Formation of carbonaceous and nitrogenous disinfection by-products from the chlorination of Microcystis aeruginosa

Formation of carbonaceous disinfection by-products (C-DBPs), including trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAAs), haloketones (HKs), chloral hydrate (CH), and nitrogenous disinfection by-products (N-DBPs), including haloacetonitriles (HANs) and trichloronitromethane (TCNM) from chlorination of Microcystis aeruginosa, a blue-green algae, under different conditions was investigated. Factors evaluated include contact time, chlorine dosages, pH, temperature, ammonia concentrations and algae growth stages. Increased reaction time, chlorine dosage and temperature improved the formation of the relatively stable C-DBPs (e.g., THM, HAA, and CH) and TCNM. Formation of dichloroacetonitrile (DCAN) followed an increasing and then decreasing pattern with prolonged reaction time and increased chlorine dosages. pH affected DBP formation differently, with THM increasing, HKs decreasing, and other DBPs having maximum concentrations at certain pH values. The addition of ammonia significantly reduced the formation of most DBPs, but TCNM formation was not affected and 1,1-dichloropropanone (1,1-DCP) formation was higher with the addition of ammonia. Most DBPs increased as the growth period of algal cells increased. Chlorination of algal cells of higher organic nitrogen content generated higher concentrations of N-DBPs (e.g., HANs and TCNM) and CH, comparable DCAA concentration but much lower concentrations of other C-DBPs (e.g., THM, TCAA and HKs) than did natural organic matter (NOM).     

Is the association between temperature and mortality modified by age, gender and socio-economic status?

Background

A number of studies have examined the relationship between high ambient temperature and mortality. Recently, concern has arisen about whether this relationship is modified by socio-demographic factors. However, data for this type of study is relatively scarce in subtropical/tropical regions where people are well accustomed to warm temperatures.

Objective

To investigate whether the relationship between daily mean temperature and daily all-cause mortality is modified by age, gender and socio-economic status (SES) in Brisbane, Australia.

Methods

We obtained daily mean temperature and all-cause mortality data for Brisbane, Australia during 1996-2004. A generalised additive model was fitted to assess the percentage increase in all deaths with every one degree increment above the threshold temperature. Different age, gender and SES groups were included in the model as categorical variables and their modification effects were estimated separately.

Results

A total of 53,316 non-external deaths were included during the study period. There was a clear increasing trend in the harmful effect of high temperature on mortality with age. The effect estimate among women was more than 20 times that among men. We did not find an SES effect on the percent increase associated with temperature.

Conclusions

The effects of high temperature on all deaths were modified by age and gender but not by SES in Brisbane, Australia.     

Atmospheric NH3 and NO2 concentration and nitrogen deposition in an agricultural catchment of Eastern China

To assess the atmospheric environmental impacts of anthropogenic reactive nitrogen in the fast-developing Eastern China region, we measured atmospheric concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and ammonia (NH₃) as well as the wet deposition of inorganic nitrogen (NO₃⁻ and NH₄⁺) and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) levels in a typical agricultural catchment in Jiangsu Province, China, from October 2007 to September 2008_. The annual average gaseous concentrations of NO₂ and NH₃ were 42.2 μg m⁻³ and 4.5 μg m⁻³ (0 °C, 760 mm Hg), respectively, whereas those of NO₃⁻, NH₄⁺, and DON in the rainwater within the study catchment were 1.3, 1.3, and 0.5 mg N L⁻¹, respectively. No clear difference in gaseous NO₂ concentrations and nitrogen concentrations in collected rainwater was found between the crop field and residential sites, but the average NH₃ concentration of 5.4 μg m⁻³ in residential sites was significantly higher than that in field sites (4.1 μg m⁻³). Total depositions were 40 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ for crop field sites and 30 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ for residential sites, in which dry depositions (NO₂ and NH₃) were 7.6 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ for crop field sites and 1.9 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ for residential sites. The DON in the rainwater accounted for 16% of the total wet nitrogen deposition. Oxidized N (NO₃⁻ in the precipitation and gaseous NO₂) was the dominant form of nitrogen deposition in the studied region, indicating that reactive forms of nitrogen created from urban areas contribute greatly to N deposition in the rural area evaluated in this study.     

