The reduction of hexavalent chromium by scrap iron was investigated in continuous long-term fixed bed system. The effects of pH, empty bed contact time (EBCT), and initial Cr(VI) concentration on Cr(VI) reduction were studied. The results showed that the pH, EBCT, and initial Cr(VI) concentration significantly affected the reduction capacity of scrap iron. The reduction capacity of scrap iron were 4.56, 1.51, and 0.57 mg Cr(VI)·g-1 Fe0 at pH 3, 5, and 7 (initial Cr(VI) concentration 4 mg·L-1, EBCT 2 min, and temperature 25°C), 0.51, 1.51, and 2.85 mg Cr(VI)·g-1 Fe0 at EBCTs of 0.5, 2.0, and 6.0 min (initial Cr(VI) concentration 4 mg·L-1, pH 5, and temperature 25°C), and 2.99, 1.51, and 1.01 mg Cr(VI)·g-1 Fe0 at influent concentrations of 1, 4, and 8 mg·L-1 (EBCT 2 min, pH 5, and temperature 25°C), respectively. Fe(total) concentration in the column effluent continuously decreased in time, due to a decrease in time of the iron corrosion rate. The fixed bed reactor can be readily used for the treatment of drinking water containing low amounts of Cr(VI) ions, although the hardness and humic acid in water may shorten the lifetime of the reactor, the reduction capacity of scrap iron still achieved 1.98 mg Cr6+·g-1 Fe. Scanning electron microscope equipped with energy dispersion spectrometer and X-ray diffraction were conducted to examine the surface species of the scrap iron before and after its use. In addition to iron oxides and hydroxide species, iron-chromium complex was also observed on the reacted scrap iron.
The abiotic association between phthalic acid esters (PAEs) and humic substances (HS) in sludge landfill plays an important role in the fate and stability of PAEs. An equilibrium dialysis combined with 14C-labeling was used to study the abiotic association of two abundant PAEs (diethyl phthalate and di-
This work investigated the effect of granular activated carbon adsorption (GACA) on fluorescence characteristics of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in secondary effluent, by means of excitation–emission matrix (EEM) spectra, the fluorescence regional integration (FRI) method, synchronous spectra, the fluorescence index defined as the ratio of fluorescence emission intensity at wavelength 450 nm to that at 500 nm at excitation (
A rhizobox system constructed with crude oil-contaminated soil was vegetated with alfalfa (
The salt-tolerant
Hydrodynamic, physical, and biochemical processes in the Baiyangdian Lake water environment were analyzed comprehensively. An eutrophication eco-dynamics model including the effects of reed resistance on flow was coupled with the hydrodynamics governing equations. An improvement on the Water Quality Analysis Simulation Program (WASP, a modeling system introduced by the US Environmental Protection Agency) is established, which uses the zooplankton kinetic equation. The model simulates water quality constituents associated with eutrophication in the lake, including phytoplankton, zooplankton, nitrogen, phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, and others. Various kinetic coefficients were calibrated using measured data or information from relevant literature, to study eutrophication in the lake. The values calculated by the calibrated model agree well with field data, including ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, total phosphorus and dissolved oxygen. Changes related to nutrition and dissolved oxygen during the processes were simulated. The present model describes the temporal variation of water quality in Baiyangdian Lake with reasonable accuracy. Deviations between model-simulated and observed values are discussed. As an ideal tool for environmental management of the lake, this model can be used to predict its water quality, and be used in research to examine the eutrophication process.
To control water impairment in urban stormwater, it is important to evaluate changing patterns of water quality parameters in stormwater runoff. Thus, the authors performed a series of experiments to investigate the dynamics of common water parameters during storm events in semi-arid areas, with multiple samples collected and analyzed in field stormwater applications. At this field monitoring site within McAuliffe Park, McAllen, Texas, in the United States, a storm event increased the concentrations of
A disposable biosensor was fabricated using single-walled carbon nanotubes, gold nanoparticles and tyrosinase (SWCNTs-AuNPs-Tyr) modified screen-printed electrodes. The prepared biosensor was applied to the rapid determination of phenolic contaminants within 15 minutes. The SWCNTs-AuNPs-Tyr bionanocomposite sensing layer was characterized with scanning electron microscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry methods. The characterization results revealed that SWCNTs could lead to a high loading of tyrosinase (Tyr) with the large surface area and the porous morphology, while AuNPs could retain the bioactivity of Tyr and enhance the sensitivity. The detection conditions, including working potential, pH of supporting electrolyte and the amount of Tyr were optimumed. As an example, the biosensor for catechol determination displayed a linear range of 8.0 × 10-8 to 2.0 × 10-5 mol·L-1 with a detection limit of 4.5 × 10-8 mol·L-1 (S/
Recently, China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea (Korea) are conducting a government-commissioned feasibility study on the Free Trade Agreement among the three countries (CJKFTA) to form a regional free trade zone in East Asia. Considering that freer trade can cause unexpected impact on domestic environment, there is a need to evaluate the environmental impact of such a trade policy. This move should be made to help negotiators understand and pay more attention to environmental issues during CJKFTA negotiations, and to help lobby with the government to carry out appropriate policy instruments for adaptation or mitigation. Following the Chain Reaction Assessment Method that integrates and links the elements of trade, production, and environment, the present research aims to quantitatively assess CJKFTA’s possible impact on China’s environment. This is done by estimating the variations of China’s major conventional pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission in two policy scenarios to represent CJKFTA’s scale and composition effects on China’s environment. Estimating the variations is based on a static Computable General Equilibrium model, working with Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) 7 database and China’s energy-environment statistics. Based on these assessments, CJKFTA is predicted to lead to notable environmental impact, including increased emissions of agricultural total nitrogen, agricultural total phosphorus, chemical oxygen demand, and GHGs. On the other hand, decreased emissions of industrial SO2 and dust are also expected to happen. Suitable policies need to be made to combat negative effects and amplify positive ones, while aiming at a more sustainable regional freer trade system.
