Spatial variability of arsenic and chromium in the soil water at a former wood preserving site

Contamination of industrial sites by wood preservatives such as chromated copper arsenate (CCA) may pose a serious threat to groundwater quality. The objective of this study was to characterise the spatial variability of As and Cr concentrations in the solid phase and in the soil water at a former wood impregnation plant and to reveal the fundamental transport processes. The soil was sampled down to a depth of 2m. The soil water was extracted in situ from the vadose zone over a period of 10 months at depths of 1 and 1.5m, using large horizontally installed suction tubes. Groundwater was sampled from a depth of 4.5m. Results showed that arsenic and chromium had accumulated in the upper region of the profile and exhibited a high spatial variability (As: 21-621 mg kg(-1); Cr: 74-2872 mg kg(-1)). Concentrations in the soil water were high (mean As 167 microg L(-1); Cr: 62 microg L(-1)) and also showed a distinct spatial variability, covering concentration ranges up to three orders of magnitude. The variability was caused by the severe water-repellency of the surface soil, induced by the concurrent application of creosote wood preservatives, which leads to strong preferential flow as evident from a dye experiment. In contrast to soil water concentrations, only low As concentrations (<12 microg L(-1)) were detected in the groundwater. High Cr concentrations in the groundwater (approx. 300 microg L(-1)), however, illustrated the pronounced mobility of chromium. Our study shows that at sites with a heterogeneous flow system in the vadose zone a disparity between flux-averaged and volume-averaged concentrations may occur, and sampling of soil water might not be adequate for assessing groundwater concentrations. In these cases long-term monitoring of the groundwater appears to be the best strategy for a groundwater risk assessment.     

Productivity of mosses and organic matter accumulation in the litter of sphagnum larch forest in the permafrost zone

Productivity of the moss cover and necromass accumulation in the litter of a sphagnum larch forest have been estimated on the basis of tree age. It has been shown that the total carbon stock in the litter of a 100-year-old stand, including organic matter not destroyed by fire, exceeds the corresponding value for the tree stand itself by more than an order of magnitude. The accumulation of organic matter on the soil surface inhibits the growth of larch. In particular, this factor impairs hydrothermal conditions in the soil and causes a rise of the permafrost table; as a consequence, lower layers of the root system die off.     

Reaction zone structures and propagation mechanisms of flames in stearic acid particle clouds

Reaction zone structures and propagation mechanisms of two representative flames established in stearic acid (CH₃(CH₂)₁₆CO₂H) particle clouds have been investigated. The reacting zone structure was examined by using a micro-electrostatic probe and a high-speed schlieren system. A distinct difference was observed in the ion current fluctuations recorded across the two representative flames propagating through the clouds of the same total mass density of particles and different mass densities of the particles smaller than 60 μm in diameter. When the mass density of smaller particles was high, a single peak was recorded in the ion current fluctuation. On the other hand, when the mass density of smaller particles was low, multi-peaks of various heights and widths were recorded. In the former case, the single peak was considered to be attributable to a unitary and a relatively thin flame started burning in vapor generated by the evaporation of smaller particles in the preheat zone. The flame propagation mechanism in this case was inferred to be similar to that of a usual hydrocarbon–air premixed flame, although the reaction zone thickness is much larger than that of the premixed flame. In the latter case, the multi peaks of various shapes were considered to be attributable to strong combustion at blue spots far behind the schlieren front. The flame propagation in this case was inferred to be supported by the heat release due to combustion at the blue spots.     

THE NEED FOR HIGH RESOLUTION TIME SERIES DATA TO CHARACTERIZE HAWAIIAN STREAMS1

ABSTRACT: Streams in the Hawaiian Islands differ from many streams on the U.S. mainland presenting unique challenges to investigators attempting to characterize Hawaiian streams. Hawaiian streams are short; watersheds are small and steep; and rain events are usually short in duration but intense. As a result, most streams in Hawai'i are flashy. Time scales for storm hydrographs in Hawai'i are on the order of hours instead of days and flash flooding is a common hazard. To characterize the streams we were investigating, we found it necessary to obtain streamflow and water quality measurements at relatively short time intervals. While this resolution resulted in large sometimes onerous quantities of data, we would have otherwise missed certain phenomena, such as 60‐fold flow changes in 15 minutes or 30‐fold turbidity changes in five minutes. Even at five‐minute intervals, we found that attempts to predict TSS using a relationship obtained from in situ turbidity were not always satisfactory. Depending on the precision required, either higher resolution measurements or in vitro turbidity measurements of the TSS samples might be necessary. Finally, these high resolution measurements enabled us to observe other cyclical events that might have been missed if the measurement intervals were greater than one hour.     

