Elevated carbon dioxide does not offset loss of soil carbon from a corn-soybean agroecosystem

The potential for storing additional C in U.S. Corn Belt soils - to offset rising atmospheric [CO₂] - is large. Long-term cultivation has depleted substantial soil organic matter (SOM) stocks that once existed in the region's native ecosystems. In central Illinois, free-air CO₂ enrichment technology was used to investigate the effects of elevated [CO₂] on SOM pools in a conservation tilled corn-soybean rotation. After 5 and 6 y of CO₂ enrichment, we investigated the distribution of C and N among soil fractions with varying ability to protect SOM from rapid decomposition. None of the isolated C or N pools, or bulk-soil C or N, was affected by CO₂ treatment. However, the site has lost soil C and N, largely from unprotected pools, regardless of CO₂ treatment since the experiment began. These findings suggest management practices have affected soil C and N stocks and dynamics more than the increased inputs from CO₂-stimulated photosynthesis.     

Fire as a Soil-Forming Factor

In the span of a human generation, fire can, in theory, impact all the land covered by vegetation. Its occurrence has many important direct and indirect effects on soil, some of which are long-lasting or even permanent. As a consequence, fire must be considered a soil-forming factor, on par with the others traditionally recognized, namely: parent material, topography, time, climate, living beings not endowed with the power of reason, and humans.     

Carbon Sequestration Function of Check-Dams: A Case Study of the Loess Plateau in China

Check-dams are the most common structures for controlling soil erosion in the Loess Plateau. However, the effect of check-dams on carbon sequestration, along with sediment transport and deposition, has not been assessed over large areas. In this study, we evaluated the carbon sequestration function of check-dams in the Loess Plateau. The results indicate that there were approximately 11 000 check-dams distributed in the Loess Plateau, with an estimate of the amount of sediment of 21 × 10⁹ m³ and a soil organic carbon storage amount of 0.945 Pg. Our study reveals that check-dams in the Loess Plateau not only conserve soil and water but also sequester carbon.     

甲苯对UASB反应器中溶解性微生物产物的影响

以乙酸钠为外加碳源,考察了UASB反应器内甲苯对可溶性微生物产物（SMP）的影响。实验结果表明：低质量浓度（20~70 mg/L）的甲苯对微生物有刺激作用,使得污泥增殖速率变小,SMP的质量浓度也逐渐减少,经过一段时间的驯化后,系统COD和TOC的去除率分别达到93%和94%以上,下降趋势较小;较高质量浓度（70~200 mg/L）的甲苯对微生物有抑制作用,污泥活性下降,反应器运行状况开始恶化,SMP的质量浓度也逐渐增大,经过一段时间的驯化后,系统COD和TOC的去除率分别维持在81%和83%以上;当甲苯质量浓度超过200 mg/L时,表现为污泥活性严重下降,对COD的去除效果极差。     

生物阴极式碳纸隔膜微生物燃料电池的反硝化和产电性能

为了探讨生物阴极式廉价隔膜微生物燃料电池(microbial fuel cell,MFC)的基本性能,首先以生物反硝化作用为基础构建了生物阴极MFC,并进一步以涂布聚四氟乙烯(PTFE)的廉价碳纸代替昂贵的质子交换膜(PEM)构建碳纸隔膜生物阴极式MFC。研究结果显示,对于生物阴极式MFC,阴极室中最适宜反硝化细菌生长的NO-3-N浓度为99.2 mg/L,此时输出电压最高可达0.11 V,1 h内NO-3-N的去除率达到80.0%,COD去除率为62.8%;以涂PTFE的碳纸代替PEM的生物阴极式MFC与有PEM的MFC最高输出电压基本一致(均达到0.22 V,外阻500Ω),但碳纸隔膜MFC的产电更稳定。结果验证了廉价隔膜生物阴极式MFC的可行性,并为其应用于污水脱氮奠定基础。     

高效脱硫菌的筛选及其性能研究

从高硫污染的活性污泥中富集培养,分离纯化得到一株可以降解噻吩的菌株s_4,并对该菌株的形态特征进行观察。应用Design—Expert8．0．5b软件进行响应面优化实验,研究了反应时间、噻吩浓度、微生物浓度3个因素的组合对菌株s_4脱硫效果的影响,并拟合得到多元二次回归方程,得出最佳实验条件。拟合结果表明,当反应时间27．46h,噻吩浓度为1．04％,微生物浓度4．04％时,预测噻吩降解率为14．8％,通过验证得最佳条件下的降解率为14．3％,与预测值相符。     

直接投菌法在城市重污染河流治理中的应用研究

在无截污和清除内源的情况下,对深圳市甘坑河采用梅花式接种法将本源微生物菌剂分两次直接接入河流水体及底泥中。结果表明,第1次接种后的4 d内各项水质指标都不稳定,4 d后,悬浮物、COD、TP和NH3-N等浓度下降,水质明显改善;但从第8天开始,COD、NH3-N和TP的去除率同时下降,本源微生物的处理效率开始降低,需进行第2次接种;第2次接种后,DO浓度提升至2.0 mg/L以上,COD、TP和NH3-N的去除率分别保持在40%、30%和40%以上。结果表明,直接投菌法在城市重污染河道治理中可以初步消除河道的黑臭现象,修复水质。     

