A combined process coupling phytoremediation and in situ flushing for removal of arsenic in contaminated soil

Phytoremediation and soil washing are both potentially useful for remediating arsenic(As)-contaminated soils.We evaluated the effectiveness of a combined process coupling phytoremediation and in situ soil flushing for removal of As in contaminated soil through a pilot study.The results showed that growing Pteris vittata L.(P.v.) accompanied by soil flushing of phosphate(P.v./Flushing treatment) could significantly decrease the total As concentration of soil over a 37 day flushing period compared with the single flushing(Flushing treatment).The P.v./Flushing treatment removed 54.04% of soil As from contaminated soil compared to 47.16% in Flushing treatment,suggesting that the growth of P.vittata was beneficial for promoting the removal efficiency.We analyzed the As fractionation in soil and As concentration in soil solution to reveal the mechanism behind this combined process.Results showed that comparing with the control treatment,the percent of labile arsenate fraction significantly increased by 17% under P.v./Flushing treatment.As concentration in soil solution remained a high lever during the middle and later periods(51.26–56.22 mg/L),which was significantly higher than the Flushing treatment.Although soil flushing of phosphate for more than a month,P.vittata still had good accumulation and transfer capacity of As of the soil.The results of the research revealed that combination of phytoremediation and in situ soil flushing is available to remediate As-contaminated soils.     

Sustainable development principles for the disposal of mining and mineral processing wastes

This paper examines the minerals industry's response to sustainable development in the area of waste disposal and argues that leadership and guidance are still needed to forge collective agreement on norms and standards of practise. To encourage further debate, the paper develops a set of sustainable development principles for the disposal of mining and mineral processing wastes, and discusses the implications for current and future practise. In practise, the principles can guide waste disposal decisions through the consideration of what risk and magnitude, in any given local context, a particular management solution poses to their application. The sustainability challenge in the management of tailings and waste rock is to dispose of material, such that it is inert or, if not, stable and contained, to minimise water and energy inputs and the surface footprint of wastes and to move toward finding alternate uses. Future trends in mining and processing may compound the challenges of waste management, as lower ore grades increase the ratio of waste produced for a given unit of resource, and emphasise the urgency and need for the industry to adopt new approaches. New technologies and innovations, such as thickened tailings, dry stacking and paste backfill, have greatly increased the waste disposal methods available to meet the future challenges to sustainable development.     

盐生小藜对碱性土壤的修复作用研究

以碱性植物小藜为研究对象,在威海市高区玛珈山上提取实验组与对照组的土壤,分别测定能够描述土壤性质数据,通过比较实验组、对照组以及培养组中土壤颗粒关于空气体积、贮水能力、有机质含量、pH值之间的不同,分析得出盐生植物小藜对盐碱土具有修复作用.结合实际情况讨论在海边盐碱地上种植小藜的意义,为其他盐生植物的研究提供依据.     

入侵物种三裂叶蟛蜞菊挥发物对杂草叶绿素含量的影响

研究了华南地区外来入侵植物三裂叶蟛蜞菊(Wedelia trilobata L.)挥发物对本地区3种主要杂草的叶绿素含量的影响,以揭示其化感作用的机理。结果表明:三裂叶蟛蜞菊植株挥发物和挥发油对稗草(Echinochloa crusgalli(L.)Beauv.)、三叶鬼针草(Bidens pilosa L.)和青葙(Celosia argentea L.)叶绿素含量有明显的抑制作用。在同一实验条件下,250.0 g三裂叶蟛蜞菊新鲜茎叶及含有0.10 mL、0.25 mL和0.50 mL挥发油容器中生长的稗草、三叶鬼针草和青葙的叶绿素含量明显减少,稗草的叶绿素含量分别比对照减少56.5%、41.9%、49.6%和64.9%;三叶鬼针草的叶绿素含量分别比对照减少6.45%、4.35%、15.3%和24.8%;青葙的叶绿素含量分别比对照减少53.3%、17.6%、33.3%和71.5%。结论:三裂叶蟛蜞菊挥发物的化感作用可使受体植物的叶绿素含量减少。其作用机理值得深入研究。     

The terms of trade debate and the policy implications for primary product producers

The terms of trade debate initiated by Raul Prebisch and Hans Singer over 60 years ago continues to this day and is unlikely to be resolved soon. However, even if Prebisch and Singer are right and the terms of trade of countries exporting primary products are falling, to suggest that these countries should diversify away from the production of mineral commodities and other primary products, as many have done, may be poor policy advice, encouraging countries to abandon a promising source of wealth with which to foster economic development.     

