The Effects of Partial Substitution of Fertilizer Using Different Organic Materials on Soil Nutrient Condition, Aggregate Stability and Enzyme Activity in a Tea Plantation.

Fertilization plays a crucial role in enhancing tea production. However, it has been demonstrated that the long-term single application of chemical fertilizer will reduce soil nutrient content and the formation of soil aggregates, which is not conducive to the sustainable development of soil and agriculture. Many studies have shown that partial substitution of chemical fertilizer with organic fertilizer can improve soil physicochemical properties and soil nutrient content.

A new type of calcium-rich biochars derived from spent mushroom substrates and their efficient adsorption properties for cationic dyes.

Adsorption is commonly accepted as a most promising strategy in dye wastewater treatment, and the widespread use of adsorption emphasizes the need to explore low-cost but excellent adsorbents. Herein, a low-cost adsorbent (calcium-rich biochar) was developed, which was directly pyrolyzed from spent mushroom substate without any modification. This study evaluated the potential application of two calcium-rich biochars (GSBC and LSBC) derived from spent substrates of and , respectively.

Activated biochar derived from spent Auricularia auricula substrate for the efficient adsorption of cationic azo dyes from single and binary adsorptive systems.

In this study, spent Auricularia auricula substrate (AS)-derived biochar (ASBCs) and activated biochar with NaOH (A-ASBC) were evaluated for the adsorption of cationic azo dyes, including methylene blue (MB), rhodamine B (RB), and crystal violet (CV), from single and binary adsorptive systems. A-ASBC showed a higher maximum adsorption capacity for these dyes (MB: 53.62 mg·g, RB: 32.

Efficient Removal of Cu(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) from Aqueous Solutions by a Mineral-Rich Biochar Derived from a Spent Mushroom () Substrate.

This study evaluated the novel application of a mineral-rich biochar derived from a spent substrate (SAS). Biochars with various pyrolysis temperatures (350-750 °C) were used to remove Cu(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) from aqueous solutions. The adsorption characteristics and removal mechanisms of the biochars were investigated.

Phytoremediation of soil heavy metals (Cd and Zn) by castor seedlings: Tolerance, accumulation and subcellular distribution.

Cd and Zn pollution was observed to often occur simultaneously in soils. However, previous studies focused on single heavy metal instead of Cd and Zn combined pollution. Castor (Ricinus communis) is considered to have great potential for contaminated soil remediation.

Effect of spent mushroom substrate on strengthening the phytoremediation potential of Ricinus communis to Cd- and Zn-polluted soil.

Phytoremediation is a kind of efficient strategy for remediating soils polluted with heavy metals. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of spent mushroom substrate (SMS) on the phytoremediation potential of Ricinus communis in Cd- and Zn-polluted soil. We treated the soil with SMS before growing plants and analyzed the contents, distribution of heavy metals, and response of plants after growth.

Dioxin distribution characteristics and health risk assessment in different size particles of fly ash from MSWIs in China.

During the process of treating and recycling Municipal Solid Waste Incinerators (MSWIs) fly ash, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (dl-PCBs) in fly ash may potentially mobilize in the atmosphere and be widely distributed in the environment because of the inevitable re-suspension. Thus, this work presents the distributions of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in inhalable coarse particles (Dp10-2.5 (particle diameter in μm)), fine particles (Dp<2.

Enrichment of heavy metals in fine particles of municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) fly ash and associated health risk.

During the pretreatment and recycling processes, the re-suspended dust from municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) fly ash might pose a significant health risk to onsite workers due to its toxic heavy metal content. In this work, the morphological and mineralogical characteristics of fly ash in different particle sizes are presented. The concentrations of seven trace elements (Zn, Pb, Cu, Cd, Cr, Fe and Mn) in these samples were determined.

Use of Energy Crop (Ricinus communis L.) for Phytoextraction of Heavy Metals Assisted with Citric Acid.

Ricinus communis L. is a bioenergetic crop with high-biomass production and tolerance to cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb), thus, the plant is a candidate crop for phytoremediation. Pot experiments were performed to study the effects of citric acid in enhancing phytoextraction of Cd/Pb by Ricinus communis L.

Accumulation of de-icing salts and its short-term effect on metal mobility in urban roadside soils.

In this study, a field investigation combined with a laboratory column leaching experiment were carried out to assess the effects of de-icing salts application on the heavy metal mobilization in roadside soils in an old and large industrial zone in Northeastern China. In the field investigation, 41 roadside soils were collected from the industrial zone, and the results showed a strong rise in deicing salts related concentrations of Na (352-513 mg/kg) and Cl (577-2,353 mg/kg) and high values of Cd (1.2-7.

Characteristics of dioxins content in fly ash from municipal solid waste incinerators in China.

MSWI fly ashes sampled from 15 large-scale commercial municipal solid waste incineration plants in China were analyzed for seventeen polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/PCDFs) as well as twelve dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs). The concentration of PCDD/PCDFs and dl-PCBs in fly ash samples ranged from 2.8 to 190ngg(-1), and 59.

[Spatial distribution of three endocrine disrupting chemicals in sediments of the Suzhou Creek and their environmental risks].

Three environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), named nonylphenol (NP), octylphenol (4-t-OP) and bisphenol A (BPA), in sediments of the Suzhou Creek and its branches were detected using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method. The results showed that the concentration of three chemicals varied greatly from site to site, which ranged from < 1.0-5 800, < 0.

Preparation of SnO2 nanowires by solvent-free method using mesoporous silica template and their gas sensitive properties.

In this paper, a facile method was presented to synthesize tin dioxide (SnO2) nanowires by solvent-free method using SnCl2 x 2H2O as precursor and mesoporous silica SBA-15 as the hard template. No solvent was used in the processing. The products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms.

Hydroxyl radical generation and oxidative stress in Carassius auratus liver as affected by 2,4,6-trichlorophenol.

With Carassius auratus, one of the main economic fish species in Eastern China as test material, this paper studied the hydroxyl radical generation and oxidative stress in its liver under the effect of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP). Different doses of 2,4,6-TCP were injected intraperitoneally into the fishes, and the Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra of hepatic free radicals, activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione-s-transferase (GST), levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG), and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents were determined 24h after injection. The results showed that under the effects of 2,4,6-TCP, the generation of free radical that was considered to be hydroxyl radical increased significantly, the activities of antioxidant enzymes decreased, with CAT most strongly affected and followed by SOD and GST, the GSH level decreased significantly while GSSG level had little difference, resulting in a decreased GSH/GSSG ratio, and the MDA content increased significantly.

Biodegradation of chlordane and hexachlorobenzenes in river sediment.

Contamination of river sediments by persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is a worldwide concern, and microbial degradation is regarded as an important process for removal of POPs from river sediments. To date, there is still a lack of systematic study on chlordane biodegradation in river sediments, and the information on hexachlorobenzene (HCB) biodegradation in river sediments is very limited in Japan. We investigated the anaerobic biodegradation potential of trans-chlordane (TC), cis-chlordane (CC), and HCB in sediment samples collected at three sites along the Kamogawa River in Saitama Prefecture, Japan.