Fatty acids composition of Caenorhabditis elegans using accurate mass GCMS-QTOF

The free living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a proven model organism for lipid metabolism research. Total lipids of C. elegans were extracted using chloroform and methanol in 2:1 ratio (v/v). Fatty acids composition of the extracted total lipids was converted to their corresponding fatty acids methyl esters (FAMEs) and analyzed by gas chromatography/accurate mass quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry using both electron ionization and chemical ionization techniques. Twenty-eight fatty acids consisting of 12 to 22 carbon atoms were identified, 65% of them were unsaturated. Fatty acids containing 12 to17 carbons were mostly saturated with stearic acid (18:0) as the major constituent. Several branched-chain fatty acids were identified. Methyl-14-methylhexadecanoate (iso- 17:0) was the major identified branched fatty acid. This is the first report to detect the intact molecular parent ions of the identified fatty acids in C. elegans using chemical ionization compared to electron ionization which produced fragmentations of the FAMEs.     

A pipeline of tweets: environmental movements’ use of Twitter in response to the Keystone XL pipeline

Social movements often amalgamate otherwise diffuse public political interests. In recent years, social media use has allowed both groups and individuals to engage with political issues both online and offline. How do organizations use Twitter to mobilize networked publics? To what extent do groups promote both ‘connective action’ online and traditional activism offline? How do their strategies differ according to whether they seek to promote or combat the status quo? And how do they balance encouraging and reinforcing individualized expression through group messaging? The ways pro-Keystone XL pipeline and anti-Keystone XL groups differed in their Keystone-related action on Twitter from January 2010 until October 2014 are analyzed. Boolean searching and Natural Language processing are used to analyze more than three million tweets. The results demonstrate that the frames within Twitter conversations have significant implications for how communities understand, develop, and mobilize around environmental issues.     

The Many Modalities of Social Networking: The Role of Twitter in Greens Politics

The popular microblogging service, Twitter, contains a variety of potential orientations—interpersonal, broadcast, news, advertising, public service, political, and so on—in its operation and applications. As an evolving social media platform, specificity and context are essential in understanding its significance and use-value. This paper investigates the multiple modalities of Twitter in the context of formal politics and, in particular, the Greens party in Australia. Presenting original evidence drawn from the Greens Members of Parliament and their advisers, it is shown how Twitter is mobilized in response to particular news agendas and stories, unfolding political events and processes, and an ongoing need for the Greens to speak simultaneously to committed environmentalists and the broader electorate. These uses reveal that Twitter is an important addition to the “media ecology mix” in the conduct of environmental politics, playing a direct role in political communication, strategies, and actions.     

Green Screen or Smokescreen? Hollywood's Messages about Nature and the Environment

This paper examines ideologies about nature and the environment in popular, animated Hollywood films—including The Lorax, Wall-E, and Ice Age 2—through a symptomatic reading. The primary goal of the analysis is to elucidate key omissions in these texts through an assessment of the problematic—defined in this research as an a-priori answer to perceived audience concerns regarding the role of consumerism and corporate culture in environmental problems. Silences in the films revolve around: how environmental problems are defined; what the consequences are; who the responsible parties are; and what potential solutions exist to mitigate them. The significance of the research is underscored by the formation of an increasingly intimate relationship between children, consumer culture, and commercial media in the USA, as well as the increasingly dire information emerging about global environmental issues. This analysis reveals the dual, often conflicting, messages that commercial film provides for its young audiences about pivotal environmental problems and their potential resolution.     

Risk Assessment of 26 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) Compounds in Parkıng Garages

The aim of this study was to determine the level of 26 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at parking garages and to provide the necessary annual information based on occupational inhalation exposure and non-occupational inhalation exposure, which carry risks for the environment. For this purpose, 22 samples were collected continuously from both gas and particulates phase PAHs from two parking garages at Konya City Center, Turkey. The exposure-based risk of these samples was evaluated using concentrations of the carcinogenic PAH compounds. None of the 26 PAHs measured had values exceeding the recommended exposure limits (RELs) standard values for inhalation rate recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). Exposure levels of gas and particulate PAHs for the occupational group and the public (children and adults who spend time in shopping centers) were found to be 0.07–28.24 μgm^?3 and 0.05–5.753 μgm^?3, respectively, representing levels two to four times higher than those at the control site. Maximum daily inhalation of B[a]Py was estimated at 1.33 ngd^?1 for exposure of the public and as 274 ngd^?1 for the occupational group. It is believed that traffic makes a substantial contribution to the PAH profile, which had relatively high concentrations of naphthalene (Napth) and coronene (Coro). Highly carcinogenic dibenzo(a,l)pyrene (B[al]Pyre) was found in the ambient air at two parking garages. Napth and phenanthrene (Phen) were the main compounds found in nearly all the tested samples. In this study, benzo[e]pyrene (B[e]Py) was used as a reference for PAHs because its concentration is stable and does not change seasonally. Considering the importance of these compounds in relation to human health, the aim of this work was to characterize and quantify the more toxic PAHs in parking garages. Conducting PAH sampling and their chemical analysis is very costly and labor intensive. This study produced data that can be a powerful tool for environmental forensics.     

