On the dissolution kinetics of humic acid particles. Effect of monocarboxylic acids

The dissolution kinetics of humic acid particles has been studied in batch experiments, and the effects of monocarboxylic (formic, acetic, and propionic) acids are reported. The dissolution rate of the particles is significantly affected by the presence of monocarboxylic acids in the pH range 4–10. At pH 7, for example, propionic acid increases 30 times this dissolution rate. The capacity of increasing the dissolution rate is in the order formic acid < acetic acid < propionic acid, and this dissolving capacity of carboxylics seems to be directly related to their affinity for HA molecules located at the surface of the solid particles. The results indicate that carboxylics and related compounds may affect markedly the mobility and transport of humic substances in the environment.     

Preparations of TiO2 film coated on foam nickel substrate by sol-gel processes and its photocatalytic activity for degradation of acetaldehyde

Anatase TiO2 films were successfully prepared on foam nickel substrates by sol-gel technique using tetrabutyl titanate as precursor. The characteristics of the TiO2 films were investigated by XPS, XRD, FE-SEM, TEM and UV-Vis absorption spectra. The photocatalytic activities of TiO2 films were investigated by photocatalytic degradation reactions of gaseous acetaldehyde, an indoor pollutant, under ultraviolet light irradiation. It was found that Ni^2＋ doping into TiO2 films due to the foam nickel substrates resulted in the extension of absorption edges of TiO2 films from UV region to visible light region. The pre-heating for foam nickel substrates resulted in the formation of NiO layer, which prevented effectively the injection of photogenerated electrons from TiO2 films to metal nickel. The TiO2 films displayed high photocatalytic activity for the degradation of acetaldehyde, and were enhanced by calcining the substrates and coating TiO2 films repeatedly. The high activity was mainly attributed to the improvement of the characteristics of substrate surface and the increase of active sites on photocatalyst.     

新型光电催化反应器的设计及其反应动力学

研制了一种新型的光电催化反应器,并对PEG-2000模拟废水进行了降解动力学研究。结果表明,电解、光催化、光电催化去除0.5 g/L的PEG-2000模拟废水中COD为零级反应,从动力学角度来看,光电协同作用明显;在不同的外加偏压、初始pH值、曝气量和光强条件下,反应符合零级动力学规律;不同初始浓度PEG-2000模拟废水的光电催化反应具有不同的反应级数,高浓度时,此光电催化体系符合零级反应动力学规律,低浓度时,光电催化氧化符合一级反应动力学规律。     

Photo-oxidation of NO using an exterior paint--screening of various commercial titania in powder pressed and paint films

The present work aims to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of photo-TiO(2) from various producers (Evonik, Kemira, Kronos, Millennium, Sachtleben and Tayca), in the form of powder pressed films and upon incorporation in a water-based paint, for outdoor NO abatement. The photocatalytic activity of the different samples was evaluated in terms of NO conversion and selectivity towards nitrite and nitrate ions following approximately the ISO 22197-1:2007(E) standard. The highest yields obtained for powder pressed films were achieved with VLP7000 (0.70), followed by VLP7101 (0.55) and UVLP7500 (0.55), all from Kronos. On the other hand, when incorporated in paint films, the highest yields were obtained with PC500 and PC105 from Millennium and UV100 from Sachtleben (ca. 0.15). The paint matrix plays an important role on the photocatalytic activity. In particular, the time for steady state is one or two orders of magnitude higher when the photocatalysts are incorporated in paint films in relation to the powder pressed films. The paint films were activated following the procedure recommended by the above-mentioned standard. However, the photocatalytic activity of films incorporating P25 (Evonik) was displayed only when higher power radiation and higher humidity conditions were used. This allowed for similar levels of photocatalytic activity as the other paint films.     

三峡水库典型消落带土壤DOM组分特征及其对有效态镉释放影响

重金属镉（Cd）是三峡水库蓄水后消落带土壤中主要的重金属污染物之一.为研究三峡水库反季节调蓄条件下溶解性有机质（DOM）对有效态Cd在土壤固-液相间释放行为及其再补给过程的影响,以三峡水库香溪河消落带为研究对象,分别于2019年10月和2020年10月采集土壤样品,利用紫外-可见吸收光谱、三维荧光光谱技术和荧光区域积分法分析土壤DOM光谱特性,同时结合梯度扩散薄膜技术（DGT）和土壤扩散通量模型（DIFS）综合探究土壤有效态Cd及其释放动力学过程.此外,测定了消落带土壤基本理化特性以及土壤中Cd含量和赋存形态.结果表明,研究区土壤DOM以富里酸为主,腐殖质特征较弱,具有陆源为主和内源较弱的混合特征,与2019年相比,2020年土壤DOM中富里酸类物质占比更高;2019年和2020年土壤ω（Cd）平均值分别为（0.474±0.301） mg·kg^-1和（0.249±0.058） mg·kg^-1,土壤中Cd的赋存形态均以非残渣态为主;DGT测定结果显示2020年土壤中有效态Cd含量较2019年呈下降趋势,进一步通过DIFS模型拟合结果表明,土壤中Cd的吸附速率大于解吸速率,土壤对有效态Cd的再补给能力较弱,表明三峡消落带土壤中有效态Cd的潜在释放风险较低,低分子量DOM和DOM中富里酸类物质是抑制土壤中有效态Cd释放的重要因素.研究结果揭示了三峡水库水文情势变化下DOM对重金属Cd环境地球化学行为的影响,为三峡库区重金属污染防治提供科学理论依据.     

