As the application and environmental release of tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) are being increased rapidly, serious concerns have been raised regarding its adverse effects on human health. Exposure to TDCIPP has been implicated in hepatotoxicity, but the molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, both male and female Sprague Dawley rats were administered TDCIPP with 125, 250, or 500 mg/kg/day for 12 weeks. Then the ultrastructure of liver, biochemical indicators in serum and liver, and hepatic gene expression were analyzed to reveal molecular mechanisms of hepatotoxicity induced by TDCIPP. Continuous TDCIPP exposure decreased body weight, particularly in 500 mg/kg/day TDCIPP-exposed males, and dose dependently increased the ratio of liver to body weight in both genders. The decreased levels of triglyceride, cholesterol, and transaminase in the serum and livers were observed in both genders after TDCIPP exposure, which indicated dysfunction in the hepatic metabolism. Liver histopathology revealed hepatocellular damages in males and females after TDCIPP exposure. The transcriptomic analysis indicated that TDCIPP exposure significantly changed pathways of bile acid metabolism, inflammatory response, oxidative phosphorylation and carcinogenicity in 250 and 500 mg/kg/day TDCIPP-exposed males and 500 mg/kg/day TDCIPP-exposed females, and there was no statistical significance in any other TDCIPP-exposed groups. The transcriptional analysis showed that TDCIPP exposure led to oxidative stress in the livers of rats, thereby increasing the inflammatory response and promoting mechanisms of carcinogenesis in both genders. Finally, TDCIPP led to more severe adverse phenotypic effects in male than female rats.

To investigate the socioeconomic inequality in passive smoking in Iranian children and adolescents. Through a multistage random cluster sampling method, a representative sample of 14,400 school students, aged 6–18 years, were enrolled from urban and rural areas of 30 provinces of Iran. Using a non-linear principal component analysis (NLPCA), the correlated variables were summarized as socioeconomic status (SES). Normalized concentration index (NCI) was used to measure inequality in passive smoking at national and regional SES levels. We decomposed total socioeconomic inequality in passive smoking into explanatory variables to identify the main contributors of inequality in passive smoking in the population studied. Data of 12,327 students and parents were complete for the current study. The response rate was 85.6% (50.9% boys, 71.2% urban residents). About 44% of Iranian students were exposed to passive smoking. The NCI for passive smoking at a national level was − 0.043 (95% confidence interval − 0.035, − 0.012), indicating that passive smoking was more concentrated among poorer children and adolescents. This inequality was statistically significant at a national level and in all regions except for regions with lower middle- and lowest SES levels. Considering the decomposition analysis, the household SES (63%), mothers’ educational level (37%), fathers’ educational level (29%), and school type (18%) made the largest positive contribution to inequality in passive smoking of children and adolescents. Passive smoking was distributed unequally among Iranian children and adolescents; it was more concentrated among socioeconomically disadvantaged families. Public health policies attentions should be given to reduce passive smoking among low SES children and adolescents living with illiterate or low-educated parents.

This study assesses environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis corroborating the role of scale, composite, and technology effects in OECD countries. To this end, we analyze the panel time series data from 1980 to 2017 using cross-sectional-autoregressive distributed lags (CS-ARDL). We document that economic growth and carbon emissions follow a U-shaped relationship, contrary to the EKC hypothesis, which our analysis attributes to the substantial contributions of the industrial, manufacturing, and service sectors to GDP. Technological progress has a somewhat marginal impact in reducing carbon emissions through energy efficiency but is unable to validate the existence of EKC hypothesis.

The remotion of hexavalent chromium in the form of chromate in aqueous solution was done using the aquatic plant Salvinia sp as biosorbent. The chemical modification of the Salvinia surface was performed by organosolv adapted method. The untreated Salvinia and the modified were characterized by infrared spectroscopy, Boehm titration, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive system, point of zero charge, surface area analysis, and porosity. Batch adsorption experiments were performed to observe the effects of pH, contact time, initial concentration, and temperature on the metal removal process. The characterization results show the chemistry modifically changed the modified Salvinia structure compared with untreated Salvinia. The adsorption test results showed the maximum adsorption capacity of 26.03 mg g⁻¹. The kinetic equilibrium was reached in about 3 h, and the better temperature and pH were 298 K and 7, respectively. The adsorption and kinetic models were Freundlich and pseud-second order, respectively. This study showed the Salvinia sp after the chemical treatment can be used with biosorbent for hexavalent chromate in the form of chromate, being a natural material with low cost and plentiful in the environment.