江西生态环境现状与建设生态经济区的可行性分析

江西具有比较封闭的生态环境系统，目前全省环境总体质量尚好，但局部地区污染仍较严重。同周边地区相比，江西总体经济发展比较滞后。要尽快改变这种状况、实现江西跨越式发展，进行生态经济区的建设是可行途径。从可持续发展的基本原理出发，对在江西生态环境现状进行评价后，分析了江西建设生态区的必要性、基础与条件、指出了应当重点关注的主要问题。     

Assessing the relation between the distribution of salt-marsh communities and the sediment budget of the North Norfolk coast

Very high resolution imagery from an airborne multi-spectrål scanner has been used to estimate the distribution of different salt-marsh communities along a 30-km stretch of the North Norfolk coast. Field observations have been used to develop a mathematical relationship between the vegetation, physical environment and sediment accumulation. This relationship has been used to produce provisional sediment accretion maps for the north Norfolk coast.     

锰矿区雨水径流中重金属含量及污染水平的空间结构特征

运用地统计学方法对湘潭市锰矿红旗矿区雨水径流中重金属含量及污染水平的空间结构特征进行了分析研究.结果表明,锰矿区雨水径流中Mn、Ni、Cu、Zn、Cd、Pb含量的最大值与最小值之间差异较大,Ni、Cu、Cd、Pb的变异系数在0.7~1.0之间,表现出中等变异性,Mn和Zn的变异系数大于1.0,表现出强变异性.空间结构分析表明,除Cd外,Mn、Ni、Cu、Zn、Pb的拟合效果均比较理想,6种元素的拟合模型的决定系数R2介于0.540~0.895之间,块金值与基台值的比值C0/(C0+C)均小于0.4,具有较强的空间相关性.空间分布图表明,元素Mn、Ni、Cd、Pb的分布较相似,元素Cu和Zn的分布很相似且以某块区域为中心向四周逐步递减.污染指数及其空间分析表明,矿区内大部分区域的雨水径流中存在中度重金属污染,东部沿线区域的存在着严重的重金属污染,仅少量地方不存在重金属污染,重金属污染从低到高的顺序为Zn、Ni、Cu、Pb、Mn、Cd.从环境风险和人体健康的角度来看,应将Cd元素作为需要优先治理和控制的重金属.     

积分比值法计算室内火灾烟气层分界面高度值的研究

在室内火灾双区域模型中,对火灾烟气层分界面高度值的判定具有重要意义,对其计算方法进行了研究。鉴于烟熏痕迹法和N百分比法存在的主观性和经验性的局限,介绍了一种积分比值法,给出了计算公式并采用Fortran95实现了编程计算。通过FDS5.0模拟了一种火灾场景,根据模拟得到的不同高度处的温度均值,应用积分比值法计算出了烟气层高度值,并将其与模拟得到的烟气层高度值进行了比较,结果表明两者较为吻合,应用积分比值法计算烟气层高度是可行的、准确的。     

乌海市城区环境噪声现状分析

对乌海市《城市区域环境噪声标准》适用区域进行了划分,以乌海市2011年城区环境噪声监测统计数据为基础,分析了乌海市暴露在不同等效声级下的城区面积分布状况和达标情况。     

包头白云鄂博采矿区周边表层土壤中232Th的分布特征

包头白云鄂博矿区进行铁矿、稀土矿开采已近60a,稀土矿中伴生的²³²Th未利用而暴露于环境中,可能引起一定的环境风险,因此对该矿区周边表层土壤中w(²³²Th)及其分布特征进行采样监测.结果表明:土壤中w(²³²Th)为3.43~59.09mgkg,平均值为12.79mgkg,高于世界平均值(7.50mgkg)和我国全国平均值(9.88mgkg),说明包头白云鄂博矿区周边土壤中²³²Th的分布受到了矿物开采活动的影响;其主要来源是矿区东、西两侧的2个尾矿堆,矿区周边表层土壤中²³²Th的分布主要受风力作用和人为活动等因素的影响. 土壤剖面0~20cm区间w(²³²Th)平均值与五分法土壤表层中的w(²³²Th)接近,矿区南部(16号采样点)和北部(12号采样点)土壤中²³²Th的分布未受白云鄂博矿区的影响,其剖面上w(²³²Th)变化不明显,接近全国平均值;矿区东南部(17号采样点)底层土壤w(²³²Th)较低,表层土壤w(²³²Th)较高,并且在10.5~17.5cm区间出现w(²³²Th)剧增的趋势,w(²³²Th)由14.70mgkg升至19.54mgkg,表明土壤中²³²Th的分布明显受白云鄂博矿区的影响.