Effects of wavelength and water quality on photodegradation of N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA)

N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a potent carcinogen that yields a cancer risk of 10⁻⁶ at concentrations as low as 0.7 ng L⁻¹. Tentative guideline values are set at 3 ng L⁻¹ in California, USA; 9 ng L⁻¹ in Ontario, Canada; 40 ng L⁻¹ nationwide in Canada; and 100 ng L⁻¹ by the World Health Organization. NDMA is a great concern in treating reclaimed water as well as drinking water. UV degradation can be considered effective degradation method. A 1-log reduction of NDMA is achieved by 1000 mJ cm⁻² of a 254-nm low pressure (LP) mercury UV lamp. However, a higher degradation efficiency than that provided by LP lamps is desired in practical treatment. In this study, the effects of wavelength and water quality were investigated to achieve higher degradation efficiency. The effects of wavelength were examined by comparing three UV lamps: a 222-nm Kr Cl Excimer UV lamp, a 254-nm LP mercury UV lamp, and a 230- to 270-nm filtered medium pressure (FMP) mercury UV lamp. The 222-nm lamp and FMP lamp achieved 4 times and 2.8 times higher degradation efficiency, respectively, than the conventional 254-nm LP lamp. Effects on water quality were also simulated by using absorption spectrum data of nitrate solutions and process water from a drinking-water treatment plant. In the simulation, the 222-nm lamp was affected by UV-absorbing compounds in the water, whereas the FMP lamp showed more stable degradation efficiency. Appropriate use of these three types of lamps could enhance the efficiency of degradation of NDMA.     

A freshwater amphipod toxicity test based on postexposure feeding and the population consumption inhibitory concentration

Consumption inhibition in natural populations, namely due to contaminants, may have direct and immediate effects on ecosystems, by hampering ecosystem key functions (e.g., organic matter decomposition, grazing), long before effects at the individual level (e.g., reproduction, growth, emergence) have time-delayed consequences at successively higher levels of biological organization. The present study aimed at developing a cost-effective (short and easy) toxicity test based on the postexposure feeding of a freshwater amphipod present in the Iberian Peninsula and at evaluating the immediate impact of contamination on the population-level consumption rate. First, methodologies to quantify postexposure feeding were developed and optimized, the most important criterion being a feeding period as short as possible to minimize physiological recovery from the contaminant exposure. Second, the sensitivities of 48-h postexposure feeding and 48-h lethality tests were compared, using a reference chemical - copper. Third, the latter responses were integrated in a single parameter, the median population consumption inhibitory concentration. When Echinogammarus meridionalis males were fed on 100 defrosted Artemia franciscananauplii during 30 min in darkness at 19-21 °C, the eaten proportion was approximately 80%, without truncated data distributions. The 48-h median effective copper concentration for postexposure feeding was approximately two times lower than the 48-h LC50 - 91 versus 198 μg L⁻¹, respectively. Two techniques were used to quantify the median population consumption inhibitory copper concentration, both leading to similar values (75 and 68 μg L⁻¹). In conclusion, when contaminant concentrations elicit both lethality and feeding depression, the integration of both responses can provide an ecologically relevant evaluation on the potency of a contaminant to immediately disrupt ecosystem functioning.     

Influence of releases of I-129 from reprocessing plants on the marine environment of the North Adriatic Sea

Compared to the pre-nuclear era, large amounts of ¹²⁹I have been released to the marine environment, especially as liquid and gaseous discharges from two European reprocessing plants located at Sellafield and La Hague. Their liquid discharges influence Northern Europe and most research was conducted in the area of the North Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic Sea. In this article data on ¹²⁹I content and ¹²⁹I/¹²⁷I ratios observed in the North Adriatic Sea, which is a rather enclosed basin of the Mediterranean Sea, are presented. To the best of our knowledge no data on ¹²⁹I in the Mediterranean Sea have previously been reported. As this area is isolated from direct liquid discharges, the main transport pathway is probably gaseous releases from reprocessing plants. Surface sea water, the marine alga Fucus virsoides, an iodine accumulator, and the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis collected in 2009 and 2010, and marine sediment collected in 2005 and 2009 were analysed. The ¹²⁹I/¹²⁷I isotopic ratios observed were in the range from 0.8 to 3.0 × 10⁻⁰⁸ for seawater, from 0.06 to 0.35 × 10⁻⁰⁸ for marine sediment, from 0.05 to 0.10 × 10⁻⁰⁸ for F. virsoides and from 0.3 to 0.9 × 10⁻⁰⁸ for M. galloprovincialis.     