Evaluating and reducing a model of radiocaesium soil-plant uptake

An existing model of radiocaesium transfer to grasses was extended to include wheat and barley and parameterised using data from a wide range of soils and contact times. The model structure was revised and evaluated using a subset of the available data which was not used for model parameterisation. The resulting model was then used as a basis for systematic model reduction to test the utility of the model components. This analysis suggested that the use of 4 model variables (relating to radiocaesium adsorption on organic matter and the pH sensitivity of soil solution potassium concentration) and 1 model input (pH) are not required. The results of this analysis were used to develop a reduced model which was further evaluated in terms of comparisons to observations. The reduced model had an improved empirical performance and fewer adjustable parameters and soil characteristic inputs.     

Sorption of selenate on soils and pure phases: kinetic parameters and stabilisation

This study was conducted to identify the principle selenate carrier phases for two selected soils, by comparing their reactivity with selenate to that of pure phases of the solids. Silica, calcium carbonate, aluminium hydroxide, goethite, bentonite and humic acid were selected as the main soil carrier phases. Comparisons were made first on the parameter values obtained with the best fit of a kinetic sorption model which can discriminate instantaneous sorption from kinetically limited sorption. Then comparisons were made of the ability for each solid to stabilise selenate by measuring the ratio of the partition coefficient for sorption (Kd_sorption) over that of the desorption (Kd_desorption). Kinetics and stabilisation were used to help elucidate the nature of interactions with the test solid phases for a large range of selenate concentrations. The experiments were conducted over 165 h in batch reactors, the solid being isolated from the solution by dialysis tubing, at two pH (5.4 and 8) and three selenate concentrations (1 × 10⁻³, 1 × 10⁻⁶ and 1 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹). The results obtained showed that only aluminium hydroxide can sorb selenate throughout the studied pH range (pH 5.4 to 8.0). The sorption capacity on this mineral was high (Kd_sorption > 100 to 1 × 10⁴ L kg⁻¹) and the selenate was mainly stabilized by the formation of inner sphere complexes. The sorption on goethite occurred at pH 5.4 (Kd_sorption 52 L kg⁻¹), mainly as outer sphere complexes, and was null at pH 8. On silica, a weak sorption was observed only at pH 5.4 and at 165 h (Kd_sorption 4 L kg⁻¹). On bentonite, calcium carbonate and humic acid no significant sorption was observed. Concerning the two soils studied, different behaviours were observed for selenate. For soil Ro (pH 5.4), Kd_sorption was low (8 L kg⁻¹) compared to soil Bu (pH 8) (70 L kg⁻¹). The sorption behaviour of selenate on soil Ro was mainly due to outer sphere complexes, as for goethite, whereas for soil Bu the sorption was mainly attributed to inner sphere complexes followed by reduction mechanisms, probably initiated by microorganisms, in which no steady state was reached at the end of the 165 h experiments. The sorption of selenate decreased when concentrations reached 1 × 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹, due to solid saturation, except for aluminium hydroxide. Reduction of selenate seemed also to occur on goethite and soil Ro, for the same concentration, but without preventing a decrease in sorption. Thus, this work shows that the comparison of selenate behaviour between soil and pure phases helps to elucidate the main carrier phases and sorption mechanisms in soil.     

Depth profile of ²³⁶U/²³⁸U in soil samples in La Palma, Canary Islands

The vertical distribution of the ²³⁶U/²³⁸U isotopic ratio was investigated in soil samples from three different locations on La Palma (one of the seven Canary Islands, Spain). Additionally the ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu atomic ratio, as it is a well establish tool for the source identification, was determined. The radiochemical procedure consisted of a U separation step by extraction chromatography using UTEVA^® Resin (Eichrom Technologies, Inc.). Afterwards Pu was separated from Th and Np by anion exchange using Dowex 1x2 (Dow Chemical Co.). Furthermore a new chemical procedure with tandem columns to separate Pu and U from the matrix was tested. For the determination of the uranium and plutonium isotopes by alpha spectrometry thin sources were prepared by microprecipitation techniques. Additionally these fractions separated from the soil samples were measured by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) to get information on the isotopic ratios ²³⁶U/²³⁸U, ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu and ²³⁶U/²³⁹Pu, respectively. The ²³⁶U concentrations [atoms/g] in each surface layer (∼2 cm) were surprisingly high compared to deeper layers where values around two orders of magnitude smaller were found. Since the isotopic ratio ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu indicated a global fallout signature we assume the same origin as the probable source for ²³⁶U. Our measured ²³⁶U/²³⁹Pu value of around 0.2 is within the expected range for this contamination source.