5:3 Polyfluorinated acid aerobic biotransformation in activated sludge via novel "one-carbon removal pathways"

The polyfluorinated carboxylic acids 5:3 acid (C₅F₁₁CH₂CH₂CO₂H) and 7:3 acid (C₇F₁₅CH₂CH₂CO₂H) are major products from 6:2 FTOH (C₆F₁₃CH₂CH₂OH) and 8:2 FTOH (C₈F₁₇CH₂CH₂OH) aerobic biotransformation, respectively. The 5:3 and 7:3 acids were dosed into domestic WWTP activated sludge for 90 d to determine their biodegradability. The 7:3 acid aerobic biodegradability was low, only 1.7 mol% conversion to perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), whereas no transformation was observed previously in soil. In stark contrast, 5:3 acid aerobic biodegradability was enhanced 10 times in activated sludge compared to soil. The 5:3 acid was not activated by acyl CoEnzyme A (CoA) synthetase, a key step required for further α- or ß-oxidation. Instead, 5:3 acid was directly converted to 4:3 acid (C₄F₉CH₂CH₂CO₂H, 14.2 mol%) and 3:3 acid (C₃F₇CH₂CH₂CO₂H, 0.9 mol%) via “one-carbon removal pathways”. The 5:3 acid biotransformation also yielded perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA, 5.9 mol%) and perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA, 0.8 mol%). This is the first report to identify key biotransformation intermediates which demonstrate novel one-carbon removal pathways with sequential removal of CF₂ groups. Identified biotransformation intermediates (10.2 mol% in sum) were 5:3 Uacid, α-OH 5:3 acid, 5:2 acid, and 5:2 Uacid. The 5:2 Uacid and 5:2 acid are novel intermediates identified for the first time which confirm the proposed pathways. In the biodegradation pathways, the genesis of the one carbon removal is CO₂ elimination from α-OH 5:3 acid. These results suggest that there are enzymatic mechanisms available in the environment that can lead to 6:2 FTOH and 5:3 acid mineralization. The dehydrogenation from 5:3 acid to 5:3 Uacid was the rate-limiting enzymatic step for 5:3 acid conversion to 4:3 acid.     

Volatile organic compounds at swine facilities: A critical review

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are regulated aerial pollutants that have environmental and health concerns. Swine operations produce and emit a complex mixture of VOCs with a wide range of molecular weights and a variety of physicochemical properties. Significant progress has been made in this area since the first experiment on VOCs at a swine facility in the early 1960s. A total of 47 research institutions in 15 North American, European, and Asian countries contributed to an increasing number of scientific publications. Nearly half of the research papers were published by U.S. institutions.Investigated major VOC sources included air inside swine barns, in headspaces of manure storages and composts, in open atmosphere above swine wastewater, and surrounding swine farms. They also included liquid swine manure and wastewater, and dusts inside and outside swine barns. Most of the sample analyses have been focusing on identification of VOC compounds and their relationship with odors. More than 500 VOCs have been identified. About 60% and 10% of the studies contributed to the quantification of VOC concentrations and emissions, respectively. The largest numbers of VOC compounds with reported concentrations in a single experimental study were 82 in air, 36 in manure, and 34 in dust samples.The relatively abundant VOC compounds that were quantified in at least two independent studies included acetic acid, butanoic acid (butyric acid), dimethyl disulfide, dimethyl sulfide, iso-valeric, p-cresol, propionic acid, skatole, trimethyl amine, and valeric acid in air. They included acetic acid, p-cresol, iso-butyric acid, butyric acid, indole, phenol, propionic acid, iso-valeric acid, and skatole in manure. In dust samples, they were acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, p-cresol, hexanal, and decanal. Swine facility VOCs were preferentially bound to smaller-size dusts.Identification and quantification of VOCs were restricted by using instruments based on gas Chromatography (GC) and liquid chromatography (LC) with different detectors most of which require time-consuming procedures to obtain results. Various methodologies and technologies in sampling, sample preparation, and sample analysis have been used. Only four publications reported using GC based analyzers and PTR-MS (proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry) that allowed continuous VOC measurement. Because of this, the majority of experimental studies were only performed on limited numbers of air, manure, or dust samples. Many aerial VOCs had concentrations that were too low to be identified by the GC peaks.Although VOCs emitted from swine facilities have environmental concerns, only a few studies investigated VOC emission rates, which ranged from 3.0 to 176.5 mg d⁻¹ kg⁻¹ pig at swine finishing barns and from 2.3 to 45.2 g d⁻¹ m⁻² at manure storages. Similar to the other pollutants, spatial and temporal variations of aerial VOC concentrations and emissions existed and were significantly affected by manure management systems, barn structural designs, and ventilation rates.Scientific research in this area has been mainly driven by odor nuisance, instead of environment or health concerns. Compared with other aerial pollutants in animal agriculture, the current scientific knowledge about VOCs at swine facilities is still very limited and far from sufficient to develop reliable emission factors.     

Cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes in fish from the Baltic Sea

Laboratory studies suggest that the cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes (cVMS) octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) will persist in the aquatic environment and bioaccumulate in fish. Here these cVMS were measured in herring collected in the Swedish waters of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea and in grey seals from the Baltic Proper. D4, D5, and D6 were present in herring muscle at concentrations around 10, 200, and 40 ng g⁻¹ lipid weight, respectively. The ratio of these concentrations was similar to the relative magnitude of estimated emissions to water, suggesting that the efficiency of overall transfer through the environment and food web was similar (within a factor 2–3) for the three chemicals. The concentrations of D5 and D6 were similar in herring caught in the highly populated Baltic Proper and in the less populated Bothnian Sea and Bothnian Bay. The D4 concentrations were lower at the most remote northern station, suggesting that D4 is less persistent than D5 and D6. Herring from the North Sea had lower levels of all three chemicals. The concentrations of D4, D5 and D6 in grey seal blubber were lower than the lipid normalized concentrations in herring, indicating that they do not biomagnify in grey seals.     

Junge relationships in measurement data for cyclic siloxanes in air

In 1974, Junge postulated a relationship between variability of concentrations of gases in air at remote locations and their atmospheric residence time, and this Junge relationship has subsequently been observed empirically for a range of trace gases. Here, we analyze two previously-published datasets of concentrations of cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) in air and find Junge relationships in both. The first dataset is a time series of concentrations of decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D₅) measured between January and June, 2009 at a rural site in southern Sweden that shows a Junge relationship in the temporal variability of the measurements. The second dataset consists of measurements of hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D₃), octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D₄) and D₅ made simultaneously at 12 sites in the Global Atmospheric Passive Sampling (GAPS) network that shows a Junge relationship in the spatial variability of the three cVMS congeners. We use the Junge relationship for the GAPS dataset to estimate atmospheric lifetimes of dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D₆), 8:2–fluorotelomer alcohol and trichlorinated biphenyls that are within a factor of 3 of estimates based on degradation rate constants for reaction with hydroxyl radical determined in laboratory studies.     

Linking empirical estimates of body burden of environmental chemicals and wellness using NHANES data

Biomonitoring of industrial chemicals in human tissues and fluids has shown that all people carry a “body burden” of synthetic chemicals. Although measurement of an environmental chemical in a person's tissues/fluids is an indication of exposure, it does not necessarily mean the exposure concentration is sufficient to cause an adverse effect. Since humans are exposed to multiple chemicals, there may be a combination effect (e.g., additive, synergistic) associated with low-level exposures to multiple classes of contaminants, which may impact a variety of organ systems. The objective of this research is to link measures of body burden of environmental chemicals and a “holistic” measure of wellness. The approach is demonstrated using biomonitoring data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES). Forty-two chemicals were selected for analysis based on their detection levels. Six biological pathway-specific indices were evaluated using groups of chemicals associated with each pathway. Five of the six pathways were negatively associated with wellness. Three non-zero interaction terms were detected which may provide empirical evidence of crosstalk across pathways. The approach identified five of the 42 chemicals from a variety of classes (metals, pesticides, furans, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) as accounting for 71% of the weight linking body burden to wellness. Significant interactions were detected indicating the effect of smoking is exacerbated by body burden of environmental chemicals. Use of a holistic index on both sides of the exposure-health equation is a novel and promising empirical “systems biology” approach to risk evaluation of complex environmental exposures.     

