INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (IJEST)
Year:2013 | Volume:10 | Issue:5|Papers Count:25

The enzyme urease drives the hydrolysis of urea leading to the release of ammonium ions and bicarbonate; in the presence of calcium, the rise in pH leads to increased calcium carbonate saturation and the subsequent precipitation of calcite. Although such alkalinizing ureolysis is widespread in nature, most studies have focussed on bacteria (i.e. indigenous communities or urease-active Sporosarcina pasteurii) for calcite precipitation technologies. In this study, urease-active jack bean meal (from the legume Canavalia ensiformis) was used to drive calcite precipitation. The rates of ureolysis (k urea), determined from measured NH4 +, enabled a direct comparison to microbial ureolysis rates reported in literature. It is also demonstrated that a simple single reaction model approach can simulate calcite precipitation very effectively (3-6% normalised root-mean-square deviation). To investigate the reduction of permeability in porous media, jack bean meal (0.5 g L-1) and solutions (400 mM urea and CaCl2) were simultaneously pumped into a borosilicate bead column. One-dimensional magnetic resonance profiling techniques were used, non-invasively, for the first time to quantify the porosity changes following calcite precipitation. In addition, two-dimensional slice selective magnetic resonance images (resolution of ~0.5×1.0 mm) revealed that the exact location of calcite deposition was within the first 10 mm of the column. Column sacrifice and acid digestion also confirmed that 91.5% of calcite was located within the first 14 mm of the column. These results have important implications for the design of future calcite precipitation technologies and present a possible alternative to the well known bacterial approaches.

Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related death and thus a major public health problem. While lung cancer frequency might be partially attributable to smoking habit and occupational exposure, the role of industrial pollution also needs to be assessed. To ascertain the possible effect of residential proximity to industrial installations on lung cancer risk in Asturias, an industrial region in Spain, taking into account the type of industrial activity and carcinogenic substances released. We conducted a hospital-based case-control study covering 700 lung cancer patients and 700 controls recruited in Asturias, matched individually by ethnicity, hospital, age, and sex. Distances were computed from the respective participants’ residential locations to the 48 industrial facilities governed by the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Act 16/2002 and included in the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register, and located in the study areas. Using logistic regression, odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated and adjusted for sex, age, hospital area, tobacco consumption, family history of cancer, area of residence, and occupation. Excess risk of lung cancer was observed for individuals living near industrial installations (OR=1.43; 95% CI=1.08-1.89), particularly metal industries (OR=1.40; 95 % CI=1.05-1.87), cement plants (OR=4.81; 95% CI=1.20-19.19), and shipyards (OR=1.69; 95% CI=1.17-2.43). Residents living close to industrial facilities releasing dioxins displayed a high, though non-statistically significant, excess risk of lung cancer (OR=1.62; 95% CI=0.86-3.07). This study suggests a possible association between lung cancer risk and proximity to industrial installations, specifically metal industries, cement plants, and shipyards.

An extensive use of solid-waste landfills for disposal of municipal and industrial wastes have prompted increased attention to groundwater pollution caused by leachate generated in such landfills. The potential for groundwater contamination by leachate has necessitated engineering designs for landfills. The quantity of leachate generated from the solid waste and the movement of water through the solid waste depends on water input and the solid-waste characteristics. This paper dealt with the experimental investigations using the laboratory solid-waste leaching column to estimate the total leachate volume/leachate flow for unsaturated and saturated conditions. The hydraulic properties of the solid waste like initial moisture content, field capacity, permanent wilting point, saturation moisture content, effective void ratio, saturation hydraulic conductivity and saturation suction pressure were determined from the small-scale laboratory experiments, which are the input for analytical model study of leachate flow/total leachate volume for both unsaturated and saturated conditions. The result of analytical model study was compared with the results of experimental investigations. Comparisons of measured and computed total leachate volume/leachate flow using Darcy’s law showed reasonable agreement.