Evaluation of soil nitrogen emissions from riparian zones coupling simple process-oriented models with remote sensing data

Riparian ecosystems have critical impacts on controlling the non-point source pollution and maintaining the health of aquatic ecosystems. In this study, a process oriented soil denitrification model was extended with algorithms from a simple nitrogen (N) cycle model and coupled to land surface remote sensing data to enhance its performance in spatial and temporal prediction of gaseous N emissions from soils in the riparian buffer zone surrounding the Guanting reservoir (China). The N emission model is based on chemical and physical relationships that govern the heat budget, soil moisture variations and nitrogen movement in soils. Besides soil water and heat processes, it includes nitrification, denitrification and ammonia (NH₃) volatilization. SPOT-5 and Landsat-5 TM satellite data were used to derive spatial land surface information and the temporal variation in land cover parameters was also used to drive the model. A laboratory-scale anaerobic incubation experiment was used to estimate the soil denitrification model parameters for the different soil types. An in situ field-scale experiment was conducted to calibrate and validate the soil temperature, moisture and nitrogen sub-models. An indirect method was used to verify simulated N emissions, resulting in a coefficient of determination of R² = 0.83 between simulated and observed values. Then the model was applied to the whole riparian buffer zone catchment, using the spatial resolution (10 m) of the SPOT-5 image. Model sensitivity analysis showed that soil moisture was the most sensitive parameter for gaseous N emissions and soil denitrification was the main process affecting N losses to the atmosphere in the riparian area. From the aspect of land use management around the Guanting reservoir, the spatial structure and distribution of land cover and land use types in the riparian area should be adapted, to enhance faster ecological restoration of the wetland ecological system surrounding this strategically important water resource.     

The relationship between particulate air pollution and emergency hospital visits for hypertension in Beijing, China

Background

A number of epidemiological studies have examined the adverse effect of air pollution on mortality and morbidity. Also, several studies have investigated the associations between air pollution and specific-cause diseases including arrhythmia, myocardial infarction, and heart failure. However, little is known about the relationship between air pollution and the onset of hypertension.

Objective

To explore the risk effect of particulate matter air pollution on the emergency hospital visits (EHVs) for hypertension in Beijing, China.

Methods

We gathered data on daily EHVs for hypertension, fine particulate matter less than 2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM_2.5), particulate matter less than 10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM₁₀), sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide in Beijing, China during 2007. A time-stratified case-crossover design with distributed lag model was used to evaluate associations between ambient air pollutants and hypertension. Daily mean temperature and relative humidity were controlled in all models.

Results

There were 1,491 EHVs for hypertension during the study period. In single pollutant models, an increase in 10 μg/m³ in PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ was associated with EHVs for hypertension with odds ratios (overall effect of five days) of 1.084 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.028, 1.139) and 1.060% (95% CI: 1.020, 1.101), respectively.

Conclusion

Elevated levels of ambient particulate matters are associated with an increase in EHVs for hypertension in Beijing, China.     

Liquid penetration length of heptamethylnonane and trimethylpentane under unsteady in-cylinder conditions

While strategies employing early or late direct-injection of fuel can improve emissions, they also can lead to impingement of liquid-phase fuel on the piston and/or cylinder wall due to low in-cylinder temperatures and densities during the injection event. Previous work has shown that liquid-phase fuel films formed in this way can lead to pronounced degradations in efficiency and emissions. To avoid these problems, a quantitative understanding of fuel-property effects on the liquid penetration length is needed, and this understanding must include conditions where in-cylinder thermodynamic conditions and the injection rate vary with time. This work reports liquid penetration lengths measured in an optical engine under such time-varying conditions. Diagnostics included laser light scattering for measurement of the liquid length and conventional pressure-data acquisition for heat-release analysis. Unsteady liquid penetration was characterized for different injection timings, injection pressures, intake-manifold pressures, and fuel volatilities to gain an understanding of the relative importance of these factors. Fuel volatility was studied by using two fuels, 2,2,4,4,6,8,8-heptamethylnonane (HMN) and 2,2,4-trimethylpentane (TMP), which have very different volatility characteristics. Measured liquid lengths changed as in-cylinder conditions changed, with increasing temperature and density during the compression stroke causing a decrease in liquid length, and decreasing temperature and density during the expansion stroke causing an increase in liquid length. Intake-manifold pressure and fuel volatility were found to be primary factors governing liquid length. Heat loss from the charge gas to the engine and local charge cooling due to fuel vaporization were found to have a secondary influence on liquid length. Injection pressure was found to have little effect.     

Diffusion-Induced Void Evolution in Core–Shell Nanowires: Elaborated View on the Nanoscale Kirkendall Effect

In 2006, our group reported the fabrication of ultra-long single-crystal ZnAl₂O₄ spinel nanotubes, starting from ZnO/Al₂O₃ core–shell nanowires, involving the nanoscale Kirkendall effect. In this feature paper, we introduce our up-to-date results on the design of porous and hollow 1D nanostructures following this solid-state interfacial reaction route. In particular, we present our recent understandings on void evolution induced by the unbalanced diffusion. We first give a short introduction on the distinctions of core–shell nanowires in interfacial nanoreactions, in contrast to other systems. Then we discuss the roles of desorption, stress, and/or defects on void evolution and nanotube formation. Our results demonstrate that the stress- and defects-engineered diffusion mechanism can be used to specifically design hollow nanostructures, which will open up a new window in exploitation of the Kirkendall effect at the nanoscale.     

