Screening Capsicum chinense fruits for heavy metals bioaccumulation

Elevated concentrations of heavy metals in edible plants could expose consumers to excessive levels of potentially hazardous chemicals. Sixty-three accessions (genotypes) of Capsicum chinense Jacq, collected from 8 countries of origin were grown in a silty-loam soil under field conditions. At maturity, fruits were collected and analyzed for seven heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cu, and Mo) concentrations. The main objectives of this investigation were: 1) to determine the concentrations of seven heavy metals in the soil and monitor their accumulation in mature fruits, 2) to categorize the pepper accessions as low or high heavy metal accumulators, and 3) to determine if heavy metal content of the pepper fruit was lower than the permitted limits. Concentrations and relative proportions of heavy metals in pepper fruits of C. chinense varied among accessions. Fruits of Plant Introduction (PI) 355820 accumulated significant concentrations of Cd (0.47 μ g g^?1dry fruit). PI-260522 accumulated the highest concentration of Pb (2.12 μ g g^?1 dry fruit) among the 63 accessions tested. This accession (PI-260522) contained about twice the Pb limit on a fresh weight basis. Among the 63 accessions analyzed, PI-238051 contained the highest levels of Ni (17.2 μ g g^?1). We concluded that high accumulator genotypes may be useful for phytoremediation, while, low accumulator accessions might be appropriate selections for growing on Cd-, Pb-, or Ni-contaminated soils to prevent potential human exposure to heavy metals and health hazards through the food chain.     

改性多壁碳纳米管对水中Cd~（2＋）的去除

为了增加多壁碳纳米管（multiwall carbon nanotubers,MWNTs）对水中Cd2＋的吸附量,使用混酸对多壁碳纳米管进行氧化处理,采用红外光谱进行结果表征,并探讨了吸附时间、pH值和MWNTs的使用量、Cd2＋的浓度及干扰离子对镉离子吸附的影响。结果表明,吸附时间为1.5 h、pH为5.3、吸附效果最佳,随MWNTs量的增加Cd2＋去除量增加,共存的阳离子会降低对Cd2＋的吸附效果,对Cd2＋的吸附符合Longmuir吸附定律。研究同时表明,pH小于2时Cd2＋能容易从碳纳米管上解吸。初步探讨了Cd2＋吸附机制。     

Fe3O4/SDS磁性纳米颗粒吸附水体中的Cd2+和Zn2+

一种新型纳米固相萃取吸附剂,由阴离子表面活性剂十二烷基磺酸钠(SDS)包裹在Fe3O4磁性纳米颗粒表面形成,用于吸附水溶液中的重金属离子。研究了吸附过程的主要影响因素(如SDS浓度、溶液pH等)以及解吸过程的最佳条件,并对其机理进行了初步的探讨。研究结果表明,共沉淀法制备的Fe3O4颗粒粒径分布均匀,平均粒径约为54 nm;SDS浓度为300 mg/L时,Fe3O4/SDS磁性纳米颗粒吸附Cd2+和Zn2+的能力最强;在一定浓度范围内,Fe3O4/SDS体系对Cd2+和Zn2+的吸附平衡数据符合Langmuir吸附等温方程,饱和吸附量分别为22.42 mg/g和13.95 mg/g。最终结果表明,Fe3O4/SDS磁性纳米颗粒具有较强磁分离能力和较好的吸附效果。     

一株产絮酵母菌废菌体对Cd2+的吸附特性

将一株产絮酵母菌(编号B-02号)发酵后的废菌体制成生物吸附剂,研究该生物吸附剂对废水中Cd2+的生物吸附特性。结果表明:(1)pH值对Cd2+会产生较大的影响,偏酸性(pH=4～6)条件利于吸附;该吸附剂对Cd2+吸附速率较快,8～10 min就可达到吸附平衡;(2)吸附剂的吸附动力学符合二级动力学模型,吸附Cd2+的实验数据对Langmuir等温式的拟合情况良好,吸附剂吸附Cd2+的最大吸附量为70.752 mg/g。用0.5 mol/L HNO3对吸附Cd2+的酵母菌进行解吸,解吸率可达89.7%。     

湘江株洲段丰水期镉污染负荷总量测算及分配

以2010年8月湘江干流株洲段代表性断面水质与底泥监测资料以及其他资料为基础,采用WASP7模型模拟该江段丰水期镉浓度,并进行镉污染负荷测算与分配。研究结果表明,WASP7模型较好地重现了镉浓度的变化规律,8月份该河段上游镉入流量2 446.33 kg,下游出流量3 076.44 kg,区间增量630.12 kg,其中点源负荷量241.67 kg,占38.4%,面源负荷量304.49 kg,占48.3%,内源负荷量为83.96 kg,占13.3%。     

