Search results for "POLLUTANTs"
showing 10 items of 1125 documents
Electrochemical abatement of chloroethanes in water: Reduction, oxidation and combined processes
2010
An electrochemical route, based on the anodic oxidation to carbon dioxide coupled with the cathodic reduction to de-halogenated hydrocarbons, was proposed for the treatment of waters contaminated by chloroethanes. The electrochemical abatement of two model compounds, namely 1,2-dichloroethane and 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane, was carried out by cathodic reduction at silver, anodic oxidation at boron doped diamond (BDD) and combined processes. The anodic oxidation gives rise to a high abatement of the concentration of both these compounds and of COD. The reduction of 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane proceeds also with high abatement but with the formation of some halogenated intermediates and final pr…
Detection of primary DNA damage in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii by means of modified microgel electrophoresis.
1997
The assessment of genotoxic potential in surface water requires test methods, among which are those that detect initial DNA damage in organisms of aquatic biocenosis. The microgel electrophoresis (MGE) "comet assay" was applied to a ubiquitous unicellular green alga (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii) to detect DNA damage caused by genotoxins. For this, the test protocol described by Singh NP et al. [Exp Cell Res 175: 184-191, 1988] was modified. Major modifications were the use of alkaline lysis buffer with ionic detergents and the reduction of preincubation and electrophoresis times. Short-time exposure of Chlamydomonas to the well-known genotoxicants 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4-NQO), N-nitrosodi…
Multiresidue analysis of organic pollutants by in-tube solid phase microextraction coupled to ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-electrospr…
2013
In this work, in-tube solid phase microextraction (IT-SPME) coupling with ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) multiresidue analytical method has been proposed for the first time for on-line enrichment of 9 analytes included in Water Frame Directive 2000/60/EC (WFD). The device was equipped with a GC TRB-5 capillary column, used as pre-concentration loop, and two conventional six-port injection valves. Water sample and desorption solvent volumes were tested. The optimum conditions were 4mL of processed sample followed by elution with 40μL of methanol. The analytes were detected with a mass spectrometer after being ionized positively using an elect…
Prenatal exposure to mixtures of xenoestrogens and repetitive element DNA methylation changes in human placenta
2014
BACKGROUND: Prenatal exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) has previously shown to alter epigenetic marks. OBJECTIVES: In this work we explore whether prenatal exposure to mixtures of xenoestrogens has the potential to alter the placenta epigenome, by studying DNA methylation in retrotransposons as a surrogate of global DNA methylation. METHODS: The biomarker total effective xenoestrogen burden (TEXB) was measured in 192 placentas from participants in the longitudinal INMA Project. DNA methylation was quantitatively assessed by bisulfite pyrosequencing on 10 different retrotransposons including 3 different long interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs), 4 short interspersed nuclear …
Sublethal zinc exposure has a detrimental effect on reproductive performance but not on the cyst hatching success of Artemia parthenogenetica
2008
The sublethal zinc toxicity to Artemia parthenogenetica as regards the possibility of colonization of zinc polluted salterns by means of cysts has been assessed by a cyst hatching assay and a life table approach. Emergence and hatching at different times as well as the whole hatching profile were taken as end-points for evaluating success of development. Demographic and reproductive parameters calculated according to the Lotka equation were used as an indicator of the chronic toxicity of the population. No adverse effects of waterborne zinc were found on hatching and emergence of cysts of A. parthenogenetica at any of the concentrations tested (0.01 mg/l, 0.1 mg/l, 0.5 mg/l, 1 mg/l, 5 mg/l)…
Sea urchin embryos as an in vivo model for the assessment of manganese toxicity: developmental and stress response effects.
2009
In the marine environment increasing concentrations of bio-available compounds often result from anthropogenic activities. Among metal ions, manganese represents a new emergent factor in environmental contamination. Here, we studied the effects of manganese on Paracentrotus lividus sea urchin embryos using biological and biochemical approaches for the analysis of impact on development, tissue accumulation and stress markers. Embryos were continuously exposed from fertilization to manganese at concentrations ranging from 1.0 to 61.6 mg l(-1), monitored for developmental abnormalities at 48 h after fertilization, and used for atomic spectrometric analysis at various times from 6 to 72 h. We f…
History and Environmental Impact of Mining Activity in Celtic Aeduan Territory Recorded in a Peat Bog (Morvan, France)
2003
The present study aims to document historical mining and smelting activities by means of geochemical and pollen analyses performed in a peat bog core collected around the Bibracte oppidum (Morvan, France), the largest settlement of the great Aeduan Celtic tribe (ca. 180 B.C. to 25 A.D.). The anthropogenic Pb profile indicates local mining operations starting from the Late Bronze Age, ca. cal. 1300 B.C. Lead inputs peaked at the height of Aeduan civilization and then decreased after the Roman conquest of Gaul, when the site was abandoned. Other phases of mining are recognized from the 11th century to modern times. They have all led to modifications in plant cover, probably related in part to…
Efficiency assessment of wastewater treatment plants: A data envelopment analysis approach integrating technical, economic, and environmental issues
2015
The assessment of the efficiency of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is essential to compare their performance and consequently to identify the best operational practices that can contribute to the reduction of operational costs. Previous studies have evaluated the efficiency of WWTPs using conventional data envelopment analysis (DEA) models. Most of these studies have considered the operational costs of the WWTPs as inputs, while the pollutants removed from wastewater are treated as outputs. However, they have ignored the fact that each pollutant removed by a WWTP involves a different environmental impact. To overcome this limitation, this paper evaluates for the first time the efficien…
Modelling of hybrid moving bed biofilm reactors: a pilot plant experiment.
2007
In recent years there has been an increasing interest in the development of hybrid biofilm reactors, especially in the upgrading of existing WWTP that are no longer able to respect concentration limits. In fact, today's challenge is the achievement of a good aquatic state for the receiving water bodies according to the Water Framework Directive requirements, which indeed limit even more the continuous emissions, i.e. coming from WWTP. This paper presents the setting up of a mathematical model for the simulation of a hybrid MBBR system; the model calibration/validation has been carried out considering a field gathering campaign on an experimental pilot plant. The main goal is to gain insight…
Application of a fuzzy algorithm for pH control in a struvite crystallisation reactor
2006
A struvite crystallisation process is highly dependent on pH. To achieve a high phosphorus recovery as struvite it is important to have an accurate control of pH in the reactor. The high non-linear response of pH value makes manual pH control difficult. Therefore, a software based on fuzzy logic control (FLC) has been developed to maintain the pH at a set value in a stirred reactor to crystallise struvite. The FLC developed has been based on Larsen's inference. In order to confirm the improvement of the pH stability using FLC software, different experiments have been carried out with manual control of the pH value, and with the FLC software. It has been demonstrated that using FLC software …