Genotypic variations in the accumulation of Cd exhibited by different vegetables

It is an important approach to use the Cd-contaminated soils properly by growing low accumulator or excluder plants for Cd to produce safe foods. To find the suitable vegetable species for growing in Cd-contaminated soils, in the present study the variations in the Cd accumulation for twenty eight vegetable species and several cultivars of five common vegetables (cowpea, kidney pea, bitter gourd, cucumber and squash) were investigated in two soil Cd levels (1 and 2 mg/kg Cd). Experimental results showed that highly significant differences in Cd concentration were evident among 28 vegetables. For example, spinach Cd concentrations were 110-fold and 175-fold higher than that of sweet pea under the 1 and 2 mg/kg Cd exposures, respectively. For Cd accumulation, the order of vegetable species was: leafy vegetables solanaceous vegetables kale vegetables root vegetables allimus melon vegetables legumes. Distinctive differences were also identified when comparing different cultivars of the five common vegetables with an average range of 0.003–0.094 mg/kg Cd. Our results indicated that a large genotypic variation existed among vegetable species or cultivars when subjected to Cd exposure. Therefore, it is important and feasible to elect/breed vegetable species/cultivars with low accumulation of Cd, especially in mildly Cd-contaminated soils.     

Chemical characterization of size-resolved aerosols in four seasons and hazy days in the megacity Beijing of China

Size-resolved aerosol samples were collected by MOUDI in four seasons in 2007 in Beijing. The PM10 and PM1.8mass concentrations were 166.0 ± 120.5 and 91.6 ± 69.7 μg/m~3, respectively,throughout the measurement, with seasonal variation: nearly two times higher in autumn than in summer and spring. Serious fine particle pollution occurred in winter with the PM1.8/PM10 ratio of 0.63, which was higher than other seasons. The size distribution of PM showed obvious seasonal and diurnal variation, with a smaller fine mode peak in spring and in the daytime. OM(organic matter = 1.6 × OC(organic carbon)) and SIA(secondary inorganic aerosol) were major components of fine particles, while OM, SIA and Ca_2+were major components in coarse particles. Moreover, secondary components, mainly SOA(secondary organic aerosol) and SIA,accounted for 46%–96% of each size bin in fine particles, which meant that secondary pollution existed all year. Sulfates and nitrates, primarily in the form of(NH_4)_2SO_4, NH_4NO_3, Ca SO_4, Na_2SO_4 and K_2SO_4, calculated by the model ISORROPIA II, were major components of the solid phase in fine particles. The PM concentration and size distribution were similar in the four seasons on non-haze days, while large differences occurred on haze days, which indicated seasonal variation of PM concentration and size distribution were dominated by haze days. The SIA concentrations and fractions of nearly all size bins were higher on haze days than on non-haze days, which was attributed to heterogeneous aqueous reactions on haze days in the four seasons.     

Characterization of volatile organic compounds in the urban area of Beijing from 2000 to 2007

Beijing is one of the most polluted cities in the world. In this study, the long-term and continuous measurements of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the urban area of Beijing, specifically at Beijing 325 m Meteorological Tower, were conducted from 2000 to 2007. The annual record of VOC trends exhibited in two different phases was separated in 2003. Records show that VOC concentrations increased from 2000 to 2003 due to the abrupt increase in vehicle number. Contrarily, since 2003, there had been a decrease in VOCs concentrations as the policy on gasoline and air pollution was implemented. Toluene, benzene, and i-pentane are the chemicals that abound in and are directly related to vehicle activity, such as in vehicle exhaust and gasoline evaporation. Furthermore, records indicate that there had been seasonal variation in VOCs levels in that VOCs level in summer is higher than that in winter. As such, temperature is considered to significantly contribute to VOCs in Beijing. Records also show that VOCs level was high in the morning and during rush hours in the evening. In contrast, VOCs level was low during midday due to photochemical destruction with OH radical and dilution effect. In this study, a particular benzene to toluene ratio range (0.4-1.0) was used as the indicator of air propelled by vehicular exhaust. We also applied the correlation coefficients between BTEX and i-pentane to evaluate evaporation influence to ambient BTEX in the Beijing urban area.     