Modification of conventional rapid sand filter into granular activated carbon-sand dual media filter has become increasingly attractive to drinking water producers in many Chinese urban regions. In this study, a pilot-scale dual media filter was constructed to monitor its performance. The operational results indicated that the dual media filter performed well both on nitrification and on reduction of chemical oxygen demand. Microbial community structures at different sampling sites were also compared using 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid gene clone library analysis to identify the spatial heterogeneity the filter. Clone library analysis illustrated the difference of microbial community structure and an increase of microbial diversity along the filter depth. Moreover, potential pathogens from genera Chromobacterium and Sphingomonas were detected in the filter samples, which deserved further serious consideration in downstream treatment such as disinfection. These findings also provided an illustration of the utility of molecular techniques to discover microbial community change and potential pathogens in the drinking water biofilters.

Concentrations of heavy metals, pH, and particle size distribution parameters were measured in Dragica stream and Djetinja River water receiving wastewaters from copper rolling mill industry, Sevojno. The concentrations of copper, zinc, lead, and mercury were determined for water samples collected in summer 2009. It was found that Copper Rolling Mill Sevojno was the significant source of water pollution with copper and zinc. Considering that copper rolling mill industry, one of the larger emitters of sulfur dioxide, pollutes the area, the water pH was surprisingly alkaline. The particle size analysis results showed that particles from oil-in-water emulsion evidently got into stream water in spite of the purification devices used. In order to assess the possible relations between the measured parameters, a correlation analysis was performed. The correlation analysis showed a significant positive correlation between the total metal concentrations of copper and zinc, as well as between particle size distribution parameters and the concentration of lead and copper.

In Iran, earthquakes cause enormous damage to the people and economy. If there is a proper estimation of human losses in an earthquake disaster, it could be appropriately responded and its impacts and losses will be decreased. Neural networks can be trained to solve problems involving imprecise and highly complex nonlinear data. Based on the different earthquake scenarios and diverse kind of constructions, it is difficult to estimate the number of injured people. With respect to neural network’s capabilities, this paper describes a back propagation neural network method for modeling and estimating the severity and distribution of human loss as a function of building damage in the earthquake disaster. Bam earthquake data in 2003 were used to train this neural network. The final results demonstrate that this neural network model can reveal much more accurate estimation of fatalities and injuries for different earthquakes in Iran and it can provide the necessary information required to develop realistic mitigation policies, especially in rescue operation.

A large amount of material in the form of industrial effluents and urban sewage containing metal contaminants directly enters Dudh creek. Metals on entering the creek tend to settle at the bottom and become part of the sediments. The distribution of metals with depth reflects changes in their supply as well as diagenetic modifications with time. In the present study, an attempt has been made to understand the impact of waste discharged from Tarapur Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation on Dudh creek. Two cores were collected, one close to the creek mouth and the other in the inner part of the creek. Sediment component, organic carbon and metal (vanadium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc, manganese, iron and aluminium) analyses were carried out on the two cores. The variation in the distribution of sediment components with depth reflects changes in hydrodynamic condition of the creek over the years. Increase in concentration of most of the metals in the upper part of the cores indicates additional input in recent years. The core collected in the inner part of the creek showed higher metal and organic carbon concentration as compared to the downstream core. This was very well supported by distribution of points on an isocon plot. Enrichment factor and index of geoaccumulation were used to find the extent of pollution in sediments of the creek. Correlation and R-mode factor analysis have also been computed to understand the association and source of metal input in sediments of Dudh creek.

