FFT analysis of atmospheric trace concentration of N2O continuously monitored by gas chromatography and cross-correlation to climate parameters

To investigate the characteristics of N₂O concentration, we applied several types of time series analyses such as fast Fourier transform (FFT), auto-correlation, and cross-correlation, to 2.5-year time series data of trace N₂O concentration continuously monitored by gas chromatography and meteorological data, measured in an urban area of Nagoya. It was found that there is a positive correlation between atmospheric N₂O concentration (ppbv) and, both steam pressure (hPa) and temperature (°C). In addition, negative and positive correlations in atmospheric pressure and in solar flux were also found, respectively. These findings suggest an enrichment of N₂O through environmental steam during the summer season, particularly in urban areas. On the other hand, the correlation to wind direction shows a variation with amplitude of 7 ppbv, from the north-west to the south-east, and a seasonal variation up to 12 ppbv, from winter to summer. These results support the hypothesis that atmospheric steam controls the N₂O concentration in urban areas. In addition, the correlation with wind direction suggests the existence of an emission source in the direction of seaside areas.     

Macroscopic modeling of urban traffic noise - influence of absorption and vehicle flow distribution

Prediction of noise levels at shielded positions in urban areas is more difficult than on exposed positions. At shielded positions, the predictions method must include multiple reflections, and many sources must be taken into account. Using numerical methods that solve the wave equation is possible, but very computationally heavy. Here two methods have been used, a very simplified ray model and a statistical model. The results show that concentrating the traffic and introducing absorption onto building façades will give lower levels at shielded positions.     

Urban railway traffic noise: Looking for the minimum cost for the whole community

Nowadays, railway traffic noise is acknowledged to negatively impact the wellbeing of the whole community, particularly in urban environments. Unfortunately, the traditional approach to support decision making in noise reduction intervention seems to start only from the compliance to the regulations in place, rather than from the identification of an optimal trade-off between the cost of the annoyance of the community and the cost of the intervention. An advanced approach is proposed, which starts from any annoyance due to traffic noise, and which aims at identifying an optimal trade-off by means of evaluation of the minimum cost for the whole community. A case study in a railway noise-affected urban cluster of Milan, Italy, has been performed, which is representative of any urban environment affected by traffic noise. The sensitivity analysis on the parameters of the approach (the size of the buildings; the level of railway traffic; the cost per square meter of the acoustic barriers) shows that the results are robust and reliable, and in the specific case a noise reduction of 15–25 dB is optimal for the community.     

Bioaccessibility of selected trace metals in urban PM<Subscript>2.5</Subscript> and PM<Subscript>10</Subscript> samples: a model study

Bioaccessibility of trace metals originating from urban particulate matter was assessed in a worst case scenario to evaluate the uptake and thus the hazardous potential of these metals via gastric juice. Sampling was performed over a period of about two months at the Getreidemarkt in downtown Vienna. Concentrations of the assayed trace metals (Ti, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sn, Sb, Tl and Pb) were determined in PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ samples by ICP-MS. The metal concentrations in sampled air were in the low picogram to high nanogram per cubic metre range. The concentrations in PM_2.5 samples were generally lower than those in PM₁₀ samples. The average daily intake of these metals by inhalation for a healthy adult was estimated to be in the range of <1 ng (Tl) to >1,000 ng (Zn). To estimate the accessibility of the inhaled and subsequently ingested metals (i.e. after lung clearance had taken place) in the size range from 2.5- to 10-μm aerodynamic equivalent diameter, a batch-extraction with synthetic gastric juice was performed. The data were used to calculate the bioaccessibility of the investigated trace metals. Extractable fractions ranged from 2.10% (Ti in PM_2.5) to 91.0% (Cd in PM_2.5), thus yielding bioaccessible fractions (PM_2.5–10) from 0.16 ng (Ag) to 178 ng (Cu).     

Optimisation of a selective method for the determination of organophosphorous triesters in outdoor particulate samples by pressurised liquid extraction and large-volume injection gas chromatography–positive chemical ionisation–tandem mass spectrometry

A selective analytical method for the determination of nine organophosphate triesters and triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO) in outdoor particulate matter is presented. It involves a fully automated pressurised liquid extraction (PLE) step, integrating an alumina clean-up process, and subsequent determination by large-volume injection gas chromatography–positive chemical ionisation–tandem mass spectrometry (LVI-GC–PCI–MS/MS). The extraction variables (solvent, amount of adsorbent, temperature, time and number of cycles) were optimised using a multicriteria strategy which implements a desirability function that maximises both extraction and clean-up efficiencies while searching for the best-compromise PLE conditions. The final method affords quantification limits of between 0.01 and 0.3 μg g⁻¹ and recoveries of >80%, with the exceptions of the most polar analytes, TCEP and TPPO (~65%) for both urban dust and PM10 samples. Moreover, the method permitted the levels of these compounds in dust deposited outdoors (between LOD and 0.5 μg g⁻¹ for TEHP) and PM10 samples (between LOD and 2.4 μg m⁻³ for TiBP) to be measured and reported for the first time. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Retrospective LC-QTOF-MS analysis searching for pharmaceutical metabolites in urban wastewater