巢湖沉积物有效态磷与硫的DGT原位同步分析研究

沉积物有效态磷(P)与硫(S)的含量分布是影响湖泊营养元素循环和水体富营养化的重要因子.本文利用Zr O-Ag I薄膜梯度扩散技术(Zr O-Ag I DGT)原位同步获取了南淝河-巢湖沉积物中有效态P和S的高分辨分布信息.结果发现:绝大部分沉积物有效P和S自界面向下呈急剧升高趋势,并在50 mm深度内出现峰值;河道内沉积物有效P和S的含量高于湖体,且P在界面的表观释放通量明显高于湖体,表明河道沉积物是湖体P的输入源.部分采样点出现有效P与S同步变化的现象,两者具有显著相关性,证实沉积物内部P和S存在同步释放的规律.     

Moisture Sorption Characteristics of Microbially Produced Polysaccharide and Polyvinyl Alcohol Blends

Moisture sorption characteristics of microbial polysaccharide (Ps.C101) from Pseudomonas caryophilli and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) blends have been carried out at 27°C for water activity from 0.1 to 0.9. The sorption data was used to fit six different sorption isotherm models proposed in literature. The model constants were determined by linear fitting of the sorption equations. The ranges of applicability of water activity for isotherm models reported in this paper lie in between 0.1 and 0.4 for Brunaur–Emmet–Teller (BET) model (monolayer), and in between 0.2 and 0.9 for other models. The value of the coefficient of determination (R² = 0.97 ± 0.02) confirms the applicability of the equations studied.     

An Overview on the Mechanical Behaviour of Biodegradable Agricultural Films

The mechanical behavior of various types of biodegradable materials depends, mainly, on their chemical composition and the application conditions. Various additives are added into the bioblends to improve their properties, which sometimes even reach the levels of the conventional plastics. It is well known that the environmental conditions during production, storage, and usage of these materials influence their mechanical properties. Ageing during the useful lifetime also causes great losses in the elongation. In the present paper, the overall mechanical behavior of biodegradable films, which may be considered suitable for agricultural applications, but also of partially biodegradable films, is reviewed and analyzed. Selected critical mechanical properties of films before their exposure to biodegradation are investigated and compared against those of conventional agricultural films.     

Biodegradable Soy-Based Plastics: Opportunities and Challenges

Today's plastics are designed with little consideration for their ultimate disposability or the effect of the resources (feedstocks) used in making them. This has resulted in mounting worldwide concerns over the environmental consequences of such materials when they enter the mainstream after their intended uses. This led to the concept of designing and engineering new biodegradable materials–materials that have the performance characteristics of today's materials but that undergo biodegradation along with other organic waste to soil humic materials. Hence, the production of biodegradable materials from annually renewable agricultural feedstocks has attracted attention in recent years. Agricultural materials such as starches and proteins are biodegradable and environmentally friendly. Soybean is a good candidate for manufacturing a large number of chemicals, including biodegradable plastics, as it is abundantly available and cheap. Soy protein concentrate, isolate, or flakes could be compounded with synthetic biodegradable plastics such as polycaprolactone or poly (lactic acid) to make molded products or edible films or shopping bags and make the environment cleaner and greener.     

纳米TiO2薄膜在不同基质表面的负载及光催化性能

以釉面陶瓷和普通钠钙玻璃为载体,用溶胶凝胶法在其表面进行了纳米TiO2薄膜的负载.采用X射线衍射法(XRD)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和X射线光电子能谱仪(XPS)对薄膜进行了表征与分析.结果表明,TiO2为完全的锐钛矿型,平均粒径约为15nm;TiO2薄膜在2种载体上分布均匀,膜厚约为300nm;TiO2薄膜在釉面陶瓷表面呈连续分布,而在玻璃表面上出现了破裂现象;2种载体中的一些基质离子在TiO2薄膜均有渗透.光降解实验表明,2种载体上的TiO2薄膜对亚甲基蓝的降解均符合一级反应动力学.TiO2/釉面陶瓷催化活性大于TiO2/玻璃,该薄膜对实际生产多菌灵废水具有催化降解作用.2种载体上的TiO2薄膜重复使用20次,对亚甲基蓝的去除率降低约2%.