Biodegradation during contaminant transport in porous media: 4. Impact of microbial lag and bacterial cell growth

Miscible-displacement experiments were conducted to examine the impact of microbial lag and bacterial cell growth on the transport of salicylate, a model hydrocarbon compound. The impacts of these processes were examined separately, as well as jointly, to determine their relative effects on biodegradation dynamics. For each experiment, a column was packed with porous medium that was first inoculated with bacteria that contained the NAH plasmid encoding genes for the degradation of naphthalene and salicylate, and then subjected to a step input of salicylate solution. The transport behavior of salicylate was non-steady for all cases examined, and was clearly influenced by a delay (lag) in the onset of biodegradation. This microbial lag, which was consistent with the results of batch experiments, is attributed to the induction and synthesis of the enzymes required for biodegradation of salicylate. The effect of microbial lag on salicylate transport was eliminated by exposing the column to two successive pulses of salicylate, thereby allowing the cells to acclimate to the carbon source during the first pulse. Elimination of microbial lag effects allowed the impact of bacterial growth on salicylate transport to be quantified, which was accomplished by determining a cell mass balance. Conversely, the impact of microbial lag was further investigated by performing a similar double-pulse experiment under no-growth conditions. Significant cell elution was observed and quantified for all conditions/systems. The results of these experiments allowed us to differentiate the effects associated with microbial lag and growth, two coupled processes whose impacts on the biodegradation and transport of contaminants can be difficult to distinguish.     

Reactive transport modeling of processes controlling the distribution and natural attenuation of phenolic compounds in a deep sandstone aquifer

Reactive solute transport modeling was utilized to evaluate the potential for natural attenuation of a contaminant plume containing phenolic compounds at a chemical producer in the West Midlands, UK. The reactive transport simulations consider microbially mediated biodegradation of the phenolic compounds (phenols, cresols, and xylenols) by multiple electron acceptors. Inorganic reactions including hydrolysis, aqueous complexation, dissolution of primary minerals, formation of secondary mineral phases, and ion exchange are considered. One-dimensional (1D) and three-dimensional (3D) simulations were conducted. Mass balance calculations indicate that biodegradation in the saturated zone has degraded approximately 1-5% of the organic contaminant plume over a time period of 47 years. Simulations indicate that denitrification is the most significant degradation process, accounting for approximately 50% of the organic contaminant removal, followed by sulfate reduction and fermentation reactions, each contributing 15-20%. Aerobic respiration accounts for less than 10% of the observed contaminant removal in the saturated zone. Although concentrations of Fe(III) and Mn(IV) mineral phases are high in the aquifer sediment, reductive dissolution is limited, producing only 5% of the observed mass loss. Mass balance calculations suggest that no more than 20-25% of the observed total inorganic carbon (TIC) was generated from biodegradation reactions in the saturated zone. Simulations indicate that aerobic biodegradation in the unsaturated zone, before the contaminant entered the aquifer, may have produced the majority of the TIC observed in the plume. Because long-term degradation is limited to processes within the saturated zone, use of observed TIC concentrations to predict the future natural attenuation may overestimate contaminant degradation by a factor of 4-5.     

Ozone patterns for three metropolitan statistical areas in North Carolina, USA

As part of an effort by the state of North Carolina to develop a State Implementation Plan (SIP) for 1-h peak ozone control, a network of ozone stations was established to monitor surface ozone concentrations across the state. Between 19 and 23 ozone stations made continuous surface measurements between 1993 and 1995 surrounding three major metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Raleigh/Durham (RDU), Charlotte/Mecklenburg (CLT), and Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem (GSO). Statistical averages of the meteorological and ozone data were performed at each Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) to study trends and/or relationships on high ozone days (days in which one of the MSA sites measured an hourly ozone concentration90.0 ppbv). County emission maps of precursor gases, wind roses, total area averages of ozone, total downwind averages of ozone deviations, upwind averages of ozone, and a modified delta ozone analysis were all obtained and analyzed. The results of this study show a reduction in the delta ozone relative to an earlier study at RDU, but no average significant change at CLT (no comparison can be made for GSO). The statistical data analyses in this study are used to quantify the importance of local contributions and regional transport, to ozone air pollution in the MSAs.     

