Successively pulse plated cadmium selenide films and their photoelectrochemical behaviour

In successive pulse plating, the pulse deposition is repeated after a definite duration of plating preceded by a mild cleaning of the electrode and with a fresh deposition bath for the same duration. In this study, CdSe films were deposited on Ti substrates by successive pulse plating from a bath containing CdSO₄ and SeO₂ at a current density of 80 mA cm⁻² and a duty cycle of 3·3% for a duration of 30 min. The films heat-treated to 550°C for 20 min in argon atmosphere, were polycrystalline with a hexagonal structure. At an illumination of 60 mW cm⁻², a conversion efficiency of 4·5% for the photoetched film and 1·7% for the chemically etched one were determined.     

Polymetallic complexes. part iii. schiff base complexes of cobalt(ii), copper(ii), cadmium(ii) and mercury(ii)

Eight polymetallic complexes have been synthesised of the composition M₂L₂._nB [M = Co(II), n = 4, B=H₂O, M = Cu(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II), n = 0] M₂L_2'.nB [M = Co(II), n = 4, B = H₂O; M = Cu(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II), n = 0], LH₂ = bi-bidentate Schiff base derived from benzoin with m-phenylenediamine; L'Hz = tridentate Schiff base derived from benzoin with o-aminophenol. Elemental analysis, conductance, magnetic susceptibility, i.r. and electronic spectral measurements have been done to characterise the complex compounds. A dinuclear octahedral configuration has been assigned to the cobalt(II) complexes and a dinuclear square planar structure to the copper(II) complexes. A tetrahedral configuration has been attributed to the cadmiurn(II) and mercury(II) complexes.     

Changes in mercury and cadmium concentrations and the feeding behaviour of beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) near Somerset Island, Canada, during the 20th century

Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) continues to be an important food species for Arctic communities, despite concerns about its high mercury (Hg) content. We investigated whether Hg and cadmium (Cd) concentrations had changed during the 20th century in beluga near Somerset Island in the central Canadian Arctic, using well-preserved teeth collected from historical sites (dating to the late 19th century and 1926-1947) and during subsistence hunts in the late 1990s. Mercury concentrations in both historical and modern teeth were correlated with animal age, but 1990s beluga exhibited a significantly more rapid accumulation with age than late 19th century animals, indicating that Hg concentrations or bioavailability in their food chain had increased during the last century. The geometric mean tooth Hg concentration in modern 30 year old animals was 7.7 times higher than in the late 19th century, which corresponds to threefold higher concentrations in muktuk and muscle. Teeth from 1926 to 1947 were similar in Hg content to the late 19th century, suggesting that the increase had occurred sometime after the 1940s. In contrast, tooth Cd was not correlated with animal age and decreased during the last 100 years, indicating that anthropogenic Cd was negligible in this population. Late 19th century beluga displayed a greater range of prey selection (tooth delta15N values: 15.6-20.5 per thousand) than modern animals (delta15N: 17.2-21.1 per thousand). To prevent this difference from confounding the temporal Hg comparison, the Hg-age relationships discussed above were based on historical animals, which overlapped isotopically with the modern group. Tooth delta13C also changed to isotopically more depleted values in modern animals, with the most likely explanation being a significant shift to more pelagic-based feeding. Industrial Hg pollution is a plausible explanation for the recent Hg increase. However, without further investigation of the relationship between the range exploitation of modern beluga and their possible exposure to regional marine food chains with (naturally) higher Hg contents than their historical counterparts, we cannot unequivocally conclude that the increase was anthropogenically driven.     

Protective effect of the fruits of Terminalia arjuna against cadmium-induced oxidant stress and hepatic cell injury via MAPK activation and mitochondria dependent pathway

Cadmium (Cd), a highly toxic environmental pollutant, induces hepatic disorders. The present study has been undertaken to investigate the protective role of the fruit extract of Terminalia arjuna (AE) against Cd-induced oxidative liver impairment using a murine model. Cadmium reduced hepatocytes viability, activated MAPKs, disturbed Bcl-2 family protein balance, increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and induced apoptotic cell death by mitochondria dependent caspases-3 activation. AE treatment, however, suppressed all the apoptotic actions of cadmium. Similarly, mice treated with cadmium altered a number biomarkers related to hepatic oxidative stress and other apoptotic indices. Oral administration of AE both pre and post prevented all the Cd-induced hepatic damages.     

Synthesis and identification of artificial antigens for cadmium and copper

Cadmium and copper were conjugated to two carrier proteins using bifunctional chelators, including derivatives of ethylenediamine N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid and 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid, to make artificial antigens for cadmium and copper. The artificial antigens were identified by nondenaturing gel electrophoresis, ultraviolet spectrophotometry, and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Nondenaturing gel electrophoresis results revealed that the conjugate band migrations were different from those of the chelator-protein conjugates and carrier proteins alone. The ultraviolet spectrophotometry results revealed that the maximum absorption peak of the conjugates had only a little peak shift. The graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry results revealed that the metal content of the conjugates was much higher than that of the carrier proteins and chelator-protein conjugates. The results indicated that the artificial antigens for cadmium and copper were successfully synthesised and could be useful as immunising antigens.     