华东地区2000-2014年间秸秆燃烧排放PM2.5时空动态变化

秸秆燃烧释放大量细小颗粒物（Fine Particulate Matter）,对大气环境、生态系统和人类健康有重要影响.该研究基于2000-2014年中国华东地区农作物产量统计数据,估算各区域秸秆产量及室内外农作物秸秆燃烧总量.并运用排放因子法,估算15年间华东地区农作物秸秆燃烧PM_2.5排放总量.研究结果表明,华东地区秸秆产量及燃烧总量分别为：2033.2 Mt和32678.59 Wt,PM_2.5的排放总量为851.95 Wt.此外,PM_2.5排放在时间和空间上不均衡.卫星火点监测数据显示,农田秸秆燃烧密集区域主要分布在山东南部、安徽北部、江苏和浙江东北部及上海市大部分地区;单位网格PM_2.5最大的排放量多集中在山东、安徽北部、江苏中部和北部、浙江东北部和上海区域.时间序列上,山东、江苏和安徽呈显著增长趋势,上海、福建和浙江呈显著降低趋势.稻谷、小麦、玉米、豆类和油菜秸秆燃烧对污染物PM_2.5的贡献率分别为32.45%、30.18%、18.95%、3.77%和14.65%.农作物秸秆燃烧释放PM_2.5与工业粉尘的排放比变化趋势表明山东、安徽和江苏总体呈上升趋势;上海、福建和浙江总体保持平稳趋势.通过对华东地区农作物秸秆燃烧释放PM_2.5的时空变化研究,为更好的揭示秸秆燃烧对区域环境的影响提供数据支持.     

Seasonal variations of soil bacterial communities in Suaeda wetland of Shuangtaizi River estuary, Northeast China

Estuarine wetland is the transitional interface linking terrestrial with marine ecosystems, and wetland microbes are crucial to the biogeochemical cycles of nutrients. The soil samples were collected in four seasons (spring, S1; summer, S2; autumn, S3; and winter, S4) from Suaeda wetland of Shuangtaizi River estuary, Northeast China, and the variations of bacterial community were evaluated by high-throughput sequencing. Soil properties presented a significant seasonal change, including pH, carbon (C) and total nitrogen (TN), and the microbial diversity, richness and structure also differed with seasons. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and Mantel tests implied that soil pH, C and TN were the key factors structuring the microbial community. Gillisia (belonging to Bacteroidetes) and Woeseia (affiliating with Gammaproteobacteria) were the two primary components in the rhizosphere soils, displaying opposite variations with seasons. Based on PICRUSt (Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States) prediction, the xenobiotics biodegradation related genes exhibited a seasonal decline, while the majority of biomarker genes involved in nitrogen cycle showed an ascending trend. These findings could advance the understanding of rhizosphere microbiota of Suaeda in estuarine wetland.     

Seasonal Variations and Chemical Forms of Heavy Metals in Soils and Dusts from the Satellite Cities of Seoul, Korea

This research investigated heavy metal pollution of soils and dusts in two representative satellite cities of Seoul, Korea and studied the seasonal variations in metal concentrations through the rainy season and the chemical forms of metals using a sequential extraction analysis. The metal dispersion pattern was illustrated to match with urban structure. Soil and dust samples were collected from the cities of Uijeongbu and Koyang, which are the northern and northwestern satellite cities of Seoul (the capital), before and after rainy season. Concentrations of Cu, Pb and Zn were higher than those of the world averages for soils, and their levels decreased after rain, particularly in highly contaminated samples. Relatively high pH values were found in roadside soils, but no seasonal variation was found after the rainy season. The three metals (Cu, Pb and Zn) in soils and dusts were associated with various chemical fractions of soils and dusts as distinguished by the sequential extraction scheme, and a strong similarity of metal association between soils and dusts was found, which indicates that airborne dust may be a principle source of soil contamination. Copper is uniformly distributed, and Pb is largely associated with the reducible phase. There is an appreciable proportion of total Zn in the exchangeable/water-acid soluble fraction. After the rainy season, the most soluble fractions in soils and dusts were leached away. In terms of mobility and bioavailability of metals in soils and dusts, the order Zn >> Cu > Pb is suggested. Geographical variations of total metals corresponded well with urbanised areas of cities, especially the industrial complex and major motorways.     

