biochar.EDX and FT-IR analyses before and after adsorption demonstrated that the main removal mechanism involved complexation between the phosphate groups on the surface of the modified biochars and copper ions.     

Preparation and characterization of a novel hybrid chelating material for effective adsorption of Cu(Ⅱ) and Pb(Ⅱ)

The discharge of heavy metal ions such as Cu~2+and Pb~2+poses a severe threat to public health and the environment owing to their extreme toxicity and bioaccumulation through food chains Herein, we report a novel organic–inorganic hybrid adsorbent, Al(OH)_3-poly(acrylamide dimethyldiallylammonium chloride)-graft-dithiocarbamate(APD), for rapid and effectiv removal of Cu~2+and Pb~2+. In this adsorbent, the "star-like" structure of Al(OH)3 poly(acrylamide-dimethyldiallylammonium chloride) served as the support of dithiocarbamat(DTC) functional groups for easy access of heavy metal ions and assisted development of larg and compact floccules. The synthesized adsorbent was characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM), transmission electron microscopy(TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis(TGA). APD was demonstrated to hav rapid adsorption kinetics with an initial rate of 267.379 and 2569.373 mg/(g·min) as well a superior adsorption capacities of 317.777 and 586.699 mg/g for Cu~2+and Pb~2+respectively. Th adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic, involving intraparticle diffusion and chemical interaction between heavy metal ions and the functional groups of APD. To assess it versatility and wide applicability, APD was also used in turbid heavy metal wastewater, and performed well in removing suspended particles and heavy metal ions simultaneously through flocculation and chelation. The rapid, convenient and effective adsorption of Cu~2+and Pb~2+give APD great potential for heavy metal decontamination in industrial applications.     

Engineering of responsive polymer based nano-reactors for facile mass transport and enhanced catalytic degradation of 4-nitrophenol

Silver nanoparticles with average diameter of 10 ± 3 nm were synthesized within the sieves of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate-acrylic acid)(p(NIPAAm-HEMA-AAc))polymer microgels. Free radial emulsion polymerization was employed for synthesis of p(NIPAAm-HEMA-AAc) polymer microgels. Silver nanoparticles were introduced within the microgels sphere by in situ reduction method. Microgels and hybrid microgels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ultra violet-visible spectroscopy,transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering measurements. Catalytic activity of Ag-p(NIPAAm-HEMA-AAc) hybrid microgels was studied using catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol(4-NP) as a model reaction in aqueous media. The influence of sodium borohydride(Na BH4) concentration, catalyst dose and 4-NP concentration on catalytic reduction of 4-NP was investigated. A linear relationship was found between catalyst dose and apparent rate constant(kapp). The mechanism of catalysis by hybrid microgels was explored for further development in this area. The deep analysis of catalytic process reveals that the unique combination of NIPAAm, HEMA and AAc does not only stabilize silver nanoparticles in polymer network but it also enhances the mass transport of hydrophilic substrate like 4-NP from outside to inside the polymer network.     

Toxicity evaluation of ZnO and TiO2 nanomaterials in hydroponic red bean (Vigna angularis) plant: Physiology, biochemistry and kinetic transport

The toxicity and kinetic uptake potential of zinc oxide(Zn O) and titanium dioxide(TiO_2)nanomaterials into the red bean(Vigna angularis) plant were investigated. The results obtained revealed that Zn O, due to its high dissolution and strong binding capacity, readily accumulated in the root tissues and significantly inhibited the physiological activity of the plant. However, TiO_2 had a positive effect on plant physiology, resulting in promoted growth. The results of biochemical experiments implied that Zn O, through the generation of oxidative stress, significantly reduced the chlorophyll content, carotenoids and activity of stress-controlling enzymes. On the contrary, no negative biochemical impact was observed in plants treated with TiO_2. For the kinetic uptake and transport study, we designed two exposure systems in which Zn O and TiO_2 were exposed to red bean seedlings individually or in a mixture approach. The results showed that in single metal oxide treatments, the uptake and transport increased with increasing exposure period from one week to three weeks.However, in the metal oxide co-exposure treatment, due to complexation and competition among the particles, the uptake and transport were remarkably decreased. This suggested that the kinetic transport pattern of the metal oxide mixtures varied compared to those of its individual constituents.     

深圳市饮用水源中CODMn与TOC的相关性研究

通过对深圳市饮用水源中CODMn和TOC测定结果的相关性分析,结果表明,水库内监测点位及监测区域CODMn与TOC相关性良好,水库外监测点位及监测区域CODMn与TOC相关性不显著,而整个监测区域的CODMn与总有机碳相关性令人满意。因此,提出了TOC值可直接作为饮用水源在线监测有机污染物的综合评价指标,同时也实现了湿式氧化法测定TOC在地表水监测中的应用。