Denitrification of groundwater was studied using a laboratory-scale reactor packed with biodegradable snack ware served as both carbon source and biofilm support for microorganisms. The complete removal of 50 mg/L of nitrate-nitrogen was achieved in a 23-day-old reactor with 2.1 h of hydraulic retention time without inoculating with any external microorganisms, which indicates that indigenous microorganisms in groundwater proliferate readily and result in stable biofilm formation onto biodegradable snack ware. Accumulation of nitrite and nitrate residue was detected when hydraulic retention time was lower than 2.1 h. The breakthrough of nitrate-nitrogen up to over 10 mg/L in the effluent water was observed with nitrate removal efficiency reducing to about 75% when hydraulic retention time was lowered to 1.4 h. The highest rate of denitrification was observed with 1.5 h of hydraulic retention time. Dissolved organic carbon concentration in the effluent water ranged between 10 and 20 mg/L during the stable operation of the reactor, and nitrite-nitrogen concentration was never higher than 0.09 mg/L. Considering its relatively low price and high denitrification rate, biodegradable snack ware can become a good alternative for denitrification process.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relative performance of three nitrification inhibitors (NIs) viz. calcium carbide (CaC2), and plant derivatives of Pongamia glabra Vent. (karanj) and Melia azedarach (dharek) in regulating N transformations, inhibiting nitrification and improving N recovery in soil–plant systems. In the first experiment under laboratory incubation, soil was amended with N fertilizer diammonium phosphate [(NH4) 2HPO4] at a rate of 200 mg N kg-1, N + CaC2, N + karanjin, and N + M. azedarach and incubated at 22oC for 56 days period. Changes in total mineral N (TMN), NH4 +-N and NO3 --N were examined during the study. A second experiment was conducted in a glasshouse using pots to evaluate the response of wheat to these amendments. Results indicated that more than 92% of the NH4 + initially present had disappeared from the mineral N pool by the end of incubation. Application of NIs i.e., CaC2, karanjin, and M. azedarach resulted in a significant reduction in the extent of NH4 + disappearance by 49, 32, and 13%, respectively. Accumulation of NO3 --N was much higher in N amended soil 57% compared to 11% in N + CaC2, 13% in N + karanjin, and 18% in N + M. azedarach. Application of NIs significantly increased growth, yield, and N uptake of wheat. The apparent N recovery in N-treated plants was 20 % that was significantly increased to 38, 34, and 37% with N + CaC2, N + karanjin, and N + M. azedarach, respectively. Among the three NIs tested, CaC2 and karanjin proved highly effective in inhibiting nitrification and retaining NH4 +-N in the mineral pool for a longer period.

An off-line solid-phase extraction procedure followed by High-performance Liquid Chromatography with Ultraviolet detection for the determination of 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons pollutants in aqueous matrices was described. Diverse aspects determining extraction efficiency such as packing type (disk or cartridge); elution solvents and addition of organic modifiers to the sample were evaluated. Elution with acetonitrile yields the highest recoveries. Rinsing the sample bottle with acetonitrile and combining the rinse with the sample extract avoids the adsorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on the walls of the water containers. The use of isopropanol or methanol 10% (V/V) was the most appropriate amount for the enrichment of 2-6 ring aromatic compounds only on C18 cartridge. The recoveries for all studied polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are ranged from 71.4 to 95.2% for a treated water samples of 500 mL. The proposed method gives very low detection limits (subnanograms per liter) and it has been applied to drinking water, surface water and industrial effluent (oil refinery) samples with good results.

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of pH on copper mobilization in two copper-rich acid soils (from vineyard and mine) amended with crushed mussel shell. Crushed mussel shell amended soils (0-48 Mg ha-1) were subjected to the effect of several acid and alkali solutions in a batch experiment in order to study their copper release. Copper distribution was studied in decanted soils from batch experiments using a sequential extraction procedure, whereas the effect of crushed mussel shell on copper release kinetics was studied using a stirred flow reactor. When soils were treated with acid solutions, the copper mobilization from non-amended soils was significantly higher than from the amended samples. Major changes in copper fractionation were an increase of the acid soluble fraction in acid-treated vineyard soil samples with shell dose. For the mine soil, the oxidable fraction showed a relevant diminution in acid-treated samples at the highest crushed mussel shell dose. For both soils, copper desorption rates diminished up to 86% at pH 3 when crushed mussel shell was added. At pH 5, copper release rate was very slow for both soils decreasing up to 98% for the mine soil amended with the highest shell dose, whereas no differences were observed at pH 7 between amended and non-amended soils. Thus, crushed mussel shell addition could contribute to reduce potential hazard of copper-enriched soils under acidification events.

