Bromacil (5-bromo-3-sec-butyl-6-methyluracil) is a substituted uracil herbicide used worldwide. It is not readily biodegradable and has the potential to contaminate different types of water bodies with possible impact on diverse non-target species. In this work, degradation of bromacil in aqueous Au/TiO₂suspension under simulated sunlight allowed fourteen degradation products to be identified. The photodegradation of bromacil followed (pseudo) first order kinetics in the presence of 0.2 g L⁻¹of Au/TiO₂with a half-life of 25.66 ± 1.60 min and a rate constant of 0.0271 ± 0.0023 min⁻¹. Transformation routes of the photo-catalytic degradation of bromacil were then proposed. Complementary toxicity assessment of the treated bromacil solution revealed a marked decrease in toxicity, thereby confirming that by-products formed would be less harmful from an environmental point of view. Photo-catalytic degradation of bromacil thus appears to hold promise as a cost-effective treatment technology to diminish the presence of this herbicide in aquatic systems.

Dietary exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) may pose serious threats to human health. However, within the Caribbean, quantitative assessments regarding the risks associated with dietary PAH exposure remain sparse. This study investigated PAH presence in edible biota from the Caroni Swamp and quantitatively assessed the potential health threat to human consumers. Mangrove oysters (Crassostrea rhizophorae) and Madamango sea catfish (Cathorops spixii) collected from seven sites in the Caroni Swamp were analysed for 16 priority PAHs. Total PAH levels ranged from 109 ± 18.4 to 362 ± 63.0 ng/g dry wt. in Crassostrea rhizophorae and 7.5 ± 0.9 to 43.5 ± 25.5 ng/g dry wt. in Cathorops spixii (average ± standard deviation). Benzo[a]pyrene levels in Crassostrea rhizophorae at all sites exceeded international guidelines from British Colombia (Canada) and the European Union (EU). Incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) values based on the ingestion of Crassostrea rhizophorae ranged from 8.4 × 10⁻⁶to 1.6 × 10⁻⁵and slightly exceeded the commonly used 1 × 10⁻⁶acceptable level of risk. Information from this study is important in understanding the potential health risks posed by PAHs, it is critical towards the protection of public health, and it serves as a useful baseline for comparison with future work.

In this study, mesoporous glycidyl methacrylate-divinylbenzene-based chelating resin was synthesized and grafted with diethylenetriamine through epoxy ring-opening reaction. The synthesized resin was characterized by elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy, surface area and pore size analysis, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and thermogravimetry. The resin was used for the first time as an effective sorbent for the preconcentration of nickel in electroplating wastewater samples. The analytical variables like pH, flow rate for sorption/desorption, and eluate selection were systematically investigated and optimized. The uniform and monolayer sorption behavior of resin for nickel was proved by an evident fit of the equilibrium data to a Langmuir isotherm model. Under optimized conditions, the resin was observed to show a good sorption capacity of 20.25 mg g⁻¹and >96 % recovery of nickel even in the presence of a large number of competitive matrix ions. Its ability to extract trace amount of nickel was exhibited by low preconcentration limit (5.9 μg L⁻¹). The calibration curve was found to be linear (R² = 0.998) in the concentration range of 6.0–400.0 μg L⁻¹. Coefficient of variation of less than 5 for all the analysis indicated good reproducibility. The reliability was evaluated by the analysis of standard reference material (SRM) and recovery experiments. The applicability of the resin for the systematic preconcentration of nickel is substantiated by the analysis of electroplating wastewater and river water samples.

To assess the heavy metal pollution in Changshou Lake, sediments were collected from nine sites at three periods (dry, normal, and wet) in 2013. The Hg, As, Cr, Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn levels were then determined. The index of geoaccumulation (I gₑₒ) and the sediment pollution index (SPI) were applied to the sediment assessment, and Pearson’s correlation analysis and factor analysis (FA) were performed to identify common pollution sources in the basin. The results showed that heavy metals presented significant spatial variations with Cr, Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, Hg, and As concentrations of 29.66~42.58, 0.62~0.91, 24.91~37.96, 21.18~74.91, 41.65~86.86, 0.079~0.152, and 20.17~36.88 mg kg⁻¹, respectively, and no obvious variations were found among the different periods. The average contents of the metals followed the order Zn > Cu > Cr > Pb > As > Cd > Hg, which showed a high pollution in the sediments collected from open water and at the river mouth. The assessment results indicated that toxic heavy metals presented obvious pollution with I Hg of 0.64~1.36 (moderately polluted), I Cd of 1.66~2.22 (moderately to heavily polluted), and I Aₛ of 1.21~2.07 (moderately to heavily polluted). The heavy metal pollution states followed the order Cd > As > Hg > Cu > Pb > Zn > Cr, and the SPI showed that the sediment collected from open water area was more polluted than those obtained from the tributaries and the river mouth. Cr, Cd, Hg, Pb, Cu, As, and Zn were mainly attributed to sediment weathering with Hg, Pb, and Cu and partially due to domestic sewage from the upper reaches. These results indicate that the more attention should be paid to the inner loads of sediment in order to achieve improvements in reservoir water quality after the control of external pollution.

