Evidence for Fossil Fuel PM Accumulation in Marine Biota.

When fine particulates such as those with a diameter of approximately 1 μm (particulate matter, PM) are released from fossil fuel combustion into the air, they warm the atmosphere and contribute to millions of premature deaths in humans each year. Considerable quantities of PM eventually enter the oceans as suspended particulates, yet subsequent removal mechanisms are poorly understood. In fact, the presence of PM in marine biota has never been reported.

Distribution and hosts of arsenic in a sediment core from the Chianan Plain in SW Taiwan: Implications on arsenic primary source and release mechanisms.

High arsenic abundance of 50-700μg/L in the groundwater from the Chianan Plain in southwestern Taiwan is a well-known environmental hazard. The groundwater-associated sediments, however, have not been geochemically characterized, thus hindering a comprehensive understanding of arsenic cycling in this region. In this study, samples collected from a 250m sediment core at the centre of the Chianan Plain were analyzed for arsenic and TOC concentrations (N=158), constituent minerals (N=25), major element abundances (N=105), and sequential arsenic extraction (N=23).

CO2 sequestration utilizing basic-oxygen furnace slag: Controlling factors, reaction mechanisms and V-Cr concerns.

Basic-oxygen furnace slag (BOF-slag) contains >35% CaO, a potential component for CO2 sequestration. In this study, slag-water-CO2 reaction experiments were conducted with the longest reaction duration extending to 96hr under high CO2 pressures of 100-300kg/cm(2) to optimize BOF-slag carbonation conditions, to address carbonation mechanisms, and to evaluate the extents of V and Cr release from slag carbonation. The slag carbonation degree generally reached the maximum values after 24hr slag-water-CO2 reaction and was controlled by slag particle size and reaction temperature.