Information on emissions from restaurant industry is limited in scientific literature. Emission inventory of greenhouse and non-greenhouse air pollutants from restaurant industry was prepared for two Class 1 Indian cities, viz. Nagpur and Raipur for 2010. Emissions were estimated from a primary database on type and amount of cooking fuel combusted in restaurant industry in the selected cities. Liquefied petroleum gas, charcoal, wood, coal, diesel and candy coal are used in this industry, first three being the major ones. Carbon dioxide emission was highest in both cities and liquefied petroleum gas, charcoal and wood were the major contributors to emissions. Total annual emissions of greenhouse gases, viz. carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide were estimated to be 19,251, 27 and 1 Mg year-1 in Nagpur and 21,207, 34 and 1 Mg year-1 in Raipur, whereas total annual emissions of non-methane hydrocarbon (NMHC), carbon monoxide, total suspended particulate (TSP), sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and black carbon (BC) were 96, 959, 31, 12, 19, 3 Mg year-1 and 87, 1141, 78, 37, 28, 6 Mg year-1 in Nagpur and Raipur, respectively, from all the fuels used in restaurant industry. Considering the huge growth of Indian restaurant industry in the last decade and the predicted growth in future, emissions from this industry is assumed to grow and will play a major role in governing regional and national emissions in India.

Numerous industrial or burial sites contaminated by persistent organic pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and pesticides were discovered in China recently. Due to improper choice of technology, many remediation cases had cost too much; however, failed to attain expected goals. In this study, the distribution and transport of PCBs at a burial site were investigated using tested PCBs concentration in order to support the choice of remediation technology and estimate the remediation results. Site characterization was carried out in order to investigate the hydrogeological condition and PCBs pollution nearby the capacitor burial site located in Shanxi, China. Results of PCBs measurement indicated that the proportion of contaminated soil with concentration above 500 mg/kg is 7.8% and the value for soil with concentration between 50 and 500 mg/kg is 18.0%. Considering adsorption and biodegradation, the two-dimensional PCBs transport model was established based on advection-dispersion equation. The model calibration showed a good agreement between measured and computed values, indicating the feasibility of this model used for predicting the transport and disappearance of PCBs in soil. Results of 100 years’ simulation demonstrated the slow migration and biodegradation of PCBs. Simulations were conducted for before and after remediation scenarios. Comparison of the results indicates that the remediation alternatives of excavation-incineration and thermal desorption have successfully removed most of the organics and thus reduced the environmental risk to a low level.

This study was conducted to determine how energy balances and economical indices of barley production are affected by irrigated and dry land farming systems. Data were collected from 26 irrigated and 68 dry land barley farms. The complimentary data were collected through questionnaires filled by farmers in face-to-face interviews during 2010. The results indicated that total energy input for irrigated barley was 19,308.96 MJ ha-1 and for dry land barley was 7,867.82. The non-renewable energy was about 66.83 and 71.02% in irrigated and dry land systems while the renewable energy was 33.17 and 28.98%, respectively. Energy use efficiency is energy output MJ ha-1 divided by energy input MJ ha-1. Energy use efficiency was 5.3 and 3.96 in dry land and irrigated systems, respectively. Although net return in the irrigated system (266.13$ ha-1) was greater than that in the dry land system (208.64) but the benefit to cost ratio in irrigated system (1.38) was lower than that in the dry land system (1.58). Results showed that human labor as well as machinery energy inputs were the most important inputs influencing the dry land and irrigated barley production systems, respectively. The second important input in the irrigated barley was electricity (with 0.16) which was followed by water for irrigation and diesel fuel (0.14 and 0.13, respectively). In total energy consumption, the ratio of non-renewable energy was greater than that of renewable energy. Since the main non-renewable energy input was diesel, electricity, and chemical fertilizers; therefore, management and improvement in the application of these inputs would increase the proportion of renewable energy.

