Levels of tin in core sediments along the Alexandria Coast, Egypt

Tin concentrations were determined in surface and core sediments from three hot spots along the Alexandria coast, namely: Abu-Qir Bay, Eastern Harbour, and Western Harbour. The mean concentrations in surface sediment were 2.434, 3.212, and 5.572 μg/g dry weight for Abu-Qir Bay, Eastern Harbour, and Western Harbour, respectively. A sharp decrease in tin level in core sediments with depth was observed in almost all locations except for core 4 in Abu-Qir Bay and core 17 in the Eastern Harbour, where the sub-sample at the 5 cm level recorded the highest tin concentrations.     

Biological Activity in a Heavily Organohalogen-Contaminated River Sediment (8 pp)

Background, Aims and Scope Sediments of the Spittelwasser creek are highly polluted with organic compounds and heavy metals due to the discharge of untreated waste waters from the industrial region of Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany over the course of more than one century. However, relatively few data have been published about the chloroorganic contamination of the sediment. This paper reports on the content of different (chloro)organic compounds with special emphasis on polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/F), and chlorobenzenes. Existing concepts for the remediation of Spittelwasser sediment include the investigation of natural attenuation processes, which largely depend on the presence of an intact microbial food web. In order to gain more insight in terms of biological activity, we analyzed the capacity of sediment microflora to degrade organic matter by measuring the activities of extracellular hydrolytic enzymes involved in the biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur. Furthermore, the detection of physiologically active bacteria in the sediment, particularly of those known for their capability to reductively dehalogenate organochlorine compounds, illustrates the potential for intrinsic bioremediation processes. Methods PCDD/F and chlorobenzenes were analyzed by gas chromatography(GC)/mass spectrometry and GC/flame ionization detection, respectively. The activities of hydrolytic enzymes were determined from freshly sampled sediment layers using 4-methylumbelliferyl (MUF) or 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin-conjugated model compounds and kinetic fluorescence measurements. Physiologically active bacteria from different sediment layers were microscopically visualized by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Specific bacteria were identified by 16S rRNA gene amplification and sequencing. Results and Discussion The PCDD/F congener profile was dominated by dibenzofurans. In addition, the presence of specific tetra and pentachlorinated dibenzofurans supported the assumption that extensive magnesium production was one possible source for the high contamination. A range of other chloroorganic compounds, including several isomers of chlorobenzenes, hexachlorocyclohexane and 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis (p-chloro-phenyl)ethane (DDT), was present in the sediment. Activities of extracellular hydrolytic enzymes showed a strong decrease in those sediment layers that were characterized by high contents of absorbable organic halogen (AOX), indicating disturbed organic matter decay. Interestingly, an abnormal increase of cellulolytic enzyme activities below the organochlorine-rich layers was observed, possibly caused by residual cellulose from discharges of sulfite pulping wastes. FISH revealed physiologically active bacteria in most sediment layers from the surface down to the depth of about 60 cm, including members of Desulfitobacterium (D.) and Sulfurospirillum. The presence of D. dehalogenans was confirmed by its partial 16S rRNA gene sequence. Conclusions Results of chemical sediment analyses demonstrated high loads of organochlorine compounds, particularly of PCDD/F. Several years after stopping the waste water discharge to Spittelwasser creek, this sediment remains a main source for pollution of the downstream river system by way of the ongoing mobilization of sediment during high floods. As indicated by our enzyme activity measurements, the decomposition potential for organic matter is low in organochlorine-rich sediment layers. In contrast, the comparably higher enzyme activities in less organochlorine-polluted sediment layers as well as the presence of physiologically active bacteria suggest a considerable potential for natural attenuation. Recommendations and Perspectives From our data we strongly recommend to explore the degradative capacity of sediment microorganisms and the limits for in situ activity towards specific sediment pollutants in more detail. This will give a sound basis for the integration of bioremediation approaches into general concepts to reduce the risk that permanently radiates from this highly contaminated sediment. Submission Editor: Dr. Henner Hollert (Henner.Hollert@urz.uniheidelberg.de)     

海洋现代沉积速率~（210）Pb－~（210）Bi法的射线测定研究

本文主要介绍了用~（２１０）Ｐｂ─~（２１０）Ｂｉ法测定海洋现代沉积速率和数据处理方法的研究。该方法测定的结果与~（２１０）Ｐｂ─~（２１０）Ｐｏ法和阴离子交换－ＥＤＴＡ纯化－硫酸钡镭沉淀－α计数法（简称~（２２６）Ｒａ法）以及厦门大学海洋系经研究改进的分离、纯化~（２１０）Ｐｂ的离子交换法的测定结果相当吻合。     

昆明西山土壤—植物系统Fe,Mn,Ni分布特征

本文利用统计分析和吸收系数描述了昆明西山土壤－植物系统中Ｆｅ，Ｍｎ，Ｎｉ分布特征。结果表明，受试植物在土壤－植物系统中对Ｎｉ元素均表现出相对的稀释和绥冲作用；对Ｍｎ元素，除了菊科夏田菊，山紫金子和牛旁外，均表现出相对富集作用。     

头盔式面罩和头带式面罩主要性能的比较研究

头盔式面罩和头带式面罩性能的比较：头盔式面罩具有佩戴容易、气密性好。工艺简单，但舒适性差，视野不如头带式面罩好等特点；头带式面罩具有舒适性好，视野宽阔，但工艺较复杂，佩戴不易气密等特点。     

