Crystallization Selectivity of Ribavirin Solution and Amorphous Phase.

Crystallization selectivity is an important principle in polymorph control. Ribavirin Form I, Form II, DMSO solvate, and amorphous ribavirin are prepared, and the short-range order similarities between these solid forms and ribavirin aqueous solution and DMSO solution are compared via mid-frequency Raman difference spectra (MFRDS). The crystallization process from amorphous ribavirin to Form I and from solution to amorphous phase is explained. Reasons for the difficulty in preparing the DMSO solvate are proposed. The rationale provided for the crystallization selectivity provides a foundation for the synthesis of metastable phases with a robust and convenient method.

The fast redox cycle of Cu(II)-Cu(I)-Cu(II) in the reduction of Cr(VI) by the Cu(II)-thiosulfate system.

Thiosulfate (S2O32-) is an important ligand to complex metal cations, however, the reactivity of metal-thiosulfate complexes has barely been mentioned. In this study, the reactivity of the Cu(II)-S2O32- system in the reduction of Cr(VI) was investigated. Kinetic results show that the reduction rates of Cr(VI) decrease with increasing pH values from 3.0 to 5.0, and 94.3% and 97.5% of 10 mg L-1 Cr(VI) was rapidly reduced within 1 min at pH 3.0 and within 30 min at pH 5.0, respectively at the molar ratio of Cu(II):S2O32- of 0.05. We rule out the contributions of S species of tetrathionate (S4O62-) and sulfite (SO32-) to Cr(VI) reduction and point out that the produced Cu(I) in the Cu(II)-S2O32- system is the key reductant that mediates the reduction of Cr(VI). We suggest that complexation between Cu(II) and S2O32- with the formation of CuII(S2O3)22- is the pre-requisite for the formation of CuI(S2O3)n1-2n, which plays an important role in Cr(VI) reduction, accompanied by the re-oxidation of Cu(I) to Cu(II) by Cr(VI), achieving the rapid redox cycling of Cu(II)-Cu(I)-Cu(II). Such a redox cycle also mediates the denitrification process of NO2- to NH3/NH4+ under weakly acidic conditions. This study enriches our understanding on the reducing reactivity of the Cu(II)-S2O32- system and the importance of the Cu(II)-Cu(I)-Cu(II) redox cycle towards environmental oxidizing contaminants.

Honey loaded alginate/PVA nanofibrous membrane as potential bioactive wound dressing.

Honey is an ancient natural wound-healing agent and has been reintroduced to modern clinical wound care as it has various bioactivities. In this study, honey was incorporated into an alginate/PVA-based electrospun nanofibrous membrane to develop an efficient wound dressing material. The morphology and chemical composition of the nanofibrous membrane were observed by scanning electron microscopy and characterized via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, respectively, demonstrating that honey was successfully introduced to the nanofibers. The nanofibrous membranes with increasing honey content showed enhanced antioxidant activity, suggesting the ability to control the overproduction of reactive oxygen species. Disc diffusion assay and dynamic contact assay proved the antibacterial activity of the honey loaded nanofibers towards Gram-positive bacterium (Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-negative bacterium (Escherichia coli). The cytotoxicity assay illustrated the non-cytotoxicity and biocompatibility of the nanofibrous membranes. Therefore, the developed honey/alginate/PVA nanofibrous membranes are promising for wound dressings.

Sorption of sulphamethoxazole by the biochars derived from rice straw and alligator flag.

The sorption ability of sulphamethoxazole (SMX) by biochar derived from rice straw (RS) and alligator flag (AF) at 600°C was studied to assess the ability of biochar as adsorbent to remove SMX from aqueous solution. The results indicated that sorption of SMX by biochars was well described using the Langmuir equation (R2>0.94), and the maximum sorption parameter (Q) of RS (3650 mg kg(-1)) was much higher than that of AF (1963 mg kg(-1)). Temperature had no effect on SMX sorption by biochars, while thermodynamics analysis indicated that the sorption of SMX on both biochars was a spontaneous physical process. The d 250 RS (diameter of RS sieved through 250 µm) and d 150 AF (diameter of AF sieved through 150 µm) showed excellent sorption ability for SMX. The sorption amount of RS was larger than that of AF when pH<7, whereas, the sorption amount of AF surpassed RS when pH≥7. The presence of Cu2+ and/or Cd2+ ion at low concentrations (20 mg L(-1)) significantly (P<0.05) increased the sorption of SMX on both RS and AF. Our study confirms that biochar derived from the wetland plants could be used as effective adsorbents to remove SMX from aqueous solution.

