The effects of residual tetracycline on soil enzymatic activities and plant growth.

A pot trial was carried out to investigate the adverse effects of tetracycline (TC) on soil microbial communities, microbial activities, and the growth of ryegrass (Lolium perenne L). The results showed that the presence of TC significantly disturbed the structure of microbial communities and inhibited soil microbial activities in terms of urease, acid phosphatase and dehydrogenase (p < 0.05). Plant biomass was adversely influenced by TC, especially the roots with a reduction of 40% when compared with the control. Furthermore, TC decreased the assimilation of phosphorus by the plant although the concentration of phosphorus was increased by 20% due to decreased plant biomass. TC seemed to increase the concentration of dissolved organic carbon (by 20%) in soil. The findings implied that the agricultural use of animal manure or fishpond sediment containing considerable amounts of antibiotics may give rise to ecological risks.

Computer-assisted peak recognition for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) in environmental samples.

A software has been developed for the peak recognition of 136 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) after high resolution gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS). Based on the retention times of (13)C labelled 2,3,7,8-substituted PCDD/F internal standards, the retention times of all PCDD and PCDF can be calibrated automatically and accurately. Therefore, it is very convenient to identify the peaks by comparing the retention of samples and the calibrated retention times of their chromatograms. Hence, this approach is very significant because it is impossible to obtain always a standard chromatogram and PCDD/F analysis are very expensive and time consuming. The calibration results can be transferred to Excel for calculation. The approach is a first step to store costly and environmentally relevant data for future application.

Effects of a non-ionic surfactant (Tween-80) on the mineralization, metabolism and uptake of phenanthrene in wheat-solution-lava microcosm.

Effects of a non-ionic surfactant (Tween-80) on the mineralization, metabolism and uptake of phenanthrene in wheat-solution-lava microcosm were studied using 14C-labeled phenanthrene. The mineralization and metabolism of phenanthrene were fast in such a system. At least 90% of the applied phenanthrene were transformed within 24 days. Only 0.3% of the applied 14C-activity were identified to be the parent phenanthrene. Most of the applied 14C-activity (70%) was recovered from wheat, in which ca. 70% were associated with wheat shoots (stems and leaves) and ca. 30% wheat roots. 33% and 20% of the applied 14C-activity had been constructed into wheat tissues of shoots and roots, respectively. The 14C-activity recovered in forms of CO2 and volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) was 12-16% and 4-5%, respectively. The major metabolites of phenanthrene were polar compounds (18% of the applied 14C) and only 2.1% were identified as non-polar metabolites. No phenanthrene was found in wheat shoots indicating that it could not be transported from roots to upper parts of the plant but in form of metabolites (mostly polar metabolites). Foliar uptake of 14C-activity via air in form of 14CO2 occurred. The presence of Tween-80 significantly enhanced the degradation of phenanthrene, which could be attributed to its increase of microbial activities in the system. Tween-80 also significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the phenanthrene level in wheat roots, which probably resulted from desorption of phenanthrene from root surface caused by the surfactant.

Ozonation of hydrolyzed azo dye reactive yellow 84 (CI).

The combination of chemical and biological water treatment processes is a promising technique to reduce recalcitrant wastewater loads. The key to the efficiency of such a system is a better understanding of the mechanisms involved during the degradation processes. Ozonation has been applied to many fields in water and wastewater treatment. Especially for textile mill effluents ozonation can achieve high color removal, enhance biodegradability, destroy phenols and reduce the chemical oxygen demand (COD). However, little is known about the reaction intermediates and products formed during ozonation. This work deals with the degradation of hydrolyzed Reactive Yellow 84 (Color Index), a widely used azo dye in textile finishing processes with two monochlorotriazine anchor groups. Ozonation of the hydrolyzed dye in ultra pure water was performed in a laboratory scale cylindric batch reactor. Decolorization, determined by measuring the light absorbance at the maximum wavelength in the visible range (400 nm), was almost complete after 60 and 90 min with an ozone concentration of 18.5 and 9.1 mg/l, respectively. The TOC/TOC0 ratio after ozonation was about 30%, the COD was diminished to 50% of the initial value. The BOD5/COD ratio increased from 0.01 to about 0.8. Oxidation and cleavage of the azo group yield nitrate. Cleavage of the sulfonic acid groups of aromatic rings caused increases in the amount of sulfate. Formic acid and oxalic acid were identified as main oxidation products by high performance ion chromatography (HPIC). The concentrations of these major products were monitored at defined time intervals during ozonation.

