Impact of Storm-Water Runoff on Clogging and Fecal Bacteria Reduction in Sand Columns

Storm-water runoff has been identified as a major cause of coastal water quality degradation. Storm-water outfalls, common in many coastal towns, convey bacteria and other pollutants into the ocean and estuaries. In an effort to minimize this impact, the Town of Kure Beach, North Carolina, installed Dune Infiltration Systems (DIS) at two storm-water outfalls to receive storm-water runoff and allow infiltration beneath the beach dunes. A laboratory column experiment was performed to supplement this installation and determine the potential hydraulic and bacterial removal efficiency of the sand comprising the Kure Beach dunes. Columns constructed using sand collected at different depths of the dune were used to analyze the affect of bacteria application on infiltration and to examine the changes in bacteria removal that occur as infiltration rates are affected by bacteria-laden water application. Sand columns were loaded over a 60-day period with either bacteria-free storm water or storm water spiked with Escherichia coli. The seepage rate for the bacteria-spiked storm-water treatment was significantly lower (p<0.05) than the seepage rate of the bacteria-free treatment, particularly toward the end of the study. Bacteria application likely compounds the impact of sediment clogging at the sand/storm-water interface. This study indicates the need for maintenance when implementing a DIS or similar sand filter to maintain design infiltration rates, especially if reduced infiltration rates are not planned for in the design. However, a decrease in seepage rate was correlated with a decrease in effluent bacteria concentration in the bacteria-spiked storm-water sand columns. Thus, optimization is required to provide maximum infiltration of storm-water while maintaining bacteria removal efficiency.     

Speciation of radionuclides in colloidal matter of underground waters taken from observation wells in the zone of impact of Lake Karachai

The strength of actinide bonding with colloidal matter of groundwaters from the Lake Karachai contamination area was studied by selective leaching. An α-track analysis showed that the microdistribution of α-emitting radionuclides in the colloidal matter is uniform. Analysis of fission tracks confirms the presence of ²³⁹Pu and ²⁴¹Am in the colloidal material. In the colloidal matter of groundwaters taken from three wells and differing in the chemical composition, radionuclides occur in forms differing in the solubility. U and Np in the colloidal material are associated only with readily soluble and mobile groups of compounds and are not detected in the difficultly soluble residue. Pu and Am, on the contrary, occur in the colloidal material of groundwaters mainly in difficultly soluble forms. Am is bound to a greater extent with surface organometallic complexes. Pu is detected mainly in the fraction of amorphous oxides.     

Self-blocking of dislocations in intermetallic compound Ni<Subscript>3</Subscript>Ge: Cubic slip

Self-blocking of dislocations belonging to the cube plane has been detected in the intermetallic compound Ni₃Ge. The nature of cubic slip has been clarified. The experiments included deformation at a temperature above T _max (the temperature of the yield-stress peak) and subsequent heating without stress. In addition, changes in the dislocation structure upon slow cooling from the temperature of the preliminary deformation have been investigated; in doing so, self-blocking of dislocations has been revealed for the first time. Based on the totality of experimental data, a conclusion has been made on the two-valley potential relief for a dislocation motion in the cube plane. It is the difference in the depths between the Peierls valley (a diffuse core in the cube plane) and the deepest valley (a superpartial dislocation split in the octahedron plane) that provides for the driving force of self-blocking in the absence of an external stress. Different aspects of cubic slip have been considered: the disappearance of cubic slip at T < T _max and, correspondingly, the nonobservation of an anomalous behavior of the yield stress, as well as the disappearance of octahedral slip at T > T _max.     

Solid-State Reactivity of the ZnO-xMn2O3 System During Heat Treatment

Using X-ray, infrared, and electron paramagnetic resonance methods, the reactivity of ZnO+ x Mn₂O₃ systems during heat treatment was studied. Results showed that the solubility of manganese (Mn) in zinc oxide (ZnO) is lower than 3% and that reaction diffusion occurs. Reaction processes that take place in this system promote disintegration of Mn₂O₃ particles into microfragments and causes them to move along the surface of the ZnO particles (solid-state reactive wetting process).     

The laboratory diagnosis of spring-summer infections in Yekaterinburg in the epidemic season for tick-borne encephalitis

The authors propose a comprehensive approach to laboratory diagnosis of seasonal transmissible infections, based on modern methods permitting etiological deciphering of disease. A universal diagnostic algorithm notably accelerated the laboratory diagnosis due to cutting the period between collection of material from a patient and consecutive screening for antibodies to agents of tick-borne encephalitis, Lyme disease, and California encephalitis.     

On particle path generation based on quadrilinear interpolation andBernstein-Bezier polynomials

Particle path computation in unsteady 3D vector fields given in discrete, structured form (i.e., as a hexahedral curvilinear grid) requires the local approximation of the vector field and the path. Quadrilinear interpolation and Bernstein-Bezier polynomials are used for the local vector field and path approximation. The next point in a sequence of points on a particle path is computed using this local approximation. Bernstein-Bezier polynomials are primarily used in geometric modeling, and their properties allow direct computation of points on a particle path     

The prevalence, structure and clinical problems of multiple sclerosis in the Transcarpathian area based on epidemiological study data

As many as 230 patients with disseminated sclerosis were examined in the Transcarpathian region. Sick male- and female populations were found out to be almost similar. There were more sick persons in the medium-range areas of the Carpathian Mountains, with a mean age being 35 +/- 5 years. It has been established that intake of spirulina makes for lengthening of remission in those patients with disseminated sclerosis.     

Preparation of the myristoylated and nonmyristoylated form of recombinant recoverin in E. coli cells and comparison of their functional activity]

Numerous data strongly suggest the involvement of cytokines and the matrix metalloproteinase collagenase (MMP-1) in the pathogenesis of periodontitis. Recently, we have demonstrated that, upon culturing under the influence of IL-1 alpha + EGF, a large amount of inactive procollagenase (MMP-1) is stored in the extracellular matrix of periosteal tissue. We now show that this endogenous reservoir of proenzyme can be operative after activation with plasmin and is able to induce a rapid and almost complete breakdown of the collagenous extracellular matrix. The level of collagen degradation following activation showed a strong correlation with the amount of proenzyme that was incorporated in the tissue. The highest level of degradation (70% of the total amount of collagenous proteins) was found with the IL-1 alpha + EGF-treated explants, followed by those treated with IL-1 alpha alone (35%). Explants cultured with EGF or in the absence of cytokines, containing only small amounts of procollagenase, showed little collagen breakdown following plasmin activation (7%). Inhibition of metalloproteinases by EDTA, or blockage of plasmin by PMSF, prevented the degradation in all explants irrespective of the amount of proenzyme present in the tissue. Our findings demonstrate that endogenous proenzyme stored in a native connective tissue matrix can be activated at a later time interval which results in a massive breakdown of the tissue. This study shows a possible pathway of collagenase-induced breakdown without recent de novo synthesis of the enzyme. Such a sequence may be operative in chronic inflammatory diseases, such as periodontitis, where production of procollagenase under the influence of cytokines spans a longer time period, whereas breakdown is often characterized by a cyclic behaviour.