Measurement techniques for mercury species in ambient air

This review critically evaluates the measurement methodologies most commonly employed for the analysis of the various forms of mercury (Hg) in air. Emphasis is given to the three most common forms of mercury in air [i.e. gaseous elemental mercury (GEM, Hg⁰), reactive gaseous mercury (RGM), and particle-bound mercury (Hg_p)]. Moreover, we also briefly describe methods dealing with gas-phase analysis of organic mercury species (e.g., mostly methyl mercury), as they are also reported to be present in air on rare occasions. To begin with, we describe the approaches to sampling airborne mercury species and associated sample-treatment strategies. We evaluate both conventional and emerging alternative detection techniques for different mercury forms with respect to their applicability in airborne mercury analysis. We also discuss the artifacts and the biases associated with analysis of different mercury species. Finally, the review summarizes current methodological developments for the determination of mercury in air and highlights future prospects for improvements.     

Synthesis and investigation of photovoltaic properties for polymer semiconductors based on porphyrin compounds as light-harvesting units

We reported on two polymer semiconducting copolymers based on porphyrin compounds, poly[9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-5,15-bis(hexoxybenzyl)-10,20-bis(benzo-4-yl)porphyrin] (PFPor) and poly[9-(heptadecan-9-yl)carbazole-co-5,15-bis(hexoxybenzyl)-10,20-bis(benzo-4-yl)porphyrin] (PCPor), for use as organic photovoltaic materials. The thermal, optical, electrochemical, and photovoltaic properties of the two polymers were investigated. In addition, PC₆₁BM and PC₇₁BM were introduced as acceptor materials to confirm the acceptor effect in bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices. Moreover, in order to establish acceptor effects, morphologies of polymer/PCBM blend films were analyzed through atomic force microscopy (AFM). PFPor and PCPor exhibited the best device performance with power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of 0.62% and 0.76%, respectively, upon the introduction of PC₇₁BM as the acceptor in the device where 86 wt.% of the PC₇₁BM was contained in the active layer (pol:PC₇₁BM = 1:6, w/w).     

缺陷金属有机骨架的制备及其去除水中污染物的研究进展

在避免母体结构坍塌的前提下,通过缺陷工程对金属有机骨架(MOFs)进行处理可有效提升其去除水体污染物的性能。目前,通过调整合成条件(温度、金属/配体比例等)、添加调制剂、热处理和金属节点取代等方式可制备缺陷MOFs。粉末X射线衍射(PXRD)、比表面积分析、热重-差热分析(TGA-DSC)、电子顺磁共振(EPR)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、高分辨率透射电子显微镜(HR-TEM)、球差校正透射电镜(AC-TEM)和X射线吸收光谱(XAS)表征技术可证实MOFs中缺陷的特征。相比原始MOFs,从光催化等高级氧化的角度来看,构造缺陷型MOFs可促进电子转移、减小带隙以提升其高级氧化降解去除污染物的性能。此外,缺陷型MOFs还可为污染物提供更多吸附位点,进一步提升吸附剂的吸附容量和吸附速率。本文系统总结缺陷MOFs的制备方法、现有常见表征技术及其在水处理领域中的应用。同时,本文还根据缺陷MOFs用于去除水中污染物的研究现状对其今后发展予以展望。     

Pine Needles (Pinus Sylvestris) as a Bioindicator of Sulphur and Heavy Metal Deposition in the Area Around a Pulp and Paper Mill Complex at Kemi,Northern Finland

Abstract

The determination of sulphur and heavy metals in plants is an integral part of many environmental studies. Pine needles (Pinus Sylvestris) have proved to be suitable air quality indicators for pollutants, especially for sulphur. This study was carried out in the vicinity of Kemi, a town situated on the Gulf of Bothnia in northern Finland. An industrial complex comprising two pulp and paper mills is located in the centre of the area. Scots pine (Pinus Sylvestris) needles were collected from 29 sampling sites. The samples were dried, homogenized and digested with nitric acid. The concentrations of the elements S, Fe, Zn, Ca, V, and Pb were determined by ICP-AES. According to our results pine needles (Pinus sylvestris) appear to be an ideal bioindicator and sampling material for identifying and assessing atmospheric sulphur pollution derived from pulp and paper mills and can complement the information provided by plant mapping studies around pulp and paper mills.     

Determination of 13C/12C-ratios of anthropogenic organic contaminants in river water samples by GC-irmMS

This study describes the application of a common analytical procedure adapted for compound-specific stable carbon isotope analyses of riverine contaminants. To evaluate the sensitivity of the analytical method and the precision of the isotopic data obtained, a set of numerous substances at different concentration levels were measured. For most of the anthropogenic contaminants investigated (including chlorinated aliphatics and aromatics, musk fragrances, phthalate-based plasticizers and tetrabutyl tin) acceptable carbon isotope analyses could be obtained down to amounts of approximately 5?ng absolutely applied to the gas chromatograph. These amounts correspond to concentrations in water samples at a natural abundance level of approximately 50–200?ng?L^?1 (low to medium contaminated river systems). However, it has to be considered that the precision and the sensitivity of the analytical method depend partially on the chemical properties of the substances measured. Five recovery experiments were conducted to assess changes in carbon isotope ratios during sample preparation and measurement. The compounds selected for these experiments are known riverine contaminants. Isotopic shifts or higher variations of the isotope ratios as a result of the analytical procedures applied were observed only for a couple of contaminants. Furthermore, compound-specific carbon isotope analyses were performed on eight water extracts of the Rhine river. By comparing the variation of the data of several individual compounds with the deviations obtained from the recovery experiments, it was possible to differentiate contaminants with unaffected isotope ratios and substances with significant alterations of the δ¹³C-values.     