On the hydro-dispersive equivalence between multi-layered mineral barriers

In the context of municipal solid waste and hazardous waste disposal, the notion of "equivalence" between different barrier designs appears in regulatory documents from several industrialized countries. While in the past, equivalence has been thought of mainly in terms of contaminant travel times, in recent years it has been defined more in terms of the magnitude of a disposal site's potential impact on groundwater resources. This paper presents some original analytical solutions to the problem of contaminant migration through a multi-layered mineral barrier. The solutions account for the two major mechanisms of subsurface contaminant migration, namely, advection and diffusion-dispersion. An example application using the proposed solutions and a numerical model illustrates how one multi-layered mineral barrier can be considered superior to another from a strictly hydro-dispersive viewpoint. The influence of partial saturation of the mineral barrier is investigated using a numerical solution to the Richards equation for unsaturated flow. It is emphasized that conclusions relative to the superiority of one multi-layered barrier, with respect to another, should not only consider hydro-dispersive aspects, but also other processes such as the mechanical and chemical evolutions of the different barrier components. Although such phenomena are poorly addressed by existing models, failure to take them into account, at least in a qualitative fashion, may lead to unconservative conclusions with respect to barrier equivalence.     

Intercomparison of reactive transport models applied to UO2 oxidative dissolution and uranium migration

Oxidative dissolution of uranium dioxide (UO₂) and the subsequent migration of uranium in a subsurface environment and an underground waste disposal have been simulated with reactive transport models. In these systems, hydrogeological and chemical processes are closely entangled and their interdependency has been analyzed in detail, notably with respect to redox reactions, kinetics of mineralogical evolution and hydrodynamic migration of species of interest.Different codes, where among CASTEM, CHEMTRAP and HYTEC, have been used as an intercomparison and verification exercise. Although the agreement between codes is satisfactory, it is shown that the discretization method of the transport equation (i.e. finite elements (FE) versus mixed-hybrid FE and finite differences) and the sequential coupling scheme may lead to systematic discrepancies.     

Transport modeling of copper and cadmium with linear and nonlinear retardation factors

The predictive accuracy of using the one-dimensional advection–dispersion equation to evaluate the fate and transport of solute in a soil column is usually dependent on the proper determination of chemical retardation factors. Typically, the distribution coefficient (K_d) obtained by fitting the linear sorption isotherm has been extensively used to consider general geochemical reactions on solute transport in a low-concentration range. However, the linear distribution coefficient cannot be adequately utilized to describe the solute fate at a higher concentration level. This study employed the nonlinear equilibrium-controlled sorption parameters to determine the retardation factor used in column leaching experiments. Copper and cadmium transportation in a lateritic silty-clay soil column was examined. Through the explicit finite-difference calculations with a third-order total-variation-diminishing (TVD) numerical solution scheme, all results of the theoretical copper and cadmium breakthrough curves (BTCs) simulated by using the Freundlich nonlinear retardation factors revealed good agreement with the experimental observations.     

大型运输机水上迫降动力学分析及模型验证

目的 完善大型运输机水上迫降分析方法,提高分析精度。方法 以有限元和SPH方法为基础,开展大型运输机水上迫降动力学仿真。基于冯.卡门经典入水冲击理论,构造大型运输机机身底部吸力模型,提出基于工程修正的水上迫降动响应分析方法,并通过试验验证。结果 通过分析得出,飞机接水后,机头迅速上扬,俯仰角达到峰值后,机头向下运动,俯仰角逐渐减小,分析得到的飞机姿态变化与试验的变化趋势基本一致。结论 水上迫降模型试验表明,分析误差能够满足工程设计要求。     