Petrochemical wastewater often contains high concentrations of phenol and sulfate that must be properly treated to meet discharge standards. This study acclimated anaerobic-activated sludge to treat saline phenolic wastewater with sulfate reduction and clarified the diversity and degradation mechanism of the microbial community. The active sludge in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor could remove 90 % of phenol and maintain the effluent concentration of SO₄ ²⁻ below 400 mg/L. Cloning and sequencing showed that Clostridium spp. and Desulfotomaculum spp. were major phenol-degrading bacteria. Phenol was probably degraded through the carboxylation pathway and sulfate reduction catalyzed by adenosine-5′-phosphosulfate (APS) reductase and dissimilatory sulfite reductase (DSR). A real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) showed that as phenol concentration increased, the quantities of 16S rRNA gene, dsrB, and mcrA in the sludge all decreased. The relative abundance of dsrB dropped to 12.46 %, while that of mcrA increased to 56.18 %. The change in the electron flow ratio suggested that the chemical oxygen demand (COD) was removed mainly by sulfate-reducing bacteria under a phenol concentration of 420 mg/L, whereas it was removed mainly by methanogens above 630 mg/L.

Using live eukaryotic cells, including cancer cells, MCF-7 and HCT-116, normal hepatocytes and red blood cells in anode and potassium ferricyanide in cathode of MFC could generate bio-based electric current. Electrons and protons generated from the metabolic reaction in both cytosol and mitochondria contributing to the leaking would mediate the generation of electric current. Both resveratrol (RVT) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) used to induce proton leak in mitochondria were found to promote electric current production in all cells except red blood cells without mitochondria. Proton leak might be important for electric current production by bringing the charge balance in cells to enhance the further electron leak. The induced electric current by RVT can be blocked by Genipin, an inhibitor of UCP2-mediated proton leak, while that induced by DNP cannot. RVT could reduce reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in cells better than that of DNP. In addition, RVT increased mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), while DNP decreased it. Results highly suggested the existence of at least two types of electric current that showed different properties. They included UCP2-mediated and non-UCP2-mediated electric current. UCP2-mediated electric current exhibited higher reactive oxygen species (ROS) reduction effect per unit electric current production than that of non-UCP2-mediated electric current. Higher UCP2-mediated electric current observed in cancer cells might contribute to the mechanism of drug resistence. Correlation could not be established between electric current production with either ROS and MMP without distinguishing the types of electric current.

The widespread “pertinacious illness” for environmental management soil contamination by toxic metals has inevitably led to announcement of gradual adjustment for the local government to curb the notorious pollution. An extensive survey was conducted in Changxing County, Zhejiang Province, to investigate the contents of cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), lead (Pb), and copper (Cu) and characterize the spatial-temporal change pattern to elucidate the current state and performance of policy adjustment. Geostatistic methods were applied in the mapping and characterizing processes to assess the concentrations of heavy metals at unsampled sites. Enrichment factor analysis indicated obvious Cd and As enrichment in the west and northwest of the county. Ordinary kriging interpolation combined with semivariogram revealed that the four heavy metals possessed distinct spatial distribution patterns. However, the distribution patterns for the elevated Cd and Pb concentrations exhibited a similar geographic drift, corresponding primarily to industrial distribution. Compared with the investigation findings in 2003, the results indicated an uptrend of Cd and As and downtrend of Cu, while Pb was a mixture of increase and decrease. However, strengthened actions aimed at restraining heavy metal contamination are still needed to establish a mechanism to secure residents’ health and livelihood.