Lithium availability in the EU27 for battery-driven vehicles: The impact of recycling and substitution on the confrontation between supply and demand until2050

The adverse impacts of climate change are widely recognized as well as the importance of the mitigation of carbon dioxide (CO₂). Battery driven vehicles are expected to have a bright future, since GHG emissions can be reduced. Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries appear to be the most promising, due to their high energy density. Recently, the discussion concerning adequate lithium carbonate (Li₂CO₃) resources is resolved. The current challenge is the needed increase in flow rate of Li₂CO₃ into society to foresee in forecasted demand. This research determines ten factors which influence the availability of Li-ion batteries for the EU27 in the coming decades. They are used in a system dynamics analysis. The results of this research show that undersupply can be expected in the EU27 until 2045 somewhere between 0.5 Mt and 2.8 Mt. Substitution of Li₂CO₃ in other end-use markets and recycling can relieve the strain on Li₂CO₃ supply to some extent. In 2050, 20% of the vehicle fleet in the EU27 can be battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The lack of resources in the EU27 and the geographical distribution of lithium in politically sensitive areas suggest that the shares of lithium available for the EU27 will be less than assumed in this research. The increase in flow rate shows to be the bottle-neck for a transition to (partly) battery driven vehicles in the EU27, at least when Li-ion batteries are used. Focusing on large-scale application of BEVs with Li-ion batteries in order to substantially mitigate CO₂ emissions in transport is a futile campaign.     

Dynamic relationship between precious metals

We use a relatively new approach to endogenously detect the volatility shifts in the returns of four major precious metals (gold, silver, platinum and palladium) from 1999 to 2013. We reveal that the turbulent year of 2008 has no significant effect on volatility levels of gold and silver however causes an upward shift in the volatility levels of palladium and platinum. Using the consistent dynamic conditional correlations, we show that precious metals get strongly correlated with each other in the last decade which reduces the diversification benefits across them and indicates a convergence to a single asset class. We endogenously detect the shifts in these dynamic correlation levels and reveal uni-directional volatility shift contagions among precious metals. The results show that gold has a uni-directional volatility shift contagion effect on all other precious metals and silver has a similar effect on platinum and palladium. However, the latter two do not matter in terms of volatility shift contagion. Thus, investors that hedge with precious metals should, in particular, monitor the volatility levels of gold and silver.     

壳寡糖缓解小麦镉毒害的某些生理特性研究

利用不同浓度壳寡糖溶液对小麦种子浸种,种子萌发后,对小麦幼苗进行Cd胁迫,研究了不同浓度的壳寡糖对小麦幼苗生长、超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、过氧化物酶(POD)和过氧化氢酶(CAT)等抗氧化酶活性的影响。结果表明:不同浓度壳寡糖浸种,对镉胁迫下小麦幼苗生长有促进作用,幼苗高度、根长、生物量均有增加;幼苗叶片中叶绿素含量增高;SOD、POD和CAT活性增加。随着镉胁迫时间的延长,SOD和CAT活性降低,但降低幅度小于对照;POD活性却表现增加,增加的幅度大于对照。壳寡糖不同浓度之间比较,低浓度壳寡糖对镉毒害的缓解效果优于高浓度。说明壳寡糖预处理对镉胁迫有缓解作用。     

短期OTC 处理对鹅绒委陵菜健康影响的研究初报

利用开顶箱（Open Top Chambers, OTC）模拟增温的方法,研究了短期变暖对鹅绒委陵 菜健康的影响。结果表明,短期变暖后降低了鹅绒委陵菜的萌蘖株死亡、增加了单位长度匍匐茎 的萌蘖株数目和其死亡率,同时叶片数目、高度和健康率比对照增加,匍匐茎长度和匍匐茎上萌 蘖株数目比对照减少,同时所有表征指标中只有萌蘖死亡率和叶片高度比对照有显著变化 （p ＜ 0.05）。     

Effects of metal lead on growth and mycorrhizae of an invasive plant species （Solidago canadensis L.）

It is less known whether and how soil metal lead (Pb) impacts the invasion of exotic plants.A greenhouse experiment was conducted to estimate the effects of lead on the growth and mycorrhizae of an invasive species(Solidago canadensis L.)in a microcosm system. Each microcosm unit was separated into HOST and TEST compartments by a replaceable mesh screen that allowed arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal hyphae rather than plant roots to grow into the TEST compartments.Three Pb levels(control,300,and 600 mg/kg soil)were used in this study to simulate ambient soil and two pollution sites where S. canadensis grows.Mycorrhizal inoculum comprised five indigenous arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal species (Glomus mosseae,Glomus versiform,Glomus diaphanum,Glomus geosporum,and Glomus etunicatum).The 15N isotope tracer was used to quantify the mycorrhizally mediated nitrogen acquisition of plants.The results showed that S. canadensis was highly dependent on mvcOrrhizae.The Pb additions significantly decreased biomass and arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization(root length colonized,RLC%) but did not affect spore numbers,N(including total N and 15N) and P uptake.The facilitating efficiency of mycorrhizae on nutrient acquisition was promoted by Pb treatments.The Pb was mostly sequestered in belowground of plant (root and rhizome).The results suggest that the high efficiency of mycorrhizae on nutrient uptake mightgive S. canadensis a great advantage over native species in Pb polluted softs.