Persistence and mobility of 2,4-D in unsaturated soil zone under winter wheat crop in sub-tropical region of India

The present study was undertaken to determine the persistence and mobility of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) in unsaturated soil zone under real field conditions for the wheat crop in Roorkee, India. Three experimental plots were chosen in the agricultural field itself to represent the real field conditions in the study area and the potential movement and persistence of herbicide 2,4-D was investigated under three different irrigation treatments. The presence of herbicide along with soil water content was determined in soil at different depths at a temporal scale. The movement of the herbicide was also simulated numerically by solving the coupled soil water content movement and mass transport equations using HYDRUS-1D. The measured soil water content trends and the 2,4-D concentration profiles showed a good agreement with the numerically simulated results. The maximum effect of the herbicide was primarily retained up to 15 cm of the soil profile. The current existing dosage of 0.5 kg ha⁻¹ of pesticide was found to be safe to avoid soil contamination as no residue of 2,4-D was traced at the end of the wheat crop season in any of the plots. Higher concentrations of 2,4-D were also simulated numerically and the simulated results showed that the safe dosage of pesticide application would depend on irrigation treatments.     

基于MATLAB灰色GM(1,1)模型的大气污染物浓度预测

灰色GM(1,1)预测模型是灰色理论中的重要组成部分,也是主要的预测方法之一,因此,GM(1,1)模型的应用范围很广泛。以乌鲁木齐市市区的大气环境监测数据资料为依据,在分析灰色预测模型基本原理的基础上,利用MATLAB强大的矩阵功能,实现灰色GM(1,1)模型算法。通过灰色系统GM(1,1)模型,对乌鲁木齐市未来4年的环境空气质量进行了预测分析。预测结果显示,乌鲁木齐市未来4年环境空气质量将持续好转,表明近年来乌鲁木齐市采取的产业结构调整和清洁能源战略实施卓有成效。机动车尾气已经逐渐成为目前和未来一段时间内乌鲁木齐市空气污染的主要因素之一,控制和减少车辆尾气对空气的污染不容忽视,为今后乌鲁木齐市制定大气环境规划、防治大气污染控制提供了科学依据。     

人工湖的营建及其水质改善措施——以沈阳市丁香湖为例

以沈阳市建设的第一座大型人工湖泊丁香湖为研究对象,针对丁香湖在基础设施建设、生态系统功能恢复等方面存在诸多现实问题为例,通过依势修整、科学引蓄、补水调换、人工生态浮岛和水生植物布设、局部复氧曝气和辅助的抑藻手段等综合治理措施,使丁香湖水质得到有效改善、生物多样性得到恢复。     

开顶式气室原位研究水稻汞富集对大气汞浓度升高的响应

采用开顶式气室熏气实验和土壤加汞培育实验,原位研究水稻各器官汞富集对大气汞质量浓度升高的响应关系.结果表明,水稻根中汞含量与大气汞质量浓度无显著相关性(P0.05),与土壤汞含量呈显著正相关(R=0.998 8,P0.05),表明水稻根中的汞主要来自于对土壤中汞的吸收累积.水稻茎中汞含量随大气汞质量浓度的升高呈线性增加(RB=0.964 6,RU=0.983 1,P0.05),且上部茎中汞含量高于下部茎;茎下部汞含量随土壤汞含量的升高呈线性增加(R=0.990 1,P0.05),茎上部汞含量随土壤汞含量的升高呈二次拟合增加(R=0.998 9,P0.05),且下部茎汞含量高于上部茎,说明茎汞含量受土壤和大气汞浓度的共同影响.水稻叶中汞含量与大气汞质量浓度呈显著正相关(R=0.998 5,P0.05),与土壤汞含量也有很好的线性关系(R=0.998 3,P=0.058 5),表明水稻从大气吸收的汞主要积累在叶片中,从土壤吸收的汞主要富集在根中并通过茎部向叶部传输.利用实验建立的函数关系对水稻地上生物质中汞的大气来源估算,至少60%~94%和56%~77%水稻叶和上部茎中的汞来自大气,而大气对下部茎仅贡献8%~56%.由此水稻地上部分生物质汞主要来自对大气汞的吸收,为区域大气汞的收支及汞循环模型提供理论依据.     

Gas/particle partitioning of atmospheric PCDD/Fs in a satellite town in Eastern China

Gas/particle partitioning of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in ambient air was investigated in a satellite town in Eastern China from April 2007 to January 2008 comprehending large temperature variations (from 3 to 34 °C, daily average). Molecular weight, molecular structure and ambient temperatures are the three major factors that govern the gas/particle partitioning of atmospheric PCDD/Fs throughout the year. Generally, good agreements were obtained (except for winter) between measured particulate fractions and theoretical estimates of both the Junge–Pankow adsorption model and Harner Bidleman absorption model using different sets of subcooled liquid vapor pressure and octanol–air partition coefficient (K_oa), respectively. Models utilizing estimates, derived from gas chromatographic retention indices (GC-RIs), are more accurate than that of entropy-based. Moreover, during winter, the K_oa-based model using the GC-RIs approach performs better on lower chlorinated PCDD/Fs than that of -based. Furthermore, possible sources of mismatch between measured and predicted values in winter (3–7 °C) were discussed. Gas adsorption artifact was demonstrated to be of minor importance for the phenomena observed. On the other hand, large deviations of slopes (m_r) and intercepts (b_r) in logK_p vs. plots from theoretical values are observed in the literature data and these are found to be linearly correlated with ambient temperatures (P<0.001) in this study. This indicates that the non-equilibrium partitioning of PCDD/Fs in winter may be significantly influenced by the colder temperatures that may have slowed down the exchange between gaseous and particulate fractions.     