新显色剂NPNTT的合成及其与镉的显色反应

本文报道了1-(4-硝基苯基)-3-(4-硝基-噻唑)-三氮烯(NPNTT)的合成及其与镉的显色反应研究。在O(P聚乙二醇辛基苯基醚)的存在下,pH11.0的Na2B4O7-NaOH缓冲溶液中,该试剂能与镉发生显色反应,镉与NPNTT形成摩尔比为1:3型的配合物,在450nm处有一最大正吸收,在540nm处有一最大负吸收。以450nm为参比波长,540nm为测量波长进行双波长测定,表观摩尔吸光系数为5.23×105L/(mo·lcm),镉的浓度在0～400μg/L范围内符合比尔定律。用拟定方法测定废水中的微量镉,结果满意。     

Anodic stripping voltammetric measurement of trace heavy metals at antimony film carbon paste electrode

The antimony film carbon paste electrode (SbF-CPE) was prepared in situ on the carbon paste substrate electrode as a “mercury-free” electrochemical sensor. Its aptitude for measuring some selected trace heavy metals has been demonstrated in combination with square-wave anodic stripping voltammetry in non-deaerated model solutions of 0.01 M hydrochloric acid with pH 2. Some important operational parameters, such as deposition potential, deposition time, and concentration of antimony ions were optimized, and the electroanalytical performance of the SbF-CPE was critically compared with both bismuth film carbon paste electrode (BiF-CPE) and mercury film carbon paste electrode (MF-CPE) using Cd(II) and Pb(II) as test metal ions. In comparison with BiF-CPE and MF-CPE, the SbF-CPE exhibited superior electroanalytical performance in more acidic medium (pH 2) associated with favorably low hydrogen evolution, improved stripping response for Cd(II), and moreover, stripping signals corresponding to Cd(II) and Pb(II) at the SbF-CPE were slightly narrower than those observed at bismuth and mercury counterparts. In addition, the comparison with antimony film electrode prepared at the glassy carbon substrate electrode displayed higher stripping current response recorded at the SbF-CPE. The newly developed sensor revealed highly linear behavior in the examined concentration range from 5 to 50 μg L⁻¹, with limits of detection (3σ) of 0.8 μg L⁻¹ for Cd(II), and 0.2 μg L⁻¹ for Pb(II) in connection with 120 s deposition step, offering good reproducibility of ±3.8% for Cd(II), and ±1.2% for Pb(II) (30 μg L⁻¹, n = 10). Preliminary experiments disclosed that SbF-CPE and MF-CPE exhibit comparable performance for measuring trace concentration levels of Zn(II) in acidic medium with pH 2, whereas its detection with BiF-CPE was practically impossible. Finally, the practical applicability of SbF-CPE was demonstrated via measuring Cd(II) and Pb(II) in a real water sample.     

Heavy metal mobility in intertidal sediments of the Scheldt estuary: Field monitoring

The current paper aims to check whether the factors affecting metal mobility in intertidal sediments and floodplain soils of the river Scheldt, as identified under controlled greenhouse conditions in previous studies, also play a similar role under variable field conditions. Moreover, we aimed to assess the importance of these factors as a function of sampling time and depth, with respect to the natural variations in water table levels. This field monitoring revealed that the mobility of metals in intertidal sediments of the Scheldt estuary indeed are affected by factors which were identified to affect the metal fate in the upper sediment layer in previous greenhouse experiments. However, the effects were often less pronounced under field conditions. This can be attributed to the lower sampling resolution, the occurrence of interactions between factors, the disturbance of microbial communities during setup of greenhouse experiments and the more moderate environmental conditions in the field, affecting microbial and enzymatic activities. At most of the sampled wetlands, the level of the water table fluctuated only slightly during fall, winter and spring, whereas it decreased substantially during summer, especially at the sites with more sandy sediments. The highest sulphide concentrations were found at the sites where the water table level never decreased considerably. These sulphides primarily suppress the availability of Cd, Cu, Ni and Zn. Organic complexation resulted in the mobilisation of Cu, Ni and Cr. The concentrations of Cd, Ni and Zn in the pore water were affected by Fe/Mn oxide reduction, whereas Cd and Zn concentrations appeared to be also affected by the salinity.     

Fabrication and characterization of Cd-enriched CdTe thin films by close spaced sublimation

Cd-enriched cadmium telluride (CdTe) polycrystalline films were grown on corning glass substrates by close spaced sublimation (CSS) technique. To our knowledge, Cd-enriched CdTe thin films by CSS have not been reported earlier. The structural investigations performed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique, scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) showed that the deposited films exhibit a polycrystalline structure with 〈111〉 as preferred orientation. The structural, optical, and electrical properties of these films were analyzed as a function of the Cd concentration. For the films having an excess of Cd, the electrical resistivity dropped several orders of magnitude. The deposited films also showed that the value of resistivity decreased with increasing temperature manifesting the semiconducting behavior of the films. The results showed that using this deposition technique, n-type Cd-enriched CdTe polycrystalline film could be produced.     

牛肉中痕量铅、镉的微波消解法快速测定

目的是建立一种快速测定牛肉中痕量铅镉重金属的方法。方法为牛肉样品用硝酸及过氧化氢消解并采用微波加热,试液中铅和镉用GF-AAS法测定,所得分析结果与常规法相比。得到结果为该方法具有更好的准确度和精密度。结论为此方法的操作更简便、快速。