Waste-to-energy technologies are considered as one of the key waste treatment technologies due to their energy and heat recovery efficiencies from the waste. A number of research studies were accomplished to understand the potential environmental burdens from emerging waste treatment technologies such as pyrolysis–gasification (PG). The aim of this study was to examine the PG of municipal solid waste (MSW) treatment process through a life cycle assessment (LCA) method. The study also includes a comparative LCA model of PG and incineration to identify the potential environmental burdens from the existing (incineration) and emerging (PG) waste treatment technologies. This study focused on ten environmental impact categories under two different scenarios, namely: (a) LCA model of PG and (b) comparative LCA model of PG and incineration. The scenario (a) showed that PG had significant environmental burdens in the aquatic eco-toxicity and the global warming potential impact categories. The comparative scenario (b) of PG and incineration of MSW showed that PG had comparatively lower potential environmental burdens in acidification, eutrophication, and aquatic eco-toxicity. Both LCA models showed that the environmental burdens were mainly caused by the volume of the thermal gas (emissions) produced from these two technologies and the final residue to disposal. Therefore, the results indicate that the efficiency and environmental burdens of the emerging technologies are dependent on the emissions and the production of final residue to the landfill.

Plants and bacterial consortium of Portulaca grandiflora and Pseudomonas putida showed complete decolorization of a sulfonated diazo dye Direct Red 5B within 72 h, while in vitro cultures of P. grandiflora and P. putida independently showed 92 and 81% decolorization within 96 h, respectively. A significant induction in the activities of lignin peroxidase, tyrosinase, 2, 6-dichlorophenol indophenol reductase and riboflavin reductase was observed in the roots of P. grandiflora during dye decolorization; whereas, the activities of laccase, veratryl alcohol oxidase and 2, 6-dichlorophenol indophenol reductase were induced in the cells of P. putida. Plant and bacterial enzymes in the consortium gave an enhanced decolorization of Direct Red 5B synergistically. The metabolites formed after dye degradation analyzed by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy and high performance liquid chromatography confirmed the biotransformation of Direct Red 5B. Differential fate of metabolism of Direct Red 5B by P. grandiflora, P. putida and their consortium were proposed with the help of gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy analysis. P. grandiflora metabolized the dye to give 1- (4-diazenylphenyl) -2-phenyldiazene, 7- (benzylamino) naphthalene-2-sulfonic acid, 7-aminonaphthalene-2-sulfonic acid and methylbenzene. P. putida gave 4-hydroxybenzenesulfonic acid and 4-hydroxynaphthalene-2-sulfonic acid and benzamide. Consortium showed the formation of benzenesulfonic acid, 4-diazenylphenol, 6-aminonaphthalen-1-ol, methylbenzene and naphthalen-1-ol. Consortium achieved an enhanced and efficient degradation of Direct Red 5B. Phytotoxicity study revealed the nontoxic nature of metabolites formed after parent dye degradation. Use of such combinatorial systems of plant and bacteria could prove to be an effective and efficient strategy for the removal of textile dyes from soil and waterways.

Environmental vulnerability analysis is an important issue in conducting sustainable basin management. In our past study, we developed a set of criteria from three categories of factors (geographic, hydrologic, and societal) for assessing basin environmental vulnerability. According to a survey and the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) analysis, seven criteria were selected as a set of criteria, and the weights of these criteria were determined. This study adopts two different multiple criteria analysis (MCA) methods, the weighted method and the compromise method, to integrate the criteria and evaluate the environmental vulnerability of major basins in Taiwan. The results show that the Cho-Shui River Basin has the highest environmental vulnerability, no matter which method is used. However, the environmental vulnerability of the Ta-Chia River Basin is higher than that of the Tan-Shui River Basin and the Tseng-Wen River Basin when considering the measure of individual regret by the modified VIKOR method, which generates a different ranking than that of the weighted method. Stricter land-use restrictions should be placed on those basins that have higher environmental vulnerability. According to the analysis, the results of basin environmental vulnerability, land-use classification strategies can be created.

The majority of recent quarantine schedules have relied on methyl bromide fumigation. However, due to the phase-out of this fumigant in January 2005 alternative treatments are needed. Four alternative chemical fumigants were tested for their potential to replace methyl bromide as a control agent for Bemisia tabaci, Liriomyza huidobrensis and Frankliniella occidentalis. Phosphine at 2 g/m3 gave promising results at 15oC with complete mortality of all insects after 24 h exposure. Sulphuryl fluoride, ethyl formate and acetaldehyde caused severe damage to plant foliage after only 4 h exposure. However, sulphuryl fluoride produced 100% mortality of L. huidobrensis pupae after only 2 h exposure. In a large scale test using phosphine 2 g/m3 at 15oC complete mortality of L. huidobrensis eggs and pupae was recorded after a 24 h exposure. However, only 98.5 and 86% mortality of B. tabaci eggs and F. occidentalis eggs, respectively, was recorded after this treatment. Treatments with phosphine produced no significant detrimental effects on subsequent plant growth. The potential of these chemicals to act as alternatives to methyl bromide as quarantine fumigants is discussed.

