Microbial functional heterogeneity induced in a petroleum-polluted soil profile.

Microbial taxonomic diversity declines with increasing stress caused by petroleum pollution. However, few studies have tested whether functional diversities vary similarly to taxonomic diversity along the stress gradient. Here, we investigated soil microbial communities in a petrochemically polluted site in China.

GMCs stabilized/solidified Pb/Zn contaminated soil under different curing temperature: Physical and microstructural properties.

Stabilization/Solidification (S/S) has been widely used in soil remediation to both improve physical properties and immobilize extensive contaminants. GGBS (granulated ground blast furnace slag)-MgO-CaO (GMCs) was used to treat Pb/Zn contaminated soil. The physical and microstructural characteristics of stabilized/solidified contaminated soil were investigated in this study.

Ecological risk assessment and distribution of potentially harmful trace elements in lake sediments of Songnen Plain, NE China.

In order to understand the distribution and the ecological risk of the potentially harmful trace elements (PHTEs) in lake sediments of Songnen Plain, northeast (NE) China, an integrated survey of PHTEs (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn and Ti) was conducted in July 2015 in 11 shallow lakes adjacent to Qiqihar and Daqing. The enrichment factor (EF) and Index of geoaccumulation (I) results showed that Cd was obviously enriched in all lakes and reached the moderate pollution level. A comparison of PHTE concentrations in the lake sediments from 2005 to 2015 found the PHTEs pollution status doubled.

Lead adsorption by biochar under the elevated competition of cadmium and aluminum.

Competitive adsorption studies are important to accurately estimate the lead adsorption capacity on biochar in soil. The structure of biochars was evaluated by Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and X-ray Diffraction, and the competitive of Cadmium (Cd) and Aluminum (Al) with Lead (Pb) adsorption were determined by kinetic experiments and pH effects. Adsorption kinetics indicated that the adsorption amount (mg g) of Pb by biochar was in the decreasing order of CM400 (90.

Effective removal of heavy metal by biochar colloids under different pyrolysis temperatures.

Biochar colloids' association with heavy metal needs be studied to precisely evaluate the effectiveness of biochar as sorbents. The structure of biochar colloids and their roles in heavy metal removal were investigated by Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction and batch adsorption experiments, respectively. Due to the numerous oxygen function groups and mineral matters contained in biochar colloids, the removal capacity of chromium (Cr) and cadmium (Cd) to biochar colloids was much greater than that of biochar residues.

A comparison of risk modeling tools and a case study for human health risk assessment of volatile organic compounds in contaminated groundwater.

In order to promote the risk-based strategy in the investigation, assessment, and remediation of Chinese brownfield sites, the Health and Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA) software was developed. It is vital to validate the HERA model and compare the inter-model differences of HERA model against other available risk assessment tools. This paper discusses the similarities and differences between the Risk-Based Corrective Action (RBCA) Tool Kit and the HERA model by evaluating the health risk of organic contaminated groundwater sources for a chemical works in China for the first time.