Rice fields significantly contribute to the global N₂O and NH₃ emissions. Nitrification inhibitors (NIs) show promise in decreasing N₂O emission, but they can increase NH₃ volatilization under traditional broadcasting. Root zone fertilization (RZF) can mitigate NH₃ volatilization, but it may pose a high risk to N₂O emission. Additionally, most chemical NIs have limited availability and potential for environmental contamination, in contrast, biological NIs, such as methyl 3-(4-hydroxyphenyl) propionate (MHPP), are easily available and eco-friendly. However, the effects of RZF combined with MHPP on N₂O and NH₃ emissions are unknown. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted in a Chinese rice field with five treatments at 210 kg urea-N ha⁻¹ (BC: 3-split surface broadcasting; BC + MHPP: BC with MHPP; RZ, root zone fertilization; RZ + MHPP, RZF with MHPP; RZ + MHPP + NBPT, RZF with MHPP and NBPT). The results showed that although RZ eliminated NH₃ volatilization, it significantly increased total N₂O emission by 761% compared with BC due to the stimulation of nitrification by mid-season aeration (MSA) and the trigger of denitrification by a large amount of NO₃⁻. Nearly 90% N₂O was emitted at MSA stage for RZF treatments, and their N₂O fluxes were exponentially related to the soil NO₃⁻-N concentrations in the 7–20 cm deep soil layer. RZ + MHPP greatly reduced the peak values of N₂O flux due to the suppression of nitrification by MHPP and then less production of NO₃⁻ for denitrification, its total N₂O emission was 79% lower compared with that of RZ. However, RZ + MHPP + NBPT further increased the total N₂O emission by 1044% compared with that of BC. Compared to BC, the RZF practice reduced total NH₃ volatilization by 88–92% regardless use of NIs. RZF had no influence on CH₄ emissions and enhanced the rice yields. In conclusion, RZF + MHPP is a promising strategy for simultaneously reducing N₂O and NH₃ emissions in rice fields.

In order to examine whether 8:2 FTOH exposure would lead to a contamination risk of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in broiler derived food, the biotransformation, and tissue distribution and accumulation of 8:2 FTOH following oral exposure in male broilers were investigated. The main metabolites of 8:2 FTOH in plasma and six tissues (muscle, liver, kidney, fat, heart, and lungs) identified by LC-Q-TOF were 2-perfluorooctyl ethanoic acid (8:2 FTCA), 8:2 fluorotelomer unsaturated carboxylic acid (8:2 FTUCA), 3-perfluoroheptyl propanoic acid (7:3 FTCA), perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), 8:2 FTOH glucuronide conjugate, and 8:2 FTOH sulfate conjugate. The tissue distribution and bioaccumulation of 8:2 FTOH and its unconjugated metabolites were determinated by LC-MS/MS. 8:2 FTOH was quickly depleted in plasma and all six tested tissues, while PFOA, PFNA, and 7:3 FTCA showed strong accumulation in blood and all six examined tissues and were eliminated more slowly than the other metabolites. The tissues with the highest accumulation levels for 8:2 FTOH and its metabolites were heart, kidneys and liver, and the tissue with the lowest accumulation levels was muscle. The elimination half-lifes of PFNA in kidney and 7:3 FTCA in lung were longer compared to those of other metabolites in all six determined tissues. Thus, PFNA and 7:3 FTCA can be selected as potential biomonitoring markers after 8:2 FTOH exposure. This study has improved our understanding of 8:2 FTOH biotransformation and tissue bioaccumulation in broilers, which will help us monitor human exposure risk via food derived from broilers polluted by 8:2 FTOH.

Microaerobic and hypoxic methane oxidation coupled to denitrification (MAME-D and HYME-D) occur in stabilized landfills with leachate recirculation when biological denitrification is limited by lack of organics. To evaluate nitrate denitrification efficiency and culture MAME-D/HYME-D involved bacteria, a leach bed bioreactor semi-continuous experiment was conducted for 60 days in 5 runs, under nitrate concentrations ranging of 20 mg/L–55 mg/L, wherein 5% sterile leachate was added during runs 4 and 5. Although the HYME-D system demonstrated high denitrification efficiency (74.93%) and nitrate removal rate reached 2.62 mmol N/(L⋅d), the MAME-D system exhibited a denitrification efficiency of almost 100% and nitrate removal rate of 4.37 mmol N/(L⋅d). The addition of sterile leachate increased the nitrate removal rate in both systems, but caused the decrease of methane consumption in HYME-D. A stable isotope batch experiment was carried out to investigate the metabolic products by monitoring the 13CO2 and 15N2O production. The production of organic intermediates such as citrate, lactic acid, acetate, and propionic acid were also observed, which exhibited a higher yield in HYME-D. Variations in the microbial communities were analyzed during the semi-continuous experiment. MAME-D was mainly conducted by the association of type Ⅰ methanotroph Methylomonas and the methylotrophic denitrifier Methylotenera. Methane fermentation processed by Methylomonas under hypoxic conditions produced more complex organic intermediates and increased the diversity of related heterotrophic denitrifiers. The addition of sterile real leachate, resulting in increase of COD/N, influenced the microbial community of HYME-D system significantly.