Carbon dioxide is known as a hazardous material with acidic property that can be found as impurity in natural gas reservoirs with a broad range of 2 up to 40%. Therefore, many efforts have been directed to remove and separate carbon dioxide from methane to prevent corrosion problems as well as improving the natural gas energy content. In this study, two molecular sieves, silicoaluminophosphate-34 (SAPO-34) zeotype and T-type zeolite, were synthesized by the hydrothermal method for the comparative study of adsorptive separation of carbon dioxide from methane. The synthesized adsorbents were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and Brunner–Emmett–Teller techniques. These characterization tests confirmed formation of both materials with acceptable crystallinity. Both adsorbents were tested in equilibrium adsorption experiments in order to evaluate maximum capacity and adsorption affinity. Adsorption capacity of carbon dioxide and methane on SAPO-34 and zeolite T were measured in a pressure range of 0.1-2.0 MPa and temperature of 288, 298, and 308 K and fitted with the Sips and Langmuir isotherm models. The ideal selectivity of CO2/CH4 was determined for SAPO-34 and zeolite T at the studied pressures and temperatures, indicating that the molecular sieves can be properly used for CO2-CH4 separation or CO2 capturing from natural gas.

Transport sector is a major consumer of energy. Concern of energy scarcity and price fluctuations enhanced significance of transport sector in national planning. This paper analyses energy demand for transport services in Bangladesh for different policy scenarios. Aggregate transport demand model is integrated into Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning model to forecast consequences of transport policy on energy demand and economy. Demand for imported energy for transport sector is observed to increase from 1.7 million ton of oil equivalent (Mtoe) in 2005 to 11.8 Mtoe in 2030 for business-as-usual scenario. In increased fuel price scenario, cost of importing fuel for transport sector is projected to increase from 1.37 to more than 14.9% of Gross Domestic Product during the same period. Country’s energy demand may be reduced by 2 and 4 Mtoe in 2030 by improvement of waterway and railway, respectively. Moreover, by using compressed natural gas in motor vehicles cost of importing fuel may be reduced by US $5 billion annually in 2030 and a further reduction of transport sector energy demand by 9% can be achieved through eliminating subsidy on fuel.

Extensive export quality reserves of granite, dolerite and marbles which are used for interior decorations as wall facing, paving floors, kitchen counter tops, etc., are available in Azad Kashmir. Since these stones contain radium in trace amounts, therefore, its use as a building material may be a potential source of indoor radon. In order to assess health hazards due to the use of these stones as a building material, samples were collected from different mining sites. After processing, these samples were placed in plastic containers and box type radon detectors were installed in it at the height of 25 cm above the surface of the samples. The containers were then hermetically sealed. After 60 days of exposure to radon, CR-39 detectors were etched in 6 M NaOH at 70oC for 9 h and measured track densities were related to radon concentration. Radon exhalation rate form the studied granites, marble and dolerite samples varied from 87±26 to 353±36 mBq m-2h-1, 79±25 to 650±42 mBq m-2h-1 and 90±26 to 324±36 mBq m-2h-1, respectively. These decorative stones are therefore used in buildings and for export purposes as the observed radon exhalation values are smaller than that of the EPA recommended-action level.