Detection of DDT and its metabolites in two estuaries of South China using a SPME-based device: First report of p,p′-DDMU in water column

A solid-phase microextration-based sampling method was employed to determine the concentrations of 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT) and its metabolites, 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDD), 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethene (DDE) and 1-chloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethene (DDMU), in two estuarine bays, Daya Bay and Hailing Bay, of South China. Six DDT components including p,p′-DDT, o,p′-DDD, p,p′-DDD, o,p′-DDE, p,p′-DDE, and p,p′-DDMU were detected in Hailing Bay, while only p,p′-DDD was found in Daya Bay. p,p′-DDD was the most abundant DDT component in both bays, sharply different from the previous finding in the water column of the Palos Verdes Shelf, California, USA that p,p′-DDE was prevalent. In addition, the occurrence of p,p′-DDMU (with a range of 0.047-0.21 ng/L in Hailing Bay) has not been reported around the globe, and its presence in our study region appeared to stem from dehydrochlorination of p,p′-DDD, favored under aerobic conditions, but further investigations are clearly needed to confirm the mechanism for generation of DDMU in estuarine environments.     

Polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine pesticides in various bird species from northern China

Little data are available on organochlorine contamination in Chinese terrestrial birds of prey. This study examined the presence of PCBs, DDTs and other organochlorine pesticides in various raptors from northern China. DDE exhibited the highest concentrations among targeted compounds. Greatest levels (23.5-1020 mg/kg lipid weight) were observed in Eurasian sparrowhawks. This may be due to their stopover in southeastern China, where high DDT and dicofol applications have been documented. Residential kestrels exhibited much lower DDE, but similar PCB and HCH concentrations. ΣTEQs and PCB-126/-77 concentration ratios exhibited significant positive correlations with ΣPCB concentrations, respectively. Similar results were also demonstrated by a meta-analysis of previously published data across avian species. Possible hepatic sequestration of coplanar PCB-77, -126, -169 and -118 was observed as liver TEQs increased in Eurasian sparrowhawks. These observations may indicate an induction of CYP1A enzymes, as a result of elevated contamination in some species.     

The silvering process of European eel (Anguilla anguilla) influences PAH metabolite concentrations in bile fluid: consequences for monitoring

The stock of the catadromous European eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) continues to decline and there is growing evidence that poor health status due to contaminants might be a key element in this decrease. Organic contaminants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) belong to the major threats to yellow eel in their growth habitat and their metabolites are detectable in the bile. Starting the silvering process eels undergo physiological and morphological changes including cessation of feeding and downstream migration back to their spawning grounds. Reduced feed intake results in a diminishment of bile production and induces accumulation of e.g. PAH-metabolites in bile. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to demonstrate the impact of silvering on biliary PAH metabolite concentrations and to utilize normalization procedures to overcome silvering related accumulation effects of PAH-metabolites in eel bile. We investigated the hydroxyl-metabolites of pyrene (1-OH Pyr) and phenantrene (1-OH Phen) in the bile of different maturation stages of eels (silvering index I-V) from nine German rivers. We detected increasing absolute PAH metabolite levels in bile during the silvering process. The highest rise could be observed at the transition from pre migration stage III to the migrating stage IV, suggesting the onset of cessation of feeding at this stage. A cessation bias in PAH metabolite measurement could be diminished by normalization of absolute values against bile pigments (A₃₈₀, biliverdin). In conclusion, we demonstrated the impact of silvering on PAH metabolite concentrations in eel bile and present suitable normalization procedures to overcome silvering related accumulation effects. Thus, for a future eel monitoring we recommend (1) to regularly monitor PAH metabolites in bile, (2) to determine silvering index of eel and (3) to normalize PAH metabolite values in bile based on maturation/silvering stages. The knowledge of the silvering stage is mandatory for an unbiased evaluation of PAH contamination of European eel towards an international harmonized eel monitoring program.     

Structural and optical characterization of dissolved organic matter from the lower Athabasca River, Canada

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a ubiquitous constituent of natural waters and is comprised of a variety of chemically heterogeneous molecular structures and functional groups. DOM is often considered to be a major ligand for metals in most natural waters and its reactivity is thought to be strongly dependent on its chemical composition and structure. In this study, a combination of UV/visible, emission excitation matrix fluorescence (EEM) and ¹H NMR spectroscopies were used to characterize DOM from the Athabasca River (Alberta, Canada). The chemical characterization of river DOM showed that the most upstream samples located in agricultural areas were blue-shifted and less aromatic and contained more hydrogens connected with oxygen functional groups than those in the wetland dominated area in the Athabasca oil sand deposit region. The presence of paramagnetic ions (Fe and Al) was not found to significantly affect the structural composition of DOM as revealed by ¹H NMR. Such change in the quality of DOM may have a profound impact on metal binding in the Athabasca River watershed.