The study was conducted to demonstrate the influence of extracellular secretions from Microbacterium on the reductive dechlorination of tetrachloroethene (PCE). A series of mixed cultures were established from a paddy soil sample. In the mixed cultures amended with extracellular secretions from Microbacterium, PCE was rapidly and completely converted into cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cis-DCE) and trans-1,2-dichloroethene (trans-DCE) within 40 days. The unamended mixed cultures showed weak signs of dechlorination after a pronounced lag phase, and trichloroethene (TCE) was accumulated as a major end product. This result means that amendment with extracellular secretions from Microbacterium shortened the lag phase, increased the dechlorination velocity and promoted the production of less-chlorinated chloroethene. The results were corroborated by defined subculture experiments, which proved that microorganisms from unamended mixed cultures could also be stimulated by extracellular secretions from Microbacterium. Desulfitobacterium was identified as the main dechlorinating population in all mixed cultures by direct PCR. Additionally, the 16S rRNA gene copies of Desulfitobacterium increased by one or two orders of magnitude with PCE dechlorination, which provided corroborative evidence for the identification result. The volatile fatty acids were monitored, and most interestingly, a close association between propionate oxidation and dechlorination was found, which has rarely been mentioned before. It was assumed that the oxidation of propionate provided hydrogen for dechlorination, while dechlorination facilitated the shift of the reaction toward propionate oxidation by reducing the partial pressure of hydrogen.

The dissipation of famoxadone as well as the behaviour of its metabolites in environmental samples such as water and soil is a major concern. In this study, the dissipation of the target compound in both matrices was carried out applying an analytical method based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Orbitrap-MS). The dissipation of famoxadone was monitored over a period of 100 days after the plant protection product, Equation Pro®, was administered to the target matrices. This study was performed at two doses, normal and double in the case of soils and fivefold instead of double dose in water. The concentration of famoxadone steadily decreased during the monitoring period in both matrices. Half-life (DT₅₀) values were lower than 30 days in most cases except for loam soils, for which it was 35 days. Therefore, persistence of this pesticide in both matrices was low. Famoxadone metabolites such as IN-KF015 ((5RS)-5-methyl-5-(4-phenoxyphenyl)-1,3- oxazolidine-2,4-dione) and IN-JS940 ((2RS)-2-hydroxy-2-(4- phenoxyphenyl)propanoic acid) were detected in both matrices and their concentration increased while the concentration of the parent compound decreased. Metabolite IN-JS940 was the compound detected at highest concentration for both matrices. In water the maximum concentration was 20% of the initial famoxadone content and in soils it was 50% of initial famoxadone content. In addition, another metabolite, IN-MN467 ((5RS)-5-methyl-3-[(2-nitrophenyl)amino]- 5-(4-phenoxyphenyl)-1,3-oxazolidine-2,4-dione), was detected in soils, following the same behaviour as the other metabolites. These results provided ample information about the behaviour of metabolites and the necessity of knowing their toxicity in both matrices in order to detect possible risks for living beings.

To explore the performance of Streptomyces pactum (Act12) alone (A) and jointly with sulfur (SA) in the phytoextraction practice of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) (Cd and Zn), as well as their effects on soil chemical properties and microbial community composition, this paper selected potherb mustard (Brassica juncea, Coss.) as the test plant to assess the feedback of soil-plant ecosystems. Metal uptake values in lone Act12 treatments were higher than that of Act12 + sulfur treatments, and showed dose dependent with Act12 due to the higher biomass production. According to the biochemical analyses of rhizosphere soils, Act12 inoculation significantly increased urease (20.4%) and dehydrogenase (58.5%) while reducing alkaline phosphatase (68.0%) activity. The production of soil organic acids was, in descending order, formic acid > oxalic acid > malic acid > propionic acid and indicated a stimulated variation under treatments (SA > A > control). High-throughput sequencing revealed that bacterial community compositions were consistent in both phylum and genus taxonomies, while the final overall proportions were modified. The populations of the predominant phyla Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes increased after sulfur application. The contribution of Act12 to the relative abundance of microbiota was minor compared to sulfur. Based on a redundancy analysis, soil chemical properties are the drivers of microbial activities and the main contributor to plant growth. Our results suggested Act12 inoculation may be part of an effective strategy enhancing phytoremediation of PTE-contaminated soils through chemical and biotic processes, and provided important implications for sustainable land utilization and crop production.

