Search results for "Pollution"
showing 10 items of 2765 documents
Oxygen-containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (OPAHs) in urban soils of Bratislava, Slovakia: patterns, relation to PAHs and vertical distributi…
2011
Abstract We determined concentrations, sources, and vertical distribution of OPAHs and PAHs in soils of Bratislava. The ∑14 OPAHs concentrations in surface soil horizons ranged 88–2692 ng g−1 and those of ∑34 PAHs 842–244,870 ng g−1. The concentrations of the ∑9 carbonyl-OPAHs (r = 0.92, p = 0.0001) and the ∑5 hydroxyl-OPAHs (r = 0.73, p = 0.01) correlated significantly with ∑34 PAHs concentrations indicating the close association of OPAHs with parent-PAHs. OPAHs were quantitatively dominated by 9-fluorenone, 9,10-anthraquinone, 1-indanone and benzo[a]anthracene-7,12-dione. At several sites, individual carbonyl-OPAHs had higher concentrations than parent PAHs. The concentration ratios of se…
Water-stable aggregates and organic matter pools in a calcareous vineyard soil under four soil-surface management systems
2006
. Vineyards in Champagne, France are generally situated on slopes where the soils are subject to erosion. Therefore it is important to find a soil-surface management practice that protects the soil against water erosion. We assessed the potential of mulches or grass covers to stabilize soil aggregates in a calcareous sandy loam from a vineyard in Champagne after 9 years under different management systems. Four different treatments were studied: (i) a bluegrass (Poa pratensis) surface cover between the vine rows (GC) with bare soil under the vines (R); two organic mulches of (ii) coniferous (CB) or (iii) poplar (PB) bark that covered the entire soil surface, and (iv) bare soil between the ro…
Removal of TEX vapours from air in a peat biofilter: influence of inlet concentration and inlet load
2006
This paper presents the results of the study of the removal of toluene, ethylbenzene, and o-xylene (TEX) by biofiltration using a commercial peat as filter-bed material. Runs with a single organic compound in air, and with the mixture of TEX in air, were carried out for at least 55 days in laboratory-scale reactors inoculated with a conditioned culture. The influence of organic compound inlet load and of gas flow rate on the biofilter's performance was studied, including relatively high values of pollutant inlet concentration (up to 4.3 gC m−3 for ethylbenzene, 3.2 gC m−3 for toluene, and 2.7 gC m−3 for o-xylene). Results obtained show maximum elimination capacities of 65 gC m−3 h−1 for o-x…
Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylenes in ambient air and Pinus sylvestris L. needles: a comparative study between Belgium, Hungary and Latvia
2001
Abstract Concentrations of benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylenes (BTEX) in ambient air and in 1 yr old Pinus sylvestris pine needles were monitored along a busy road, petrol station and rural area of Belgium, Hungary and Latvia in a 1 yr period. To test P. sylvestris as a possible biomonitor for the BTEX concentrations, samples were taken in the four seasons. As the distribution of data was not normal, the level of pollution on different sites and seasons was compared and evaluated by non-parametric tests. The measured air concentrations did not differ significantly from one season to another throughout the year. There were, however, differences between sampling places. The C2-alkylbe…
Chemical speciation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediments: partitioning and extraction of humic substances.
2010
The primary objective of this study was to examine the chemical speciation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in sediments endowed with different characteristics. To achieve this purpose and because the nature of the sediments influences the distribution of PAHs, we have analyzed four different types of sediments. To study the role of organic matter in the sequestration of PAHs, we fractionated humic substances into humic acids and humin–mineral fractions. After their separation and purification, the humic components were examined for their sorptive reactivity by extracting them with organic solvents; these extracts were subsequently subjected to GC/MS analysis. Our results sh…
Decomposer animal communities in forest soil along heavy metal pollution gradient
1996
Responses of soil decomposer animals to heavy metal contamination and to concomitant changes in organic matter quality and quantity and in soil microbial biomasses have been studied along a pollution gradient from a Cu-Ni smelter. Samples have been taken separately for nematodes, enchytraeids and microarthropods 0.5, 2 and 8 km from the smelter. Special attention has been paid to the changes in the collembolan fauna. The sampling sites have been located in homogeneous Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris) forests with podsolic soil profiles. In addition, an experiment has been carried out in which intact soil cores have been transferred in mesh baskets between the sites 2 and 8 km from the smelter…
Organic chlorine compounds in lake sediments. V. Bottom of Baikal near a pulp mill
1990
Abstract Organically bound chlorine (OCl) together with inorganic chloride (Cl − ) was measured from bottom surface samples of the Lake Baikal near a pulp mill and compared to organic matter contents (OM). Although total contents of OCl, Cl − and OM were much lower than, the ratio of OCl to OM was of the same order of magnitude as in pulp mill recipients of Finland.
UV-B-Induced acute toxicity of pyrene to the waterflea Daphnia magna in natural freshwaters.
1999
Abstract The effects of various water characteristics in natural freshwaters on the acute toxicity of one polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), pyrene, to a pelagic invertebrate Daphnia magna was studied under ultraviolet B (UV-B) radiation and in the dark. Pyrene was photoactivated and was more toxic to D. magna in the presence of UV-B radiation. Dissolved organic material (DOM), measured as dissolved organic carbon (DOC), significantly reduced the photoenhanced toxicity of pyrene. Under UV-B radiation the EC50 values were lower and in relation to the amount of DOM, ranging from 3.0 to 30.0 μg/L pyrene, whereas in the dark they were between 29.2 and 54.8 μg/L and not related to the amount…
Environmentally sustainable production of cellulose-based superabsorbent hydrogels
2006
The development of new products and materials, especially those which are non-petrolchemical reserves and based on renewable organic resources, using innovative sustainable processes is nowadays of increasing interest and deserves the attention of both academic and industrial research. Cellulose and its derivatives, as renewable organic resources, have been used to synthesize novel superabsorbent hydrogels. Although the production of cellulose is one of the causes connected to deforestation, the production of suitably engineered cellulose superabsorbent hydrogel materials has been proposed to preserve water in typically arid areas in the world. Paradoxically, divinylsulfone (DVS), a small d…
Wastewater COD characterization: analysis of respirometric and physical-chemical methods for determining biodegradable organic matter fractions
2010
BACKGROUND: In this work, a comprehensive study of the respirometric and physical–chemical methods has been performed to evaluate the information provided by these two methodologies in order to assess the biodegradable organic matter fractions of wastewater. RESULTS: First, an analysis was performed of the influence of the initial substrate on biomass ratio (F0/X0) in the assessment of readily biodegradable organic matter, SS, through respirometric experiments. In order to achieve an adequate assessment of the SS component, similar conditions (given by the initial F0/X0 ratio) must be employed in experiments that are carried to determine SS and YH (heterotrophic yield). Second, a comparativ…