To explore the factors that influence respondents’ willingness to pay (WTP) for the risk reduction of chemical industry accidents, a questionnaire survey combined with contingent valuation and psychometric paradigm methods were conducted in the city of Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, China. Both traditional socioeconomic variables and perceived characteristics of the hazards were considered in this study, and a Tobit model was used to find the factors influencing WTP under three risk reduction scenarios. The results showed that three demographic characteristics,
As a new technology used for the cleaning of chromium-contaminated soil, worldwide interest in eletrokinetic (EK) remediation has grown considerably in recent times. However, owing to the fact that chromium exists as both cationic and anionic species in the soil, it is not an efficient method. This paper reports upon a study in which a process using approaching anodes (AAs) was used to enhance the removal efficiency of chromium by eletrokinetics. Two bench-scale experiments to remove chromium from contaminated soil were performed, one using a fixed anode (FA) and the other using AAs. In the AAs experiment, the anode moved toward the cathode by 7 cm every three days. After remediation, soil pH, total chromium, and fractionation of chromium in the soil were determined. The average removal efficiency of total chromium was 11.32% and 18.96% in the FA and AAs experiments, respectively. After remediation, acidic soil conditions throughout the soil were generated through the use of AAs, while 80% of the soil remained neutral or alkalic when using the FA approach. The acidic soil environment and high field intensity in the AAs experiment might have favored chromium desorption, dissolution and dissociation from the soil, plus the mobility of chromium in the soil was also enhanced. The results demonstrate that AAs used in the process of EK remediation can enhance the efficiency of chromium removal from soil.
A pilot-scale anaerobic ammonia oxidation (ANAMMOX) reactor was used to treat mixed wastewater resulting from a chlortetracycline and starch production process. The results, collected over the course of 272 days, show that the ratio of influent ammonium to nitrite, pH, and temperature can all affect the efficiency of nitrogen removal. The ratio of influent ammonium to nitrite was maintained at about 1:1 at a concentration below 200 mg·L-1 for both influent ammonium and nitrite. The total nitrogen (TN) loading rate was 0.15–0.30 kgN·m-3·d-1, pH remained at 7.8–8.5, and temperature was recorded at 33±1°C. The rate of removal of ammonia, nitrite, and TN were over 90%, 90%, and 80%, and the effluent ammonium, nitrite and TN concentrations were below 50, 30, and 100 mg·L-1.
Low dissolved oxygen (DO) is an energy-saving condition in activated sludge process. To investigate the possible application of limited filamentous bulking (LFB) in sequencing batch reactor (SBR), two lab-scale SBRs were used to treat synthetic domestic wastewater and real municipal wastewater, respectively. The results showed that prolonging low DO aeration duration and setting pre-anoxic (anaerobic) phase were effective strategies to induce and inhibit filamentous sludge bulking, respectively. According to the sludge settleability, LFB could be maintained steadily by adjusting operation patterns. Filamentous bacteria content and sludge volume index (SVI) were likely correlated. SVI fluctuated dramatically within a few cycles when around 200 mL·g-1, where altering operation pattern could change sludge settleability in spite of the unstable status of activated sludge system. Energy consumption by aeration reduced under low DO LFB condition, whereas the nitrification performance deteriorated. However, short-cut nitrification and simultaneous nitrification denitrification (SND) were prone to take place under such conditions. When the cycle time kept constant, the anoxic (anaerobic) to aerobic time ratio was determining factor to the SND efficiency. Similarity keeping aerobic time as constant, the variation trends of SND efficiency and specific SND rate were uniform. SBR is a promising reactor to apply the LFB process in practice.
Chemical precipitation is a useful technology as a pretreatment to treat mature landfill leachate with high concentrations of ammonium-nitrogen (
Decreasing hydrogen partial pressure can not only increase the activity of the hydrogen enzyme but also decrease the products inhibition, so it is an appropriate method to enhance the fermentative hydrogen production from anaerobic mixed culture. The effect of biogas release method on anaerobic fermentative hydrogen production in batch culture system was compared, i.e., Owen method with intermediately release, continuous releasing method, and continuous releasing+ CO2 absorbing. The experimental results showed that, at 35°C, initial pH 7.0 and glucose concentration of 10 g·L-1, the hydrogen production was only 28 mL when releasing gas by Owen method, while it increased two times when releasing the biogas continuously. The cumulative hydrogen production could reach 155 mL when carbon dioxide in the gas stream was continuously absorbed by 1 mol·L-1 NaOH. The results showed that acetate was dominated, accounting for 43% in the dissolved fermentation products in Owen method, whereas the butyrate predominated and reached 47%–53% of the total liquid end products when releasing gas continuously. It is concluded that the homoacetogenesis could be suppressed when absorbing CO2 in the gas phase in fermentative hydrogen production system.