In this study, the imprinted aniline-formaldehyde was used as an adsorbent for removal of Iridium and Palladium ions from aqueous solutions through batch equilibrium. The sorbent was characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The influence of pH, equilibrium time, temperature and initial concentration of metal ions on adsorbed amount of both ions were investigated. The maximum adsorption capacity in initial concentration of 100 mg/L was found to be 12.5 mg/g at pH 7.0 and 14.3 mg/g at pH 8.0 for Iridium and Palladium, respectively. In addition, the best desorption of the metal ions from resin was obtained by 0.5 mol/L nitric acid as eluting agent. The profile of both ions uptake on this sorbent reflects good accessibility of the chelating sites in the imprinted aniline–formaldehyde. Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Redlich-Peterson isotherm models were applied to analyze the experimental data. Moreover, Langmuir linear method was used to obtain the isotherm parameters. However, Langmuir type II achieved the highest coefficient which led to the best fit for the palladium and the best fit for Iridium obtained from linear Redlich-Peterson. However, the thermodynamic parameters (ΔGo, ΔHo, and ΔSo) were also determined using the equilibrium constant values obtained at different temperatures. The results showed that the adsorption for Iridium and Palladium ions was spontaneous nature and endothermic. Moreover, the method was applied for the determination of both ions from tap water samples.

The study was designed to quantify cadmium accumulation in different components of sewage treatment ponds during different seasons and to assess risk for human consumption perspective. The study estimated cadmium concentration in water, sludge, Eichhornia, plankton and tilapia fish from anaerobic, facultative, maturation-1 and -4 ponds during pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon periods. It resulted that cadmium accumulated among different components of anaerobic, facultative, maturation-1 and -4 ponds ranging 0-18, 0-10, 0-7 and 0-15.4 ppb, respectively. During monsoon, highest accumulation was observed in tilapia in both facultative and maturation ponds, but during post-monsoon, plankton community showed highest value in all. The highest bio-magnification of cadmium was recorded during monsoon with varying degrees (facultative pond: 4.39, maturation pond-1: 3.03 and maturation pond-4: 7.08). Cadmium concentration in tilapia lied within WHO’s safe level and may be recommended for human consumption. The concentration of cadmium was estimated by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The above findings occurred due to chelation, adsorption and sedimentation, absorption and bio-accumulation, ionization, leaching through sediment and rainfall. Water pH (6.7-8.8), dissolved oxygen (0-17 mg L-1), total solids (251-650 mg L-1), iron (Fe2+) concentration (0.61-4.87 mg L-1) and sedimentation rate (278.9-2,409.6 g day-1 m-3) were conducive for the distribution of cadmium into different ecosystem components of treatment ponds. These ponds reclaimed 28.57-61.11% of sewage-cadmium and may be promoted as a low-cost eco-tech for sewage treatment.

This paper revises the response of freshwater ostracods to different environmental conditions and anthropogenic impacts, with a worldwide overview of the potential use of these microcrustaceans as bioindicators and several examples of applications in different scenarios. The development of either a single species or an ostracod assemblage is influenced by physical-chemical properties of waters (salinity, temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen), hydraulic conditions, bottom grain sizes or sedimentation rates. In addition to population and community changes, morphological and geochemical changes can also be detected in the ostracod carapace, which serves as a tracer of the water quality. All these features permit to delimit the spatial effects of urban sewages, mining effluents, agricultural wastes, watershed deforestation or road building. These data are the basis for the palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of cores, with an interesting application to archaeology. In addition, favourable results of recently developed bioassays, coupled with an important variability of local assemblages under changing conditions in both waters and sediments, suggest that these microcrustaceans may included between the most promising sentinels groups in freshwater areas. These microcrustaceans show high sensitivity to pesticides, herbicides, heavy metal pollution and oil inputs.

The focus of the review is on the specific aspects of nickel’s effects on growth, morphology, photosynthesis, mineral nutrition and enzyme activity of plants. The mobility of nickel in the environment and the consequent contamination in soil and water is of great concern. Also, the detrimental effects of excessive nickel on plant growth have been well known for many years. Toxic effects of nickel on plants include alterations in the germination process as well as in the growth of roots, stems and leaves. Total dry matter production and yield was significantly affected by nickel and also causes deleterious effects on plant physiological processes, such as photosynthesis, water relations and mineral nutrition. Nickel strongly influences metabolic reactions in plants and has the ability to generate reactive oxygen species which may cause oxidative stress. More recent evidence indicates that nickel is required in small amounts for normal plant growth and development. Hence, with the increasing level of nickel pollution in the environment, it is essential to understand the functional roles and toxic effects of nickel in plants.