Canadian goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.) is a plant that grows in a variety of environmental conditions. It shows high capability to spread in various habitats, including fallow lands and brownfield land. The research aimed at analyzing the content of Pb and Zn in the underground (roots, rhizomes) and aboveground parts (stems, leaves, inflorences) of Solidago canadensis (SC) originating from two locations that are clearly different in terms of metal content in soil. Statistically significant differences were determined in the content of Pb and Zn in soil and particular morphological parts of the plant, depending on the sampling location. It has been shown that in the conditions of increased (compared with natural) Pb and Zn content in the soil, SC may serve as a bioaccumulator of these metals. It was determined that SC can be used as a phytostabilizer of Pb and Zn in soils heavily contaminated with these elements. The content of Zn in the aboveground parts of SC indicates that this plant can also be used for phytoextraction of soils contaminated with this metal.

Due to the lack of appropriate wastewater treatment facility in rural areas, the discharging of wastewater without sufficient treatment results in many environmental issues and negative impact on the local economy. In this study, a novel integrated gravitational-flow wastewater treatment system (IGWTS) for treating domestic wastewater in rural areas was developed and evaluated. As the core module of IGWTS, the multi-soil-layering (MSL) system showed good performances for removing organic matters and nutrients in lab-scale experiments. Aeration was found to be the dominant positive factor for contaminant removal in factorial analysis, while bottom submersion had the most negative effect. Based on the critical operational factors obtained from lab-scale tests, the full-scale IGWTS consisting of multifunctional anaerobic tank (MFAT), MSL, and subsurface flow constructed wetland (SFCW) was designed, constructed, and operated successfully in the field application. The final effluent concentrations of COD, BOD₅, TP, NH₃-N, and TN reached 22.0, 8.0, 0.3, 4.0, and 11.0 mg/L, with removal rates of 92, 93, 92, 86, and 76%, respectively. The feasibility of IGWTS was also quantitatively evaluated from the perspectives of resource consumption, economic costs, water environment impact, and life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. IGWTS has been proved to be a sound approach to mitigate GHG emissions compared with centralized wastewater treatment plant. It can also be featured as an eco-friendly technology to improve rural water environment, and an economic scenario with low construction and operation costs. Graphical abstract

Here, we aimed to investigate florasulam photodegradation in aquatic environments under UV-visible irradiation. LC-MS/MS was used to explore the photolysis kinetics of florasulam degradation with respect to different light source types, florasulam concentrations, water sources, and pH. We also tested whether the addition of the nitrate ions, Fe³⁺, or I⁻ to the reaction solution influences florasulam photolysis kinetics. NO₃⁻ accelerates florasulam degradation at low concentrations (0.01–1 mg L⁻¹), but decreases the process at higher concentrations. At low concentrations (≤ 0.1 mg L⁻¹), Fe³⁺ enhanced florasulam photodegradation obviously. However, the addition of 0.01–10 mg L⁻¹ I⁻ decreased the degradation rate linearly. The florasulam photolysis rates in alkaline and neutral solutions were higher than that in acidic solutions. The florasulam degradation rate under mercury light irradiation was greater than that under xenon light. The rate of florasulam degradation in distilled water was greater than in tap water, lake water, and rice paddy water. As the concentration of florasulam increased, the photodegradation rate decreased. Six kinds of transformation products (TPs) were isolated and identified using UPLC/Q-TOF-MS. Based on these TPs and their evolutionary processes, we inferred the florasulam degradation mechanisms, identifying four possible florasulam degradation pathways. Cleavage of the florasulam sulfonamide bond yielded TPs2. TPs2 was intermolecularly rearranged to form a SO₂ extrusion compound, TPs3. Cleavage of the [C-F] bonds led to the formation of TPsl, TPs4, and TPs5, while hydroxylation led to the formation of TPs6. We then predicted the stability of each of the florasulam TPs in water. TPs2 and TPs3 rapidly degraded after reaching maximum concentration due to poor light stability. TPs4 and TPs6 were more photostable than florasulam (the parent compound) and may be important contributors to water pollution.