三峡库区社区水平乡村路网对森林景观变化的影响

人为扰动是短时空尺度内森林景观变化或用途转换的主要动力,而乡村路网则成为人为扰动拓展的主要通道。基于1992、2002、2014年三峡库区重庆市石柱县西沱镇3期遥感影像和实地调研数据,在ArcGIS平台支持下,研究社区水平乡村路网对森林景观变化的影响。结果表明：1）1992—2014年研究区乡村路网影响域内次生林、退化林地和耕地的动态变化较显著,集中分布在中西部平坦区。1992—2002年乡村路网缓冲区内森林景观整体呈退化趋势,退化类型以次生林→退化林地、次生林→耕地、退化林地→耕地为主,演化量达1 705.91 hm²;2002—2014年乡村路网缓冲区内森林景观主要呈恢复趋势,恢复类型以耕地→退化林地、耕地→次生林、退化林地→次生林和原始林→退化原始林为主,演化量达1 674.52 hm²。2）相比发现,前一时期研究区乡村路网长度的增加和路网材质的提升很大程度上驱动森林景观的退化,而后一时期低等级路段的消失、废弃或利用率的降低则有助于森林景观的恢复,消失路段恢复率近100%。3）研究有助于丰富人们对社区水平乡村路网影响森林景观变化的理解与认识,为生态文明建设中合理规划乡村路网提供科学依据。     

Long-term observations of tropospheric NO2, SO2 and HCHO by MAX-DOAS in Yangtze River Delta area, China

Yangtze River Delta(YRD) area is one of the important economic zones in China. However,this area faces increasing environmental problems. In this study, we use ground-based multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy(MAX-DOAS) network in Eastern China to retrieve variations of NO_2, SO_2, and formaldehyde(HCHO) in the YRD area. Three cities of YRD(Hefei, Nanjing, and Shanghai) were selected for long-term observations. This paper presents technical performance and characteristics of instruments, their distribution in YRD, and results of vertical column densities(VCDs) and profiles of NO_2, SO_2, and HCHO.Average diurnal variations of tropospheric NO_2 and SO_2 in different seasons over the three stations yielded minimum values at noon or in the early afternoon, whereas tropospheric HCHO reached the maximum during midday hours. Slight reduction of the pollutants in weekends occurred in all the three sites. In general trace gas concentrations gradually reduced from Shanghai to Hefei. Tropospheric VCDs of NO_2, SO_2, and HCHO were compared with those from Ozone Monitoring Instrument(OMI) satellite observations, resulting in R~2 of 0.606, 0.5432, and 0.5566, respectively. According to analysis of regional transports of pollutants, pollution process happened in YRD under the north wind with the pollution dissipating in the southeast wind. The feature is significant in exploring transport of tropospheric trace gas pollution in YRD, and provides basis for satellite and model validation.     

基于IVE模型和大数据分析的杭州市道路移动源主要温室气体排放清单研究

利用IVE模型和对杭州市机动车排放管理数据库大数据的分析,得到杭州市2015年各类机动车主要温室气体高分辨率排放清单,分析了排放分担情况及时间变化特征,并利用Arc GIS及杭州市路网信息建立了1 km×1 km网格化空间分布.结果表明,杭州市道路移动源温室气体排放中CO_2、CH_4和N_2O的年排放量分别为818.11×10~4、0.85×10~4和0.07×10~4t,合计856.79×10~4t(以CO2当量计).从温室气体种类来看,CO_2占道路移动源温室气体排放总量的绝大部分,为95.5%;从机动车类型来看,小微型客车对道路移动源温室气体排放的贡献率最大,占72.8%;从道路类型的排放情况来看,杭州市市中心、城区、城郊和郊区中温室气体合计CO_2当量贡献率最高的均为主干路,分别为43.4%、61.8%、58.0%和42.4%.杭州市道路移动源温室气体排放强度均呈现由城市中心向城市边缘递减的趋势,同时温室气体排放量日变化特征明显,均出现弱双峰现象.