Development and application of an analytical protocol for evaluation of treatment processes for landfill leachates. II. Evaluation of leachate treatment efficiency of different steps in a constructed pilot plant

Different methods for treatment of leachate from a municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill were tested in a pilot plant. Raw leachate was pre-treated with aeration and sedimentation, followed by several parallel individual steps such as bioremediation, chemical oxidation, ozonation, and geo-bed filters. The efficiency of different treatment steps was evaluated according to one previously developed protocol, which includes measurements of several parameters such as conductivity, pH, nutrients, chloride, metals, organic compounds, and acute toxicity before and after a treatment step. The treatment steps which showed the highest efficiency towards organic pollutants in leachate were ozone treatment and chemical oxidation. The use of an adsorption filter, a geo-bed with a mixture of peat and bottom ash with ca 10% remaining carbon, also had good effects. A combination of pre-treatment and a geo-bed filter with peat and carbon ash gave the best overall treatment results when water-quality parameters such as total organic carbon and ammonia-nitrogen were also considered.     

Development of a multi-residue method for the determination of organic micropollutants in water, sediment and mussels using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

This study describes the development of a multiresidue method based on gas chromatography-electron ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-EI-MS/MS) for the detection of sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), five phthalate esters (PEs), seven polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), six polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), six alkylphenols (APs), three organochlorined pesticides and their isomers or degradation products (OCPs) and bisphenol A in seawater, river water, wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents, sediments and mussels. Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used for the extraction of target analytes in aqueous samples, and ultrasound assisted extraction for solid samples. GC-EI-MS/MS acquisition conditions in selected reaction monitoring (SRM) using two transitions per compound were optimized. In this way, quantification and unequivocal identification of organic micropollutants were performed in compliance with the Decision 2002/657/EC. Good linearity responses with coefficients of determination higher than 0.99 were obtained. Methodological detection limits (MDLs) in seawater ranged from 0.1 to 6 ng L(-1); in river water from 0.1 to 4.8 ng L(-1); in WWTP effluents from 1 to 75 ng L(-1); in sediments from 1 to 150 ng g(-1) and in mussels from 1 to 125 ng g(-1). MDLs and recovery yields were compared with other published methods and similarities or even improvements were achieved. The optimized method was applied to analyze five samples from each matrix collected in coastal areas, showing its potential use for marine pollution monitoring.     

Determination of organic acid impurities in lactic acid obtained by fermentation of sugarcane juice

Lactic acid produced by fermentation process mostly contains a number of aliphatic carboxylic acids as impurities. In this work, carboxylic acid impurities in lactic acid samples from a number of sources were determined at ppm levels. A simple HPLC method was developed that utilized a new generation polar embedded reverse phase, 20mM phosphate buffer at pH 2.20 (±0.05) and UV detection at 210 nm. The method enabled quantitative analysis of the above acids in lactic acid matrix. The experimental conditions for column temperature, mobile phase pH and flow rate were optimized. A detailed validation of the method was performed for linearity, precision, accuracy, selectivity, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ), ruggedness and repeatability and reproducibility (R&R).     

活性炭基软包装超级电容器用有机电解液

使用了一种新型的有机电解液(三乙基甲基四氟硼酸铵/(丙烯碳酸酯+乙腈): MeEt₃NBF₄/(AN+PC))和两种传统有机电解液(四乙基四氟硼酸铵/丙烯碳酸酯(Et₄NBF₄/AN)和四乙基四氟硼酸/乙腈(Et₄NBF₄/PC)), 制作成活性炭(AC)基软包装超级电容器. 在不同电压窗口下对新型有机电解液的循环伏安和电化学阻抗谱进行了表征, 并在0-3 V的电压窗口下, 通过循环伏安、电化学阻抗谱、恒流充放电、漏电流、自放电、循环寿命和库仑效率, 对以上三种电解液进行了综合的比较. 结果表明, 新型有机电解液综合了AN和PC各自的优点, 性能优异.     

以醚胺为模板剂合成含二价金属杂原子的开放骨架磷酸铝化合物M(Ⅱ)-CJ50

在水热体系中, 以2,2'-(乙烯二氧)双(乙胺)为模板剂, 合成了3种含二价金属杂原子的开放骨架磷酸铝化合物M(Ⅱ)-CJ50(|C₆H₁₇N₂O₂| [MAl₃P₄O₁₆], 其中M=Mg, Mn和Fe). 单晶及粉末X射线衍射分析表明, 这3种化合物与以咪唑为模板剂合成的含三价金属杂原子的M(Ⅲ)-CJ50具有相似的骨架拓扑结构. 二者的区别在于: 由于使用了还原性较强的醚胺作模板剂, M(Ⅱ)-CJ50结构中的金属杂原子具有比M(Ⅲ)-CJ50更低的氧化态; M(Ⅱ)-CJ50中的金属杂原子与1个醚胺模板剂分子中的2个醚氧原子形成双齿配位, 而M(Ⅲ)-CJ50中的金属杂原子则与2个咪唑模板剂分别形成单齿配位. 此外, 磁性测试结果表明, 由于金属杂原子的氧化态以及配体模板剂分子的差异, 导致M(Ⅱ)-CJ50中的过渡金属杂原子处于电子高自旋态, 而M(Ⅲ)-CJ50中的杂原子则处于低自旋态.