A scientific approach to wastewater recovery and reuse in the textile industry.

Wastewater recovery and reuse in industries requires all the basic steps of quality management. It should involve a comprehensive in plant survey of processes with wastewater generation, identification of recoverable streams, and treatment requirements for reuse. It should equally undertake evaluation of wastewater quality remaining after segregation of the recovered portion, with specific emphasis on technological implications of appropriate treatment and compliance with effluent limitations. In this study, all these factors were experimentally assessed and evaluated for a knit fabric processing textile plant.

Biological and oxidative treatment of cotton textile dye-bath effluents by fixed and fluidized bed reactors.

A treatability study for highly polluted and recalcitrant azo reactive dye-baths from cotton textile dyeing processes was conducted by using fixed and up-flow fluidized bed type reactors packed with brown coal. Ozone oxidation was carried out to assess the combination of biological and chemical oxidation. COD removal efficiencies ranged from 70% to 93%, and up to 99% color removal was attained. At a COD loading rate of 25.5 x 10(-6) gCOD/m(2)-d, COD removal was 85%. Breakthrough of the brown coal used occurred at total organic loading of 0.090 gCOD/g coal. Biodegradable and inert COD fractions of the remazol dye-bath were assessed by BOD(28) and oxygen uptake rate (OUR) measurements. 50% of total COD was initially inert. The inert fraction was reduced by adsorption and ozone oxidation by 65% and 40%, respectively. Brown coal is an inexpensive material and the system has economical and operational advantages as compared to treatment options such as advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) using UV, O(3), H(2)O(2) or electrocoagulation.

Ecotoxicological and chemical characterization of selected treatment process effluents of municipal sewage treatment plant.

The triolein-containing semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) were deployed for 4 weeks in a sewage treatment plant in Beijing, China, to sample and concentrate priority hydrophobic organic pollutants in a sewage treatment process. The chemical analyses and ecotoxicities of the residuals of SPMDs dialysate were examined. The data from the chemical analyses by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry selected ion monitoring mode indicated the lower removal for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) congeners and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) coincided with the persistence of them in the environment. The acute toxicity examined by bioluminescence test with Vibrio fischeri revealed approximately only 20% decrease in the overall toxicity of the influent after the activate sludge treatment process. The ethoxy resorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) induction with a micro-EROD assay in vitro using H4-IIE rat hepatoma cell cultures demonstrated the presence of persistent organics in influent and sequency effluents. Results obtained suggested that integration of the SPMD technique and chemical analyses and bioassay might be a valuable approach for the risk assessment of hydrophobic organic pollutants in water ecosystem. It revealed the necessity for organic pollutants monitoring and ecotoxicities examining of sewage treatment plants.

Correct identification of polychlorinated biphenyls in temperature-programmed GC with ECD detection.

A method has been developed for peak identification of PCBs in GC with ECD detection under different temperature programs and isothermal conditions on two commonly used columns (DB-5 and DB-1701). This was achieved by means of accurate calibration of retention times based on the concept of the relative retention index P (i) and retention times of the selected PCB internal standards. The P (i) was calculated from the predicted retention times with the database of the retention parameters (A, B) and the migration equations. Through comparison of the calibrated and experimental retention times of PCBs in technical samples, it was shown that the developed method was effective for correct PCB comprehensive, quantitative, congener-specific (CQCS) analyses.

[Transportation and transformation of 14C-phenanthrene in closed chamber (nutrient solution-lava-plant-air) system].

The transportation and transformation of 14C-phenanthrene in a closed 'plant-lava-nutrient solution-air' chamber system was studied by using radioactivity technology. The results showed that in this closed chamber system, phenanthrene was degraded fast. The radioactivity of 14C left at 23d in the nutrient solution was only 25% of applied. At the end of experiment (46d), the distribution sequence of 14C activity in the components of closed chamber system was root (38.55%) > volatile organic compounds (VOCs, 17.68%) > lava (14.35%) > CO2 (11.42%) > stem (2%). 14C-activities in plant tissue were combined with the tissue, and existed in the forms of lava-bound(root 4.68%; stem and leaves 0.68%) and polar metabolites (root 23.14%; stem 0.78%).