The presence of pharmaceuticals in the environment is a matter of major concern because of their wide consumption and their potential negative effect on the water quality and living organisms. After human and/or veterinary consumption, pharmaceuticals can be excreted in unchanged form as the parent compound and/or as free or conjugated metabolites. These compounds seem not to be completely removed during wastewater treatments and might finally arrive to surface and ground waters. Consequently, both parent pharmaceuticals and metabolites are target analytes to be considered in analytical methodologies. The satisfactory sensitivity in full-acquisition mode, high-resolution, exact mass measurements and MS/MS capabilities of hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) mass spectrometry make of this technique a powerful analytical tool for the identification of organic contaminants. In this study, the use of QTOF-MS with the aid of specialised processing-data application managers has allowed the retrospective analysis of pharmaceuticals metabolites in urban wastewater without the need for additional injection of sample extracts. Around 160 metabolites have been investigated in wastewater samples previously analysed only for parent compounds using LC-QTOF under MS(E) mode (simultaneous recording of two acquisition functions, at low and high collision energy). The retrospective analysis was applied to search for pharmaceutical metabolites in parent-positive effluent wastewaters from the Spanish Mediterranean region. Five metabolites, such as clopidogrel carboxylic acid or N-desmethyl clarithromycin, were identified in the samples.     

Scattering of SH-waves on triangular hill joined by semi-cylindrical canyon

Scattering of SH-waves on the triangular hill joined by semi-cylindrical canyon in half-space is studied using the method of complex function and moving coordinates. The model being studied is divided into two domains. The wave functions satisfying the required condition at each wedge are constructed in each equation. The equations are solved with Fourier expansion. Numerical results are provided to discuss the influence of scattering of SH-waves.     

Urban air pollutants and their micro effects on medieval stained glass windows

Levels of urban gaseous and particulate pollutants were investigated in the Cathedral of Cologne, Germany in the framework of the EU-project “VIDRIO”. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of a protective double glazing system on the preservation of ancient stained glass windows by sampling at protected and unprotected windows (indoors, in the interspace and outdoor of the Cathedral). The interspace between the ancient stained glass window and the protective glazing is flushed in the Cathedral by indoor air, hence isolating the historic glass from the outdoor air and exposing it to indoor air on both sides of the glass panels. Concentrations of aggressive gaseous pollutants such as NO₂, SO₂, O₃ and CO₂ as well as elemental concentrations of bulk particles and relative abundances of single particles were surveyed at all sampling locations. Elemental concentrations in bulk particulate matter were found to be significantly lower inside the Cathedral in comparison to the outdoor air. This result is advantageous for the stained glass windows. Single particle analysis of the samples from Cologne showed also soil dust and organic particles as well as sulphates and nitrates, from which the latter two compounds are dangerous for the stained glass windows. On the base of the obtained results, it can be concluded that the protective glazing system in the Cathedral of Cologne can be considered as predominantly advantageous from both the gases' point of view (except for NO₂-candles burning) and from the particles' point of view.     

基坑排水对城市内河水体溶解性有机质的影响研究

工程施工时基坑排水是保障基坑安全的必要措施,排出水进入城市内河,对内河及下游水生态安全产生影响。该研究采集哈尔滨市何家沟欧亚之窗公园段建筑工程施工过程中基坑排出水(W1)、排水口上游100 m处(W2)、排水口处(W3)、排水口下游50 m处(W4)、排水口下游100 m处(W5)、排水口下游200 m处(W6)的水体样品,应用三维荧光光谱-平行因子分析方法,测定溶解性有机质(DOM)的荧光光谱特征,分析DOM的组成和来源,探究基坑排水对城市内河水体环境的影响。结果表明：内河水体腐殖化指数(HIX)在0.337~0.381范围内,腐殖化程度低,W1,W3～W6的HIX差异不显著,均显著低于W2,说明排水进一步降低了内河水体腐殖化程度。荧光指数(FI₃₇₀)介于2.330~2.900范围内,生物指数(BIX)在0.897~1.140范围内,W1和W2的FI₃₇₀和BIX均显著高于W3~W6,两者具有极强的自生源特征,说明排水使下游水体自生源特征降低。水体样品DOM中共识别出2类4种有机组分：可见类富里酸组分(C1)、类色氨酸组分(C2)、紫外类富里酸组分(C3)和类酪氨酸组分(C4),即类富里酸物质(C1、C3)和类蛋白物质(C2、C4),两者间成负相关关系。FI₃₇₀与4种有机组分间均呈极显著的相关性,说明DOM组成简单。W2具有相对较高的DOM浓度,而排水口下游水体DOM浓度低,基本保持稳定。类蛋白物质在上游水体中占有相对较高的比重,在W4中,4种有机组分相对比重差异不显著,W5和W6类富里酸物质的相对比重有升高趋势,同样说明基坑排水导致内河水体自生源特征降低。除pH值升高外,下游水体样品溶解氧(DO)、总氮、总磷等理化指标含量均降低,pH值与类富里酸物质呈正相关,与类蛋白物质呈负相关,而DO、化学需氧量及水体养分指标与之相反。水体DOM有机组分与理化指标的相关性不同,可直接或间接影响DOM组成。因此,工程施工基坑排水可降低城市内河水体DOM浓度,改变了水体DOM组成。