As the result of biogenic and anthropogenic activities, large quantities of chemical compounds are emitted into the troposphere. Alkanes, in general, and cycloalkanes are an important chemical class of hydrocarbons found in diesel, jet and gasoline, vehicle exhaust emissions, and ambient air in urban areas. In general, the primary atmospheric fate of organic compounds in the gas phase is the reaction with hydroxyl radicals (OH). The oxidation by Cl atoms has gained importance in the study of atmospheric reactions because they may exert some influence in the boundary layer, particularly in marine and coastal environments, and in the Arctic troposphere. The aim of this paper is to study of the atmospheric reactivity of methylcylohexanes with Cl atoms and OH radicals under atmospheric conditions (in air at room temperature and pressure). Relative kinetic techniques have been used to determine the rate coefficients for the reaction of Cl atoms and OH radicals with methylcyclohexane, cis-1,4-dimethylcyclohexane, trans-1,4-dimethylcyclohexane, and 1,3,5-trimethylcyclohexane at 298 ± 2 K and 720 ± 5 Torr of air by Fourier transform infrared) spectroscopy and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in two atmospheric simulation chambers. The products formed in the reaction under atmospheric conditions were investigated using a 200-L Teflon bag and employing the technique of solid-phase microextraction coupled to a GC-MS. The rate coefficients obtained for the reaction of Cl atoms with the studied compounds are the following ones (in units of 10⁻¹⁰ cm³ molecule⁻¹ s⁻¹): (3.11 ± 0.16), (2.89 ± 0.16), (2.89 ± 0.26), and (2.61 ± 0.42), respectively. For the reactions with OH radicals the determined rate coefficients are (in units of 10⁻¹¹ cm³ molecule⁻¹ s⁻¹): (1.18 ± 0.12), (1.49 ± 0.16), (1.41 ± 0.15), and (1.77 ± 0.23), respectively. The reported error is twice the standard deviation. A detailed mechanism for ring-retaining product channels is proposed to justify the observed reaction products. The global tropospheric lifetimes estimated from the reported OH- and Cl-rate coefficients show that the main removal path for the investigated methylcyclohexanes is the reaction with OH radicals. But in marine environments, after sunrise, Cl reactions become more important in the tropospheric degradation. Thus, the estimated lifetimes range from 16 to 24 h for the reactions of the OH radical (calculated with [OH] = 10⁶ atoms cm⁻³) and around 7–8 h in the reactions with Cl atoms in marine environments (calculated with [Cl] = 1.3 × 10⁵ atoms cm⁻³). The reaction of Cl atoms and OH radicals and methylcylohexanes can proceed by H abstraction from the different positions.

Due to the abundance of organic matter in compost, the addition of compost to soil can promote the adsorption of pesticides. However, few studies have examined the influence of the composting duration on the organic matter (OM) transformation and adsorption capacity of the compost. In this study, a mixture of sewage sludge and straw was composted, and then the physicochemical properties of various OM were studied. Additionally, the sorption capacities of humic acid (HA), humin (HM), humic acid + humin, and fulvic acid (FA) + humic acid + humin extracted from composts of different stages toward pentachlorophenol (PCP) were compared. The sorption data can be well-described by the Freundlich model, and the sorption capacity of PCP on HM is the strongest of all organic components. After 120 days of composting, the sorption abilities of HA and HM increased by 54.76 and 36.73 %, respectively, which corresponds with increases in the aromatization degree, BET specific area, and pore volume and with a decrease in acid functional groups. The sorption ability of HA and HM increased by 54.76 and 36.73 % due to the increase of the aromatization degree. However, the sorption capacity of the compost decreased by 51.2 %, which resulted from a decrease in total organic matter content and from the interaction between organic components in composts. This could be verified by the sequence of the sorption capacity: HM > HM + HA > HM + HA + FA > HA. The contribution of humus to the sorption of PCP onto compost is approximately 41 to 55 %, and it increases with composting time. Therefore, it is possible that other components are present that affect the adsorption of PCP on composts.

The injury to sensitive rotational crops caused by residual herbicides from their applications has happened frequently. The assessment of activity of residual herbicide in soil has been of agronomic concern. To accurately determine the toxicity and obtain a comparable concentration that inhibits growth by 50 % (IC50) in different soils, the concentrations of imazaquin in CaCl₂(CCₐCₗ₂) and H₂O (CH₂O) extraction and in in situ pore water (CPW) were adopted for the estimation of IC50 to sorghum. The IC50 values based on CCₐCₗ₂and CH₂Owere 0.06 mg L⁻¹in soil Ansai (AS) to 0.13 mg L⁻¹in soil Huajiachi (HJC), 0.32 mg L⁻¹in soil AS to 0.71 mg L⁻¹in soil HJC, respectively, with variation coefficients of 38.32 and 34.93 %. However, CPW-based IC50 values ranged from 0.90 mg L⁻¹in soil Xiaoshan (XS) to 1.09 mg L⁻¹in soil HJC with a variation coefficient of 6.96 %. This implies that the IC50 based on imazaquin concentration in in situ pore water is almost identical in the five soils. With further studies with more herbicides and plant species, this method might be expanded for the estimation of phytotoxicity of residual herbicide(s) to plant(s).