企业职业伤害严重度系数研究

在对不同企业之间的职业伤害风险进行量化和比较时，不同程度职业伤害的统一量化是关键难题。本文使用损失工作日的方法，通过对调研所得有效数据的统计学分析，计算得出企业职业伤害的重伤严重度系数α和轻伤严重度系数β的值，α和β值与国外相关研究结果有较好的可比性。本文所得到的α和β值是对不同企业职业伤害风险量化计算和比较的重要基础。     

Information Network Topologies for Enhanced Local Adaptive Management

We examined the principal effects of different information network topologies for local adaptive management of natural resources. We used computerized agents with adaptive decision algorithms with the following three fundamental constraints: (1) Complete understanding of the processes maintaining the natural resource can never be achieved, (2) agents can only learn by experimentation and information sharing, and (3) memory is limited. The agents were given the task to manage a system that had two states: one that provided high utility returns (desired) and one that provided low returns (undesired). In addition, the threshold between the states was close to the optimal return of the desired state. We found that networks of low to moderate link densities significantly increased the resilience of the utility returns. Networks of high link densities contributed to highly synchronized behavior among the agents, which caused occasional large-scale ecological crises between periods of stable and high utility returns. A constructed network involving a small set of experimenting agents was capable of combining high utility returns with high resilience, conforming to theories underlying the concept of adaptive comanagement. We conclude that (1) the ability to manage for resilience (i.e., to stay clear of the threshold leading to the undesired state as well as the ability to re-enter the desired state following a collapse) resides in the network structure and (2) in a coupled social–ecological system, the systemwide state transition occurs not because the ecological system flips into the undesired state, but because managers lose their capacity to reorganize back to the desired state. An erratum to this article can be found at .     

HISTORICAL TRENDS IN SEDIMENTATION RATES AND SEDIMENT PROVENANCE,FAIRFIELD LAKE,WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA1

Sedimentation rates and sediment provenance were examined for lacustrine sediments deposited in Fairfield Lake, western North Carolina, during the past 111 years. Stratigraphic, radionuclide, and cartographic data indicate that sedimentation rates have increased several fold during the past three decades in response to localized development. The magnitude of increased sedimentation was surprising given limited development within the basin: 0.12 to 0.68 buildings/ha in 2000 in those parts directly delivering sediment to the dated cores. Thus, the analysis illustrates the potential sensitivity of watersheds in the southern Appalachians to changes in land cover. An approach that combined geochemical fingerprinting with sediment mixing models was subsequently evaluated to determine its ability to accurately estimate the contribution of sediment from (1) major bedrock formations that underlie the watershed and (2) potential sources associated with four land cover categories. Sediment sources in both analyses proved difficult to geochemically fingerprint to greater than 90 percent accuracy using data on acid‐soluble metals and selected isotopes of lead (Pb). The relative contributions of sediment from delineated sources, estimated by the mixing models, generally corresponded with known temporal and spatial patterns of land cover. However, the models were plagued by two significant problems — the chemical alteration of sediments as they were transported through upland streams to depositional sites within the lake and the loss of elemental mass. Thus, future investigations using the fingerprinting approach in this area of intense weathering, and presumably others, will need to modify the existing methods to more accurately elucidate changes in sediment provenance related to development.     

淀山湖沉积物的污染特征及其风险评价

对上海淀山湖代表性表层沉积物中的重金属、磷、PAHs及OCPs等典型污染物质进行了分析和风险评价。其中总磷含量范围为1 072~1 229 mg/kg,以无机磷为主,生物可利用磷含量较高,对水体富营养化具有潜在的威胁。重金属Cu、Cr、Zn、Pb的平均含量分别为25.5、34.1、244.5、32.2 mg/kg,污染程度大小依次为ZnPbCuCr,潜在生态风险程度依次为PbCuZnCr。∑PAHs、∑OCPs含量范围分别为617.1~843.2 ng/g以及22.03~28.94 ng/g,风险结果表明PAHs和大部分OCPs均未超出ERL值,生态风险水平低。     

Influence of particle size on the aggregation behavior of nanoparticles: Role of structural hydration layer

More and more attention has been paid to the aggregation behavior of nanoparticles, but little research has been done on the effect of particle size. Therefore, this study systematically evaluated the aggregation behavior of nano-silica particles with diameter 130–480 nm at different initial particle concentration, pH, ionic strength, and ionic valence of electrolytes. The modified Smoluchowski theory failed to describe the aggregation kinetics for nano-silica particles with diameters less than 190 nm. Besides, ionic strength, cation species and pH all affected fast aggregation rate coefficients of 130 nm nanoparticles. Through incorporating structural hydration force into the modified Smoluchowski theory, it is found that the reason for all the anomalous aggregation behavior was the different structural hydration layer thickness of nanoparticles with various sizes. The thickness decreased with increasing of particle size, and remained basically unchanged for particles larger than 190 nm. Only when the distance at primary minimum was twice the thickness of structural hydration layer, the structural hydration force dominated, leading to the higher stability of nanoparticles. This study clearly clarified the unique aggregation mechanism of nanoparticles with smaller size, which provided reference for predicting transport and fate of nanoparticles and could help facilitate the evaluation of their environment risks.