Elevated CO2 concentration increase the mobility of Cd and Zn in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii.

The effects of elevated CO2 on metal species and mobility in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulator are not well understood. We report an experiment designed to compare the effects of elevated CO2 on Cd/Zn speciation and mobility in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulating ecotype (HE) and a non-hyperaccumulating ecotype (NHE) of Sedum alfredii grown under ambient (350 µl l(-1)) or elevated (800 µl l(-1)) CO2 conditions. No difference in solution pH of NHE was observed between ambient and elevated CO2 treatments. For HE, however, elevated CO2 reduced soil solution pH by 0.22 unit, as compared to ambient CO2 conditions. Elevated CO2 increased dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and organic acid levels in soil solution of both ecotypes, but the increase in HE solution was much greater than in NHE solution. After the growth of HE, the concentrations of Cd and Zn in soil solution decreased significantly regardless of CO2 level. The visual MINTEQ speciation model predicted that Cd/Zn-DOM complexes were the dominant species in soil solutions, followed by free Cd(2+) and Zn(2+) species for both ecotypes. However, Cd/Zn-DOM complexes fraction in soil solution of HE was increased by the elevated CO2 treatment (by 8.01 % for Cd and 8.47 % for Zn, respectively). Resin equilibration experiment results indicated that DOM derived from the rhizosphere of HE under elevated CO2 (HE-DOM-E) (90 % for Cd and 73 % for Zn, respectively) showed greater ability to form complexes with Cd and Zn than those under ambient CO2 (HE-DOM-A) (82 % for Cd and 61 % for Zn, respectively) in the undiluted sample. HE-DOM-E showed greater ability to extract Cd and Zn from soil than HE-DOM-A. It was concluded that elevated CO2 could increase the mobility of Cd and Zn due to the enhanced formation of DOM-metal complexes in the rhizosphere of HE S. alfredii.

Complexation with dissolved organic matter and mobility control of heavy metals in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii.

The complexation of Zn, Cd and Pb with dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulating ecotype (HE) and a non-hyperaccumulating ecotype (NHE) of Sedum alfredii was measured using resin equilibration method. After the growth of HE S. alfredii, the rhizosphere soil pH was reduced by 0.27-0.33 units, due to enhanced DOM derived from root exudation. For both ecotypes of S. alfredii, the fraction of free metal as a percentage of soluble metal varied from 22.1 to 42.5% for Zn(2+), from 8.1 to 15.5% for Cd(2+), and from 4.5 to 10.4% for Pb(2+). Resin equilibration experiment results indicated that HE-DOM had greater ability to form complexes with Zn, Cd and Pb than NHE-DOM, Visual MINTEQ model gave excellent predictions of the complexation of Zn and Cd by DOM (R(2) > 0.97). DOM in the rhizosphere of HE S. alfredii could significantly increase metal mobility through the formation of soluble DOM-metal complexes.

Simultaneous removal of cadmium and sulfamethoxazole from aqueous solution by rice straw biochar.