新乡市大气PM2.5载带金属元素季节分布、来源特征与健康风险

为探究典型工业城市大气PM_2.5载带重金属的季节分布、来源及健康风险,于2019~2020年分季节采集PM_2.5有效样品112个,利用电感耦合等离子体发射光谱法（ICP-AES）测定了19种元素含量.结果表明,PM_2.5及其载带重金属元素的年均浓度分别为（66.25±35.73）μg·m^-3和（1.32±0.84）μg·m^-3.PM_2.5及其元素组分夏季浓度最低,Al、Ca、Fe、Mg和Ti等元素春季浓度最高,其它元素则是冬季浓度最高.利用PMF-PSCF模型共解析出5类排放源,分别为Ni和Co相关排放源（5.8%）、机动车源（13.7%）、Cd相关排放源（5.1%）、燃烧源（18.2%）和扬尘源（57.3%）.风险评价结果表明,每一类排放源的危害指数（HI）值均小于1,不存在明显的非致癌风险;致癌风险均处于10^-6~10^-4范围内,具有一定的致癌风险.与其它排放源相比,燃烧源的致癌风险（8.74×10^-6,36.9%）和非致癌风险（0.60,25.6%）最大,建议优先对燃烧源进行治理以降低区域人群暴露风险.     

Trace elements and rare earth elements in wet deposition of Lijiang, Mt. Yulong region, southeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau

In order to investigate the compositions and wet deposition fluxes of trace elements and rare earth elements (REEs) in the precipitation of the southeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, 38 precipitation samples were collected from March to August in 2012 in an urban site of Lijiang city in the Mt. Yulong region. The concentrations of most trace elements and REEs were higher during the non-monsoon season than during the monsoon season, indicating that the lower concentrations of trace elements and REEs observed during monsoon had been influenced by the dilution effect of increased precipitation. The concentrations of trace elements in the precipitation of Lijiang city were slightly higher than those observed in remote sites of the Tibetan Plateau but much lower than those observed in the metropolises of China, indicating that the atmospheric environment of Lijiang city was less influenced by anthropogenic emissions, and, as a consequence, the air quality was still relatively good. However, the results of enrichment factor and principal component analysis revealed that some anthropogenic activities (e.g., the increasing traffic emissions from the rapid development of tourism) were most likely important contributors to trace elements, while the regional/local crustal sources rather than anthropogenic activities were the predominant contributors to the REEs in the wet deposition of Lijiang city. Our study was relevant not only for assessing the current status of the atmospheric environment in the Mt. Yulong region, but also for specific management actions to be implemented for the control of atmospheric inputs and the health of the environment for the future.     

湖南省城市环境空气质量变化与防治对策研究

文章以2000年-2009年湖南省主要城市环境空气监测数据为基础,对全省大气污染因子二氧化硫(SO2)、二氧化氮(NO2)、可吸入颗粒物(PM10)近10年的监测数据进行统计,对大气环境质量状况与变化趋势进行分析,提出控制大气污染的技术、经济、管理等方面的对策措施。     

北京PM2.5浓度的变化特征及其与PM10、TSP的关系

在连续2年进行累积1周同步采样的基础上,对北京市城区和居住区2个采样点环境空气中PM2.5的浓度及其时间变化特征进行了分析.PM2.5周平均浓度的变化范围为37~346靏/m3,年均浓度接近或超过PM10的二级年均标准.PM2.5浓度具有明显的季节变化特征,即冬季最高,夏季最低.2个采样点PM2.5浓度的周变化与季节变化均相似.PM2.5与PM10、TSP的比值均在冬季最高,春季最低,反映采暖燃烧源对细颗粒物的贡献较大,而沙尘天气对粗颗粒物的贡献较大;其年均值分别为55%和29%.