Feasibility of treating swine manure in an anaerobic sequencing batch biofilm reactor with mechanical stirring

Anaerobic sequencing batch reactors containing granular or flocculent biomass have been employed successfully in the treatment of piggery wastewater. However, the studies in which these reactors were employed did not focus specifically on accelerating the hydrolysis step, even though the degradation of this chemical oxygen demand (COD) fraction is likely to be the limiting step in many investigations of this type of wastewater. The mechanically stirred anaerobic sequencing batch biofilm reactor offers an alternative for hastening the hydrolysis step, because mechanical agitation can help to speed up the reduction of particle sizes in the fraction of particulate organic matter. In the present study, a 4.5-L reactor was operated at 30°C, with biomass immobilized on cubic polyurethane foam matrices (1 cm of side) and mechanical stirring provided by three flat-blade turbines (6 cm) at agitation rates varying from 0 to 500 rpm. The reactor was operated to treat diluted swine waste, and mechanical stirring efficiently improved degradation of the suspended COD. The operational data indicate that the reactor remained stable during the testing period. After 2 h of operation at 500 rpm, the suspended COD decreased by about 65% (from 1500 to 380 mg/L). Apparent kinetic constants were also calculated by modified first-order expressions.     

Investigation of sol-gel matrices containing crude metallothionein from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Scchizosaccharomyces pombe</Emphasis> for water treatment applications

The application of silica sol–gel particles containing crude metallothionein (MT) was investigated for cadmium removal from water. The metallothionein was first extracted from the yeast Scchizosaccharomyces pombe, and entrapped in the sol–gel matrices. Then sol–gel particles with the different sizes (ranging from 45 to 225 μm) were made. The effect of different flow rates as well as different particle sizes on adsorption of cadmium was investigated. The particle size has a greater effect on Cd adsorption than flow rate in the system studied. The breakthrough curves in the column were modeled using an empirical two parameter fixed-bed adsorption model. The model relates the changes of cadmium concentration in effluent to the standard deviation (σ) and characteristic of time (t ₀).     

Adsorption of Chromium (VI) on <Emphasis Type="Italic">Azadirachta Indica</Emphasis> (Neem) Leaf Powder

A novel adsorbent was developed from mature leaves of the Neem tree (Azadirachta Indica) for removing metal ions from water. The adsorbent, in the form of fine powder, was found to be very effective in removing chromium (VI) from aqueous solution. The adsorption was carried out in a batch process taking different concentrations of the metal ion in aqueous solution with variation in adsorbent amount, pH, agitation time and temperature. The suitability of the adsorbent was tested with Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms and with various equilibrium kinetic data. A small amount of the Neem Leaf Powder (NLP) (1.6 g dm^–3) could remove as much as 87% of Cr (VI) in 300 min from a solution of concentration 14.1 mg dm^–3 at 300 K. The optimum range of pH for the adsorption process was 4.5–7.5 and since the natural pH of the Cr (VI) solution was 5.5, no addition of acid or alkali was necessary for achieving maximum adsorption. The adsorption coefficients indicated a high potentiality for the NLP to be used as an adsorbent for removing Cr (VI) from water.     

Arsenic speciation in water samples containing high levels of copper: removal of copper interference affecting arsine generation by continuous flow solid phase chelation

A simple continuous flow method is proposed to eliminate copper interference in arsenic speciation by hydride generation, based on the selective retention of this interfering ion in an iminodiacetate chelating resin previous to the hydride generation process. The arsines generated were cold trapped and measured by ICP/OES. The proposed method allows about 98% of the copper present in the samples to be removed. Minor co-retention of As(V) was observed as a result of electrostatic interaction between the arsenate anion and the nitrogen of the iminodiacetate group of the chelating resin Muromac A-1, the charge distribution of which is modified when copper is chelated. The species As(III), MMA and DMA were not retained in the microcolumn, probably because these species are mainly in the molecular form at the working pH value (4.5). In synthetic samples containing 50 g l^–1 of each arsenic species together with 100 mg l^–1 copper, the recoveries obtained were: As(V) 97.6%, As(III) 100%, MMA 99.8%, and DMA 99.9%. The method was applied to arsenic speciation in river water samples containing high levels of copper.     

环带抛光技术材料去除理论模型研究

为了更加完善环带抛光技术并指导加工,根据Preston方程建立了材料去除量的理论模型。考虑到环带抛光技术中的诸影响因素,如抛光盘与工件之间的转速比、偏心距及压强分布等参数,建立材料去除量与各影响因素之间的相互关系的数学模型。理论分析和实验结果表明：材料的去除效率随转速比和偏心距增加而增大,转速比越接近于1时,磨削越均匀;工件露边时,工件露出部分材料的去除效率急剧下降。通过对该理论模型中的相关技术参数研究来完善环带抛光技术,有效地提高抛光的效率及稳定性。     

Magnetic Nitrogen-Doped Porous Carbon Nanocomposite for Pb(II) Adsorption from Aqueous Solution