TG-FTIR characterization of coal and biomass single fuels and blends under slow heating rate conditions: Partitioning of the fuel-bound nitrogen

The devolatilization behavior of a bituminous coal and different biomass fuels currently applied in the Dutch power sector for co-firing was experimentally investigated. The volatile composition during single fuel pyrolysis as well as during co-pyrolysis was studied using TG-FTIR characterization with the focus on the release patterns and quantitative analysis of the gaseous bound nitrogen species. It was shown that all investigated biomass fuels present more or less similar pyrolysis behavior, with a maximum weight loss between 300 and 380 °C. Woody and agricultural biomass materials show higher devolatilization rates than animal waste. When comparing different fuels, the percentage of fuel-bound nitrogen converted to volatile bound-N species (NH₃, HCN, HNCO) does not correlate with the initial fuel-N content. Biomass pyrolysis resulted in higher volatile-N yields than coal, which potentially indicates that NO_x control during co-firing might be favored. No significant interactions occurred during the pyrolysis of coal/biomass blends at conditions typical of TG analysis (slow heating rate). Evolved gas analysis of volatile species confirmed the absence of mutual interactions during woody biomass co-pyrolysis. However, non-additive behavior of selected gas species was found during slaughter and poultry litter co-pyrolysis. Higher CH₄ yields between 450 and 750 °C and higher ammonia and CO yields between 550 and 900 °C were measured. Such a result is likely to be attributed to catalytic effects of alkali and alkaline earth metals present in high quantity in animal waste ash. The fact that the co-pyrolysis of woody and agricultural biomass is well modeled by simple addition of the individual behavior of its components permits to predict the mixture's behavior based on experimental data available for single fuels. On the other hand, animal waste co-pyrolysis presented in some cases synergistic effects in gas products although additive behavior occurred for the solid phase.     

Effects of dimethyl-ether (DME) spray behavior in the cylinder on the combustion and exhaust emissions characteristics of a high speed diesel engine

The purpose of this study was to analyze the exhaust emissions of DME fuel through experimental and numerical analyses of in-cylinder spray behavior. To investigate this behavior, spray characteristics such as the spray tip penetration, spray cone angle, and spray targeting point were studied in a re-entrant cylinder shape under real combustion chamber conditions. The combustion performance and exhaust emissions of the DME-fueled diesel engine were calculated using KIVA-3V. The numerical results were validated with experimental results from a DME direct injection compression ignition engine with a single cylinder.The combustion pressure and IMEP have their peak values at an injection timing of around BTDC 30°, and the peak combustion temperature, exhaust emissions (soot, NO_x), and ISFC had a lower value. The HC and CO emissions from DME fuel showed lower values and distributions in the range from BTDC 25° to BTDC 10° at which a major part of the injected DME spray was distributed into the piston bowl area. When the injection timing advanced to before BTDC 30°, the HC and CO emissions showed a rapid increase. When the equivalence ratio increased, the combustion pressure and peak combustion temperature decreased, and the peak IMEP was retarded from BTDC 25° to BTDC 20°. In addition, NO_x emissions were largely decreased by the low combustion temperature, but the soot emissions increased slightly.     

高负荷厌氧氨氧化EGSB反应器的运行及其颗粒污泥的ECP特性

高效性是厌氧氨氧化(anaerobic ammonium oxidation,anammox)生物脱氮工艺的优势,污泥颗粒化则是生物反应器高效性的重要原因。控制进水亚硝酸盐浓度为360mg·L-1,回流比为0.5,经过230d的连续运行,逐步将厌氧氨氧化膨胀颗粒污泥床(expanded-granular sludgebed,EGSB)反应器(1.1L)的水力停留时间由6.9h缩短至0.30h,获得的容积基质氮去除速率为50.75kg.m-3·d-1,是原有世界最高水平的2倍。在此工况下获得的高负荷厌氧氨氧化颗粒污泥的平均粒径为(2.51±0.91)mm,比污泥厌氧氨氧化活性为1.899kg·(kgVSS)-1·d-1,胞外多聚物(extracellular polymers,ECP)总含量达143.00mg·(gVSS)-1。随着反应器容积基质氮去除速率的提高,反应器内厌氧氨氧化颗粒污泥胞外多聚物含量增加,其中蛋白质含量增加更快,蛋白质的"超量产生"致使颗粒污泥的PN/PS增大,易随水流失。