The simultaneous sorption behavior and characteristics of cadmium (Cd) and sulfamethoxazole (SMX) on rice straw biochar were investigated. Isotherms of Cd and SMX were well modeled by the Langmuir equation (R(2)>0.95). The calculated maximum adsorption parameter (Q) of Cd was similar in single and binary systems (34129.69 and 35919.54 mg/kg, respectively). However, the Q of SMX in a binary system (9182.74 mg/kg) was much higher than that in a single system (1827.82 mg/kg). The presence of Cd significantly promoted the sorption of SMX on rice straw biochar. When the pH ranged from 3 to 7.5, the sorption of Cd had the characteristics of a parabola pattern with maximum adsorption at pH 5, while the adsorption quantity of SMX decreased with increasing pH, with maximum adsorption at pH 3. The amount of SMX adsorbed on biochar was positively correlated with the surface area of the biochar, and the maximum adsorption occurred with d 250 biochar (biochar with a diameter of 150-250 µm). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed that the removal of Cd and SMX by rice straw biochar may be attributed to precipitation and the formation of surface complexes between Cd or SMX and carboxyl or hydroxyl groups. The results of this study indicate that rice straw biochar has the potential for simultaneous removal of Cd and SMX from co-contaminated water.

Mobilization of cadmium by dissolved organic matter in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii.

Pot experiments were conducted to investigate the role of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the Cd speciation in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulating ecotype (HE) and non-hyperaccumulating ecotype (NHE) of Sedum alfredii and its effects on Cd mobility. After growing HE S. alfredii, the rhizosphere soil solution pH of heavily polluted soil (HPS) and slightly polluted soil (SPS) was reduced by 0.49 and 0.40 units, respectively, due to enhanced DOC derived from root exudation. The total Cd concentration in soil solution decreased significantly but the decrease accounted for less than 1% of the total Cd uptake in the shoots of HE S. alfredii. Visual MINTEQ speciation predicted that Cd-DOM complexes were the dominant Cd species in soil solutions after the growth of S. alfredii for both soils, followed by the free metal Cd(2+) species. However, Cd-DOM complexes fraction in the rhizosphere soil solution of HE S. alfredii (89.1% and 74.6% for HPS and SPS, respectively) were much greater than NHE S. alfredii (82.8% and 64.7% for HPS and SPS, respectively). Resin equilibration experiment results indicated that DOM from the rhizosphere (R-DOM) of both ecotypes of S. alfredii had the ability to form complexes with Cd, whereas the degree of complexation was significantly higher for HE-R-DOM (79-89%) than NHE-R-DOM (63-74%) in the undiluted sample. The addition of HE-R-DOM significantly (P<0.05) increased the solubility of four Cd minerals while NHE-R-DOM was not as effective at the same concentration. It was concluded that DOM in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulating ecotype of S. alfredii could significantly increase Cd mobility through the formation of soluble DOM-metal complexes.

Formation of barium strontium titanate thin films via electrophoretic deposition process.

Synthesis of crystalline barium stronium titanate (Ba(0.6)Sr(0.4)TiO(3)) nanoparticles and subsequent formation of thin films have been carried out. The crystalline products were confirmed by X-ray diffractometry. Uniform Ba(0.6)Sr(0.4)TiO(3) thin films were formed by using electrophoretic deposition method (EPD) under a 0.3 to 5 V dc bias for 10 min to 1 h. Ba(0.6)Sr(0.4)TiO(3) nanoparticles having an average crystallite size of 20 to 50 nm, and Ba(0.6)Sr(0.4)TiO(3) thin films with thickness of 150 nm to 4 mum were obtained. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) were used to characterize the morphologies of nanoparticles and thin films. The results show that the EPD process route is a rapid, cost-effective alternative for forming Ba(0.6)Sr(0.4)TiO(3) thin films.

[Correspondence analysis between occurrence type of Dendrolimus punctatus and topographical and vegetative features].

The relationship between the occurrence type of Dendrolimus punctatus and the geographical and vegetative features in subcompartments was analyzed using correspondence analysis and shown by a figure of cluster. The results showed that the majority subcompartments in which D. punctatus occurred frequently were at low elevation and low slope, and distributed among low hills or middle hills, while the subcompartments at high elevation or high slopes, or in low mountains or middle mountains were safe-type. The subcompartments with only one dominant species, especially Pinus elliottii, were easily attacked by D. punctatus. The subcompartments in conifer and broadleaf mixed forest had less insect pests than those in conifer mixed forest.