负载V2O5-WO3/TiO2掺炭纤维脱除烟气中Hg0

通过固定床实验系统研究烟气脱除零价汞的实验,首先研究了滤袋常用的聚苯硫醚（polyphenylene sulfide,PPS）以及活性炭纤维（activated carbon fiber,ACF）在不同温度、不同气体组分下负载V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂催化剂,对模拟燃煤烟气中零价汞（Hg⁰）的脱除效果。然后对比研究了活性炭纤维协同滤袋常用纤维负载催化剂后,对模拟燃煤烟气中Hg⁰的脱除性能。结果表明,在汞蒸气入口浓度为50 μg/m³,纯N₂气氛下,当温度为25℃时,两者脱除率均能达到99%,当温度为200℃,负载催化剂的活性炭纤维脱除率在30%左右,PPS纤维仅为10%左右。在200℃情况下,模拟烟气的组分为N₂+O₂时,2种纤维的Hg⁰脱除率提高了10%~20%,当在混合气体中添加0.01‰后,负载催化剂的PPS纤维Hg⁰脱除率能达到80%,活性炭纤维Hg⁰脱除率能达到98%。当温度为200℃,模拟烟气的组分为N₂+O₂+HCl时,不同性能掺炭纤维负载催化剂后Hg⁰脱除率在69%~95%范围之间变化,其中PPS掺炭纤维对Hg⁰脱除效率最高达到95%,因此,负载V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂催化剂的PPS掺炭纤维能在高温烟气中保持较高的Hg⁰脱除率。     

菌株RB5-M1脱色活性黑5的动力学及固定化条件

通过研究嗜水气单胞菌RB5-M1菌株对活性黑5的脱色过程,探讨了菌株脱色不同初始浓度的活性黑5的动力学模型,并从机械强度、包埋量和渗漏量3个方面,对菌株的固定化条件进行了优化。结果表明,当初始染料浓度为50、100、150、200、250和300 mg/L时,菌株脱色活性黑5的动力学过程均更为符合Monod零级反应模型。当冷却温度为30℃、PVA与海藻酸钠浓度比为10∶1、氯化钙浓度为2%、明胶浓度0.2%时,可以获得机械强度较好、包埋量较多的固定化颗粒。当氯化钙浓度2%、明胶浓度0.3%、PVA与海藻酸钠浓度9∶2、冷却温度20℃,可获得渗漏量较少的固定化颗粒。     

自制ZSM-5分子筛对甲苯气体的吸附-脱附性能

考察了自制ZSM-5分子筛对甲苯气体的吸附-脱附性能,并与市售MCM-22分子筛进行了对比实验。实验结果表明:在吸附温度为25℃、进口甲苯质量浓度为840mg/m3、吸附气体流速为0.016m/s、床层高度为15cm的条件下,出口甲苯质量浓度达到0.8mg/m3时的穿透时间为82min,吸附效率为4.26mg/g;在脱附温度为80℃、脱附气体流速为0.016m/s的条件下,脱附35min时出口甲苯质量浓度达到最大,为1220mg/m3。自制ZSM-5分子筛的吸附-脱附性能优于市售MCM-22分子筛。     

脱硝性能V2O5-WO3-CeO2/TiO2催化剂的制备及其

采用一步浸渍法和分步浸渍法分别制备了V_2O_5-WO_3-CeO_2/TiO_2催化剂,考查了其脱硝性能、抗SO_2中毒性能和脱硝活性稳定性,并通过SEM、EDS、XRD、激光拉曼等技术对催化剂进行了表征。实验结果表明:分步浸渍法制备的催化剂的脱硝活性优于一步浸渍法,且抗SO_2中毒能力更强;在m(V_2O_5)∶m(WO_3)∶m(CeO_2)∶m(TiO_2)=1∶5∶10∶100时催化剂脱硝活性最佳,且具有良好的脱硝活性稳定性。表征结果显示,分步浸渍法与一步浸渍法制备的催化剂晶型结构相差不大,而分步浸渍法制备的催化剂颗粒粒径更小、更均匀,催化剂中Ce、O、V和W元素的含量更高。     

旋转填充床中Fenton+O_3氧化降解模拟阿莫西林废水

以旋转填充床(RPB)作为反应装置,研究了Fenton工艺与Fenton+O3工艺处理模拟阿莫西林废水的效果,考察了FeSO4·7H2O的投加量、温度、旋转床转速、液体流量及pH对COD去除率的影响。实验表明,Fenton+O3工艺的COD脱除率及BOD5/COD相对于Fenton工艺分别提升26.7%和140%。该工艺在pH为3、温度为25℃、液体流量30 L/h、气体流量2.5 L/h、转速800 r/min、H2O2的投加量为1 mmol/L及Fe2+投加量为0.4 mmol/L的条件下,100 mg/L的模拟阿莫西林废水中COD的去除率达到57.9%,BOD5/COD从0增加到0.36,满足后续生化处理要求。