We report in the present study the in situ formation of magnetic nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄ or Fe) within porous N-doped carbon (Fe₃O₄/N@C) via simple impregnation, polymerization, and calcination sequentially. The synthesized nanocomposite structural properties were investigated using different techniques showing its good construction. The formed nanocomposite showed a saturation magnetization (M_s) of 23.0 emu g⁻¹ due to the implanted magnetic nanoparticles and high surface area from the porous N-doped carbon. The nanocomposite was formed as graphite-type layers. The well-synthesized nanocomposite showed a high adsorption affinity toward Pb²⁺ toxic ions. The nanosorbent showed a maximum adsorption capacity of 250.0 mg/g toward the Pb²⁺ metallic ions at pH of 5.5, initial Pb²⁺ concentration of 180.0 mg/L, and room temperature. Due to its superparamagnetic characteristics, an external magnet was used for the fast separation of the nanocomposite. This enabled the study of the nanocomposite reusability toward Pb²⁺ ions, showing good chemical stability even after six cycles. Subsequently, Fe₃O₄/N@C nanocomposite was shown to have excellent efficiency for the removal of toxic Pb²⁺ ions from water.     

β-Cyclodextrin-Polyacrylamide Hydrogel for Removal of Organic Micropollutants from Water

Water pollution by various toxic substances remains a serious environmental problem, especially the occurrence of organic micropollutants including endocrine disruptors, pharmaceutical pollutants and naphthol pollutants. Adsorption process has been an effective method for pollutant removal in wastewater treatment. However, the thermal regeneration process for the most widely used activated carbon is costly and energy-consuming. Therefore, there has been an increasing need to develop alternative low-cost and effective adsorption materials for pollutant removal. Herein, β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), a cheap and versatile material, was modified with methacrylate groups by reacting with methacryloyl chloride, giving an average degree of substitution of 3 per β-CD molecule. β-CD-methacrylate, which could function as a crosslinker, was then copolymerized with acrylamide monomer via free-radical copolymerization to form β-CD-polyacrylamide (β-CD-PAAm) hydrogel. Interestingly, in the structure of the β-CD-PAAm hydrogel, β-CD is not only a functional unit binding pollutant molecules through inclusion complexation, but also a structural unit crosslinking PAAm leading to the formation of the hydrogel 3D networks. Morphological studies showed that β-CD-PAAm gel had larger pore size than the control PAAm gel, which was synthesized using conventional crosslinker instead of β-CD-methacrylate. This was consistent with the higher swelling ratio of β-CD-PAAm gel than that of PAAm gel (29.4 vs. 12.7). In the kinetic adsorption studies, phenolphthalein, a model dye, and bisphenol A, propranolol hydrochloride, and 2-naphthol were used as model pollutants from different classes. The adsorption data for β-CD-PAAm gel fitted well into the pseudo-second-order model. In addition, the thermodynamic studies revealed that β-CD-PAAm gel was able to effectively adsorb the different dye and pollutants at various concentrations, while the control PAAm gel had very low adsorption, confirming that the pollutant removal was due to the inclusion complexation between β-CD units and pollutant molecules. The adsorption isotherms of the different dye and pollutants by the β-CD-PAAm gel fitted well into the Langmuir model. Furthermore, the β-CD-PAAm gel could be easily recycled by soaking in methanol and reused without compromising its performance for five consecutive adsorption/desorption cycles. Therefore, the β-CD-PAAm gel, which combines the advantage of an easy-to-handle hydrogel platform and the effectiveness of adsorption by β-CD units, could be a promising pollutant removal system for wastewater treatment applications.     

Modified coupling agents based on thiourea, immobilized onto silica. Thermodynamics of copper adsorption

New silylating agents synthesized by incorporating the thiourea molecule into precursor agents containing increasing numbers of basic nitrogen atoms, 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane, N-[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]-ethylenediamine and N-[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]diethylenetri-amine, through a solvent-free methodology were characterized before being successfully immobilized onto silica gel. The spectroscopic results support the elemental analysis, demonstrating that the thiourea molecule reacted in such a way as to maintain free amino groups. NMR data for carbon and silicon nuclei eflucidated the structural features associated with the incorporated chains and their bonds to the silica skeleton, with formation of covalent silicon-carbon bonds. Thermogravimetric data correlated with the degree of functionalization, which was also obtained from elemental analysis. The available basic nitrogen and sulfur atoms attached to the incorporated pendant chains have the ability to coordinate copper to give 1.10, 0.47 and 1.25 mmol g⁻¹ as maximum adsorption capacities for the samples prepared with the silanes containing one, two and three nitrogen atoms on their structures. The thermodynamic data for copper/basic center interactions at the solid/liquid interface were determined through calorimetric titration, and the set of data demonstrated favorable systems for all three newly synthesized derivatized silicas, as shown by exothermic enthalpic data, which yield negative Gibbs free energies for removal of this cation from aqueous solutions by all the newly synthesized materials.     

CaO高温脱除氰化氢试验研究

本文在石英反应器内试验了高温脱除HCN反应机理,研究了CaO对氰化氢的脱除作用,探讨了温度、体积空速和氰化氢浓度对脱除氰化氢的影响.试验结果表明:当T<45℃,CaO促使HCN中的N元素转化到CaCN_2,当T>800℃,CaO促使HCN中的N元素全部转化为N_2;CaO在800℃时,只要体积空速小于12000 h~(-1),CaO对HCN均有接近100%的脱除效果;在体积空速10000 h~(-1)、温度800℃工况下,CaO对初始浓度范围127×10~(-6)-512×10~(-6)的HCN均有接近100%的脱除效果.