The acidogenic fermentation of dairy wastewater (DW) was evaluated for carboxylic acids (CA) production, investigating the influence of substrate/microorganism (S/X) ratio and applying different mathematical models to the bioproduct formation data. The experiments were performed in batch reactors for 28 days, and four S/X ratios were tested (0.8, 1.2, 1.6, and 1.9 gCOD gVSS⁻¹). The S/X ratio increase did not influence the percentage of DW conversion into carboxylic acids (42–44%), but the productivity was positively affected (100–200% in general). Acetic acid was the CA formed in the highest concentration for all experiments, followed by propionic and butyric acids. Exponential models were better suited to describe this kinetics process. Therefore, according to the estimated kinetic parameters, the S/X ratio 1.6 was more suitable for CA production from acidogenic fermentation of dairy wastewater, in which the concentrations of longer CA, such as propionate and butyrate, were formed in higher quantities. In addition, it was determined a correlation between the S/X ratio and kinetic parameters like degradation/production rate constant (K) and maximum productivity rate (μₘ).

Carbon sources are an important parameter in wastewater treatment processes and are closely related to treatment efficiency and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions. In this study, three parallel sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) were processed with acetic acid, propionic acid, and a 1:1 mixture of both acids (calculated in COD) to study the effect of carbon sources on N₂O generation and sludge properties (including intracellular polymer content, extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) composition, particle size distribution, settleability, and microbial community structure). The results showed that the highest COD, NH₄⁺-N, and TP removal efficiencies (92.2%, 100%, and 82.3%, respectively) were achieved by the reactor with mixed acid as the carbon source, whereas the reactor using acetic acid had the highest TN removal rate (82.6%) and the lowest N₂O–N conversion rate (1.4%, based on TN removal). The reactor with the carbon source of mixed acid produced the highest polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) content, which led to an increase in N₂O generation from the aerobic denitrification pathway. The SBR with mixed acid carbon source also had the highest concentration of EPS, which resulted in the largest particle size and the lowest settleability of sludge flocs among the SBRs. Microbial analysis results revealed that the difference in carbon sources resulted in a variation in the microbial community as well as in the relative abundances of functional microbes involved in biological nitrogen removal processes. The mixed acid promoted the development of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), which conducted the primary N₂O generation pathway of aerobic denitrification bioreactions. The carbon source of acetic acid promoted the growth of denitrifying bacteria (DNB), which led to the highest TN removal rate. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of the effects of carbon sources on N₂O generation and sludge properties for WWTPs.

With the organic carbon of acetate (SBR-A) and propionate (SBR-P), the effect of organic carbon sources on nitrogen removal and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emission in the multiple anoxic and aerobic process was investigated. The nitrogen removal percentages in SBR-A and SBR-P reactor were both 72%, and the phosphate removal percentages were 97 and 85.4%, respectively. During nitrification, both the NH₄⁺-N oxidation rate in the SBR-A and SBR-P had a small change without the influence of the addition of nitrite nitrogen (NO₂⁻-N). With the addition of 10 mg/L NO₂⁻-N, the nitrate nitrogen (NO₃⁻-N) production rate, N₂O accumulation rate and emission factor had increased. At the same time, the N₂O emission factor of SBR-A and SBR-P reactors increased from 2.13 and 0.87% to 4.66 and 2.08%, respectively. During exogenous denitrification, when nitrite was used as electron acceptor, the N₂O emission factors were 34.1 and 8.6 times more than those of NO₃⁻-N as electron acceptor in SBR-A and SBR-P. During endogenous denitrification with NO₂⁻-N as electron acceptor, the accumulation rate and emission factor of N₂O were higher than those of NO₃⁻-N as electron acceptor. High-throughput sequencing test showed that the dominant bacteria were Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes in both reactors at the phylum level, while the main denitrification functional bacteria were Thauera sp., Zoogloea sp. and Dechloromonas sp. at the genus level.

TEMPO-NaDCC-oxidized cellulose (TNOCS) with a large surface area and an abundance of carboxyl groups was used to remove heavy metal ions (Cd, Cu, and Pb) and their organic acid complexes [HM-OAs] (OAs, i.e., citric acid (CA) and propionic acid (PA)), and then reveal their adsorption behaviors. Taking Cd and CA as examples, the results showed that some of Cd ions were first adsorbed onto TNOCS, and then, the existence of [Cd-CA⁻] complexes formed a coordinated structure with preloaded Cd ions to serve as a bridge for combining TNOCS and [Cd-CA]. The maximum adsorption capacities of TNOCS for Cd and Cd-CA were 16.50 and 22.15 mg/g, respectively. Moreover, adsorption energies and molecular orbital distributions indicated that the adsorption capacity of TNOCS for [Cd-CA] was better than that for Cd alone. TNOCS can maintain greater than 90% adsorption capacity in five times regeneration experiments using EDTA, indicating that it is very efficient and stable. In addition, the electron density, deformation charge, and Mulliken charge distribution were confirmed that the electron transfer direction was from carboxyl groups to cadmium, whether it was cadmium ions or complexed cadmium.