萃取净化电镀含镉废水

研究了二壬基萘磺酸(DNNSA)形成的微乳液从模拟含镉废水中萃取镉离子的工艺条件。分别考察了相体积比(O/A)、萃取时间、温度及萃取剂浓度对废水中镉离子萃取的影响。结果表明,萃取平衡时间为10 mim,降低温度及增加萃取剂浓度均有利于萃取。紫外光谱证实当DNNSA萃取镉时,所形成萃合物对萘环的结构无影响,且不会破坏微乳相的结构;分子荧光光谱表明镉离子对配体DNNSA有荧光猝灭作用。     

Pigou meets Mirrlees: On the irrelevance of tax distortions for the second-best Pigouvian tax

This paper extends the Mirrlees (1971) model of optimal income redistribution with optimal corrective taxes to internalize consumption externalities. Using general utility structures and exploring both linear and non-linear taxes, it is demonstrated that the optimal second-best tax on an externality-generating good should not be corrected for the marginal cost of public funds, since it equals one in the optimal tax system. In the optimum, distortions of income taxes are equal to marginal redistributional gains. If the government does not have access to a non-distortionary marginal source of finance, the marginal cost of public funds can be either larger or smaller than one depending on subjective preferences for income redistribution. The optimal second-best corrective tax is then either higher or lower than the Pigouvian level. The findings in this paper generalize and amend prior results based on representative-agent models, shedding new light on the weak double-dividend hypothesis, and on the welfare gains of recycling revenue from environmental taxes.     

Biofilm-overproducing Bacillus subtilis B12ΔYwcc decreases Cd uptake in Chinese cabbage through increasing Cd-immobilizing related gene abundance and root surface colonization

Biofilm-producing bacteria can decrease Cd uptake in vegetables, but mechanisms underlying this effect are poorly characterized. In this study, two mutant strains B12ΔYwcc and B12ΔSlrR were constructed from a biofilm-producing Bacillus subtilis strain B12. Then, the impacts of strain B12 and its high biofilm-producing mutant strain B12ΔYwcc and low biofilm-producing mutant strain B12ΔSlrR on Cd availability and uptake in Chinese cabbage and the related mechanisms were investigated in the Cd-polluted soil. Strain B12 and its mutants B12ΔYwcc and B12ΔSlrR increased the dry biomasses of edible tissues by 54%–130% compared with the controls. Strain B12 and its mutant B12ΔYwcc reduced the soil available Cd content by 36%–50% and root and edible tissue Cd contents by 23%–50% compared with the controls. Furthermore, the mutant strain B12ΔYwcc reduced the edible tissue Cd content by 40% and increased the polysaccharide content by 23%, invertase activity by 139%, and gene copies of the cumA by 4.5-fold, epsA by 7.1-fold, and cadA by 4.3-fold, which were involved in Cd adsorption in the rhizosphere soils, respectively, compared with strain B12. The polysaccharide content and cumA, epsA, and cadA gene copy numbers showed significantly reverse correlations with the available Cd content. Notably, the mutant strain B12ΔYwcc showed better ability to colonize the vegetable root surface than strain B12. These findings demonstrated that the biofilm-overproducing mutant strain B12ΔYwcc increased the polysaccharide production and Cd-immobilizing related cumA, epsA, and cadA gene copies, resulting in lower Cd availability and accumulation in Chinese cabbage in the Cd-polluted soil.     

Cultivar-dependent rhizobacteria community and cadmium accumulation in rice: Effects on cadmium availability in soils and iron-plaque formation

The association between the rhizospheric microbial community and Cd accumulation in rice is poorly understood. A field trial was conducted to investigate the different rhizobacterial communities of two rice cultivars with high Cd accumulation (HA) and low Cd accumulation (LA) at four growth stages. Results showed that the Cd content in the roots of the HA cultivar was 1.23 - 27.53 higher than that of the LA cultivar (0.08 - 10.5 µg/plant) at four stages. The LA cultivar had a significantly lower Cd availability in rhizosphere and a higher quantity of iron plaque (IP) on the root surface than the HA cultivar at four stages. This resulted in the reduction of Cd concentration in IPs and Cd translocation from IP-to-root. Microbial analysis indicated that the LA cultivar formed a distinct rhizobacterial community from the HA cultivar and had less α-diversity. The rhizosphere of the LA cultivar was enriched in specific bacterial taxa (e.g., Massilia and Bacillus) involved in Cd immobilization by phosphate precipitation and IP formation by iron oxidization. However, the rhizosphere in the HA cultivar assembled abundant sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (e.g., Sulfuricurvum) and iron reduction bacteria (Geobacter). They promoted Cd mobilization and reduced IP formation via the metal redox process. This study reveals a potential approach in which specific rhizobacteria decrease or increase Cd accumulation in rice on contaminated soil and provides a new perspective for secure rice production.