对电解铝厂周边氟污染的环境影响评价

通过测定广西某电解铝厂周边大气、土壤和农作物中氟化物含量,对该厂周边的氟化物污染进行了评价,结果表明：电解铝厂周围大气氟污染与采样点的方位成显著相关关系;农作物玉米叶片氟污染主要来自于电解铝厂无组织排放的氟化物,而土壤中总氟含量除受大气中氟化物的影响外,还与当地的地质构造、土壤类型等因素有关,与主导风向无明显的相关关系,土壤中水溶氟含量与采样点到电解铝厂距离呈负相关。     

浅谈3000t/d水泥生产线窑尾收尘系统改造

介绍了南阳航天水泥厂3000t/d水泥生产线窑尾收尘系统的改造背景、技术方案、施工方案和工程造价。改造采用了在原窑尾反吹风高温玻纤袋收尘器旁并联一台同类型单排袋式收尘器的方案,以增大窑尾袋收尘器过滤面积和降低过滤风速。该窑尾收尘系统的改造取得了明显的成效。     

浅谈燃气发电厂如何实施清洁生产

文章通过对某燃气发电厂实施安装投入运行溴冷机、改造增压机控制系统、改造厂房冷却水回收系统、改造余热锅炉尾部加装换热器、实现余热再利用等清洁生产的技术措施,实施小指标考核等清洁生产的管理措施,取得较好的节能降耗效果。这些措施为同类企业实施清洁生产提供了经验,并为企业降低能耗指标提供了技术支持。     

我国城镇污水处理厂水质监管问题及对策研究

介绍了目前我国城镇污水处理厂的发展现状以及将其作为污染源纳入监管的背景;从进水水质监管、出水水质监管和对污水处理厂内部运营管理监管的角度,结合对部分地区行政管理部门、污水处理厂的调研,分析了污水处理厂出水水质不达标的主要原因;针对我国的实际情况并借鉴国外经验,从政府部门的监管职能、政企的合作、监管技术和末端污染控制方面,给出了加强污水处理厂运行监管效果的对策。     

Tritium concentrations in the atmospheric environment at Rokkasho, Japan before the final testing of the spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant

This study aimed at obtaining background tritium concentrations in precipitation and air at Rokkasho where the first commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Japan has been under construction. Tritium concentration in monthly precipitation during fiscal years 2001-2005 had a seasonal variation pattern which was high in spring and low in summer. The tritium concentration was higher than that observed at Chiba City as a whole. The seasonal peak concentration at Rokkasho was generally higher than that at Chiba City, while the baseline concentrations of both were similar. The reason for the difference may be the effect of air mass from the Asian continent which is considered to have high tritium concentration. Atmospheric tritium was operationally separated into HTO, HT and hydrocarbon (CH₃T) fractions, and the samples collected every 3 d-14 d during fiscal year 2005 were analyzed for these fractions. The HTO concentration as radioactivity in water correlated well with that in the precipitation samples. The HT concentration was the highest among the chemical forms analyzed, followed by the HTO and CH₃T concentrations. The HT and CH₃T concentrations did not have clear seasonal variation patterns. The HT concentration followed the decline previously reported by Mason and Östlund with an apparent half-life of 4.8 y. The apparent and environmental half-lives of CH₃T were estimated as 9.2 y and 36.5 y, respectively, by combining the present data with literature data. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change used the atmospheric lifetime of 12 y for CH₄ to estimate global warming in its 2007 report. The longer environmental half-life of CH₃T suggested its supply from other sources than past nuclear weapon testing in the atmosphere.     

Growth, leaf traits and litter decomposition of roadside hybrid aspen (Populus tremula L.× P. tremuloides Michx.) clones

Road traffic contributes considerably to ground-level air pollution and is therefore likely to affect roadside ecosystems. Differences in growth and leaf traits among 13 hybrid aspen (Populus tremula × P. tremuloides) clones were studied in relation to distance from a motorway. The trees sampled were growing 15 and 30 m from a motorway and at a background rural site in southern Finland. Litter decomposition was also measured at both the roadside and rural sites. Height and diameter growth rate and specific leaf area were lowest, and epicuticular wax amount highest in trees growing 15 m from the motorway. Although no significant distance × clone interactions were detected, clone-based analyses indicated differences in genotypic responses to motorway proximity. Leaf N concentration did not differ with distance from the motorway for any of the clones. Leaf litter decomposition was only temporarily retarded in the roadside environment, suggesting minor effects on nutrient cycling.     

基于夏普里值过程的农村居民收入差距分解

认识农村居民收入差距现状并研究引致收入差距的因素,对缩小收入差距的政策制定有重要意义.本文利用内蒙古和甘肃2个省1500户农户的截面数据,采用夏普里值过程对Gini系数、Theil指数、Atkinson指数这三个不平等指标进行回归分解.分解结果稳健地发现,以县域为代理变量的外部环境因素对收入差距具有重要影响,非农劳动力、培训比和家庭男劳动力比对收入差距的相对贡献度较大,而平均年龄、家庭人口和平均教育对收入差距的相对贡献较小.作为社会网络的人情收支和作为物质资本的人均土地面积对收入差距的贡献极小.从缓解中国西部农村地区间的不平等的角度看,长期而言,支持和促进地区经济发展,增加非农就业机会,提供平等的教育和培训机会,有利于缓解收入不平等.而在城市化进程中,处理好土地问题,避免作为物质资本的土地成为引致不平等的因素,对于未来控制不平等状况有重要意义.