Separating organic pollutants from oil-based drill cuttings (OBDC) is the current trend for its safe disposal. In this study, pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) was adapted to decontaminate OBDC for the first time. Two typical OBDC samples, i.e., diesel-based drill cuttings (OBDC-A) and white oil-based drill cuttings (OBDC-B), were statically extracted in a homemade batch autoclave. Response surface methodology (RSM) with a central composite design (CCD) was applied to investigate the effects and interactive effects of three independent operating parameters (temperature, extraction time, and water volume) and to ultimately optimize the PHWE process. The results suggested that temperature is the dominant parameter, followed by water volume and extraction time. Interactive effects among the three parameters are present in the PHWE of OBDC-A but absent in the PHWE of OBDC-B. The suitable conditions for the effective PHWE of OBDC-A were found to be a temperature of 284–300 °C, water volume of 15–35 ml, and extraction time of 20–60 min. The corresponding conditions were 237–300 °C, 15–35 ml, and 20–60 min for the PHWE of OBDC-B. These different phenomena are caused by the different characteristics of the two OBDC samples. All of the polynomial models obtained from the RSM experiments are very valid and can adequately describe the relationship among the three independent operating parameters and responses. The experimental results also confirmed that PHWE is a more efficient separation technique for decontaminating OBDC than single organic solvent extraction or low-temperature thermal desorption because PHWE integrates the advantages of both these processes.

Antibiotics are known to enter the environment, not only by human excretion but also through livestock/aquaculture, healthcare facilities, and pharmaceutical industry waste. Once in the environment, antibiotics have the ability to provide a selective pressure in microbial communities thus selecting for resistance. Bayou Lafourche of Southeastern Louisiana serves as the raw source of drinking water for 300,000 people in the region and has previously been shown to receive high amounts of fecal contamination. Four sites along the bayou and one site from its input source on the Mississippi River were monitored for water chemistry, total and fecal coliform estimates, and presence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) for a period of 1 year. Four waste-associated bacterial isolates were tested for resistance to antibiotics (tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, cefoxitin, meropenem, imipenem, erythromycin, and vancomycin). Resistant bacteria were further examined with PCR/electrophoresis to confirm the presence of antibiotic resistance genes (Sul1, tet(A), tet(W), tet(X), IMP, KPC, and OXA-48). The bayou appears to meet the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) criteria for water chemistry, yet fecal coliforms were consistently higher than LDEQ thresholds, thus indicating fecal contamination. Enterobacteriaceae isolates showed 13.6%, 10.9%, and 19.8% resistant to tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, and cefoxitin, respectively, and 11 isolates were confirmed for presence of either tet(A) or Sul1 resistance genes. High fecal coliforms and presence of ARB/ARG may both indicate a presence of anthropogenic or agricultural source of fecal contamination.

The feasibility of biomass-based activated carbons has received a huge attention due to their excellent characteristics such as inexpensiveness, good adsorption behaviour and potential to reduce a strong dependency towards non-renewable precursors. Therefore, in this research work, eco-friendly activated carbon from palm kernel shell that has been produced from one-stage physical activation by using the Box-Behnken design of Response Surface Methodology is highlighted. The effect of three input parameters—temperature, dwell time and gas flow rate—towards product yield and carbon dioxide (CO₂) uptake at room temperature and atmospheric pressure are studied. Model accuracy has been evaluated through the ANOVA analysis and lack-of-fit test. Accordingly, the optimum condition in synthesising the activated carbon with adequate CO₂ adsorption capacity of 2.13 mmol/g and product yield of 25.15 wt% is found at a temperature of 850 °C, holding time of 60 min and CO₂ flow rate of 450 cm³/min. The synthesised activated carbon has been characterised by diverse analytical instruments including thermogravimetric analyser, scanning electron microscope, as well as N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherm. The characterisation analysis indicates that the synthesised activated carbon has higher textural characteristics and porosity, together with better thermal stability and carbon content as compared to pristine palm kernel shell. Activated carbon production via one-step activation approach is economical since its carbon yield is within the industrial target, whereas CO₂ uptake is comparable to the synthesised activated carbon from conventional dual-stage activation, commercial activated carbon and other published data from literature.