隔膜压滤机滤室最优空腔厚度

利用UG软件对隔膜压滤机滤室内流体进行三维建模,导入Gambit中进行网格划分及边界条件的设定,结合Fluent选用RNG k-ε湍流模型,采用多孔介质模型模拟隔膜压滤机滤室内固-液两相流分离,得到不同空腔厚度下滤室内流体的体积分数轮廓图、压强云图,得出滤饼含水率与空腔厚度大小的关系。实验结果表明,模拟和实验结果具有较好的一致性。在压滤机滤室空腔厚度为12 mm时,滤饼含水率为48%,每天污泥处理量为102 t,隔膜压滤机工作效率最高。     

中型污水处理厂中药物和个人护理品的分布与去除

为了解15种药物及个人护理用品(PPCPs)在中小型污水处理厂中的分布及其去除效果,采用液相色谱-串联质谱(LC-MS/MS)技术对3座A2/O工艺的污水处理厂水样进行分析研究。结果显示,除普萘洛尔、吉非罗平和吲哚美辛在3座中小型污水处理厂各个工艺单元中均未被检出外,其余12种目标化合物的检出频率在90%~100%之间。进水水样中PPCPs的平均检出浓度为2 285.4 ng/L,其中咖啡因(CF)的平均检出浓度最高为973.3 ng/L,酮洛芬(KP)的平均检出浓度次之为844.7 ng/L,两者之和占进水水样中PPCPs平均含量的79.5%,表明污水处理厂的主要污染物为CF和KP。3座污水处理厂对CF的去除效果最为显著,平均去除率为95.3%,对15种PPCPs总去除效率在39.3%~82.8%之间。     

Pseudomonas sp.fz胞外分离物降解四溴双酚A

四溴双酚A(TBBPA)是全球消耗量最大的溴系阻燃剂。通过活性物质的定位、分离和TBBPA产物的分析等步骤,对Pseudomonas sp.fz胞外分离物降解TBBPA进行了研究。结果表明,存在于胞外的活性物质通过异丙基断裂和脱溴两条途径降解TBBPA。通过超滤,Sephadex G-10分离纯化得到了具有降解活性的小分子物质,分子量约为376~456 Da,初步鉴定为短肽类物质。这种小分子物质具有很好的热稳定性(30~80℃),在弱酸性条件下(2.0~5.0)活性较高,其活性还受金属离子、氧气和抑制剂(Na N3)的影响。此外,部分纯化的小分子物质在一定条件下能够产生羟基自由基(·OH)。     

高效液相色谱-串联质谱法同时检测地表水中13种药物及个人护理品

采用高效液相色谱-串联质谱(HPLC-MS/MS)检测,建立了地表水中13种药物及个人护理品的测定方法。水样用盐酸与氢氧化钠溶液调p H值至7.0左右,过固相萃取小柱进行富集,用14 m L甲醇洗脱。以C18柱为分离柱,0.01%甲酸的甲醇-0.01%甲酸水溶液为流动相,目标物在10 min内分离,在0.50~250μg/L范围内,13种化合物峰面积与内标物质峰面积之比与质量浓度的线性关系良好(0.99),检出限在0.05~0.5 ng/L范围内。基质加标实验结果表明,13种化合物在水中的回收率分别在56.2%~123.2%之间(加标水平5 ng/m L)和58.0%~107.8%(加标水平50 ng/m L),相对标准偏差在1.60%~19.9%(n=6)之间。应用该方法测定了从2条纳污河流采集的10份水样,结果表明,除美托诺尔和普洛萘尔未被检出外,其余11药物的检出频率在30%~100%之间。在13种目标物质中,咖啡因的检测浓度最高达287.5ng/L,舒必利次之,为277.5 ng/L。本方法快速、准确,适用于地表水中PPCPs类的快速测定。     

悬浮填料活性污泥法优化填料投配比试验

悬浮填料活性污泥法中试试验系统,利用某城市污水厂生产工艺回流污泥为系统悬浮污泥,探讨了悬浮填料投配比、投配方式和中试硝化效果之间的关系。试验结果表明,悬浮填料最小投配比为15%即可满足系统硝化功能的要求;悬浮填料的投配方式宜采用集中投配并布置于曝气池的末端,这样既可提高系统的生物膜量,又有利于硝化反应的实现。而且,控制适当的溶解氧浓度,悬浮填料的投加有助于同步硝化反硝化更充分的进行。