Geologic structure and correlation of the Berriasian-Lower Aptian productive beds of the Gydan Peninsula (Russian Arctic)

We discuss the geologic structure of the Berriasian-Lower Aptian deposits of the Gydan Peninsula. Eight seismic sequences have been distinguished; most of them are associated with Lower Cretaceous regional clinoforms of West Siberia, their characteristics are given. A correlation of productive beds was based on the stratotype sections of the Yamal and Gydan Peninsulas as well as seismic and well data. A sequence stratigraphic model of the Berriasian-Lower Aptian complex is proposed.     

Natural ring structures on the Baikal ice cover: Analysis of experimental data and mathematical modeling

Hydrophysical studies and mathematical modeling of ring structures during ice cover on Lake Baikal have shown that their existence at the stage of ice cover degradation is due to anticyclonic currents. Such currents can be generated as a result of local upwelling, which we associate with the rise of methane hydrates from the top layer of bottom sediments and their dissociation. Analysis of satellite images shows that the radii of ice rings range from 1300 to 2400 m, which is close to the baroclinic Rossby radius. The measured ice thicknesses in the area of the rings are in agreement with model calculations. Deep water renewal in Lake Baikal can also be associated with the rise of hydrates.     

Authigenic rhodochrosite from a gas hydrate-bearing structure in Lake Baikal

International Journal of Earth Sciences - Early diagenetic carbonates are rare in Lake Baikal. Siderite (Fe carbonate) concretions in the sediments were discovered only recently. Here, we discuss...     

Biosafety assessment of municipal wastewater after treatment by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Serratia</Emphasis> sp. ISTVKR1

The previously described potent biodegrading bacterial strain Serratia sp. ISTVKR1 isolated from sludge of Vasant Kunj Sewage Treatment Plant (VK STP) was used for the study of detoxification of municipal wastewater contaminants with the help of in vitro bioassays conducted on human liver cancer cell line HepG2. The strain has previously been shown to reduce wastewater contaminant load as revealed by a sevenfold reduction in COD and removal of some organic contaminants in the GC–MS analysis of wastewater post-72-h bacterial treatment. Cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and dioxin-like behavior of real municipal wastewater (collected from inlet of VK STP) was assessed before and after bacterial treatment using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), alkaline comet and 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) assays, respectively. The bacterial strain was inoculated into MSM broth (pH = 7.2) containing 50% v/v filter-sterilized influent of VK STP and incubated up to 240 h at 30 °C and 130 rpm. Physicochemical and toxicological analyses were performed for the culture samples. The results of bioassays revealed an increase in cell viability by 40.16% and a reduction in the % EROD activity by 58.4% in the 240-h bacteria-treated sample as compared to the 0-h sample. Genotoxicity as indicated by tail moment (TM) and olive tail moment (OTM) was found to reduce by five- and threefold, respectively, after 240-h bacterial treatment. The results of the study confirmed the potency of the bacterial strain in detoxification of wastewater contaminants.     

Diversity of marine and brackish water nitrite-oxidizing consortia developed for activating nitrifying bioreactors in aquaculture

Nitrite is a well-known toxicant in aquaculture, produced as intermediate in nitrification. Two nitrite-oxidizing bacterial consortia, one from marine environment and the other from brackish water, were developed by enrichment technique at National Centre for Aquatic Animal Health, for removal of nitrite from recirculating aquaculture systems. In the present study, bacterial diversity of the consortia was assessed based on 16S ribosomal RNA and the functional gene analysis. Clone libraries of 16S ribosomal RNA gene and nitrite oxidoreductase A gene were constructed, and amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis was carried out to cluster the clones. Dendrograms generated through molecular characterization showed 29 and 27 clusters in marine and brackish water consortia, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses of representative clones from each cluster depicted profound diversity in the consortia consisting autotrophic nitrifiers belonging to Proteobacteria, anaerobic ammonia oxidizers, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes and heterotrophic denitrifiers. Functional gene analysis corroborated with the presence of specific nitrite oxidizers. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction showed the abundance of nitrite oxidizers in the order of 1.51 ± 0.38 × 10⁹/g and 4.88 ± 0.42 × 10⁷/g in marine and brackish water consortia, respectively. Diversity indices and pattern of distribution of organisms within the consortia were analyzed using Geneious, VITCOMIC, Mega 5 and Primer software. The marine nitrite-oxidizing consortium showed higher Shannon–Wiener diversity and mean population diversity than brackish water consortium, suggesting that the former was having more diverse flora and higher potential to be used as startup cultures for activating nitrifying bioreactors subsequent to acclimatization to the required salinity.     

Electro-chemical mineralization of recalcitrant indole by platinum-coated titanium electrode: multi-response optimization,mechanistic and sludge disposal study

Indole is a highly recalcitrant aromatic heterocyclic organic compound consisting of a five-membered nitrogen-containing pyrrole ring fused to a six-membered benzene ring. This study presents the results of the electro-chemical mineralization of indole in an aqueous solution using platinum-coated titanium (Pt/Ti) electrode. A central composite design was used to investigate the effect of four parameters namely initial pH (pH_o), current density (j), conductivity (k) and treatment time (t) at 5 levels. Multiple responses namely chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal (Y ₁) and specific energy consumption (Y ₂) were simultaneously maximized and minimized, respectively, by optimizing the parameters affecting the mineralization of indole by using the desirability function approach. At the operating conditions of pH 8.6, j = 161 A/m², k = 6.7 mS/cm and t = 150 min, 83.8% COD removal with specific energy consumption of 36.3 kWh/kg of COD removed was observed. Ultra performance liquid chromatography, UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry of the indole solution were performed at the optimum condition of the treatment so as to report a plausible mechanism of indole degradation. Field emission scanning electron microscopy analysis of electrodes before and after treatment was performed for determining the changes on anode surface during the treatment. Thermal analysis of the solid residue (scum) obtained was also performed for exploring its disposal prospects. Present study shows that electro-chemical oxidation can be used for mineralization of nitrogenous heterocyclic compounds such as indole.     

High-performing antifouling bacterial consortium for submerged membrane bioreactor treating synthetic wastewater

Biofouling, associated with membranes, is considered as a major operational challenge in membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology. Interrupting the process for the formation of biofilm by the action of interspecies quorum quenching (QQ) has received a significant attention since recent years. An antifouling bacterial consortium was identified to improve biofouling inhibition performance during MBR operation. For this purpose, various QQ bacteria were isolated from laboratory-scale MBR using enrichment culture method and identified via 16S rRNA. Potential quenching strains including Enterobacter cloaca, Delftia sp., and Pseudomonas sp. were utilized to control biofouling in the MBR operated in the continuous mode for 38 days. Three laboratory-scale MBRs, including two MBRs with different anti fouling consortium and a control, were operated in parallel under similar operating conditions. Biofouling control by QQ bacteria was compared based on the membrane permeability and EPS secretion from biofilm on the membrane. Both MBRs with antifouling consortium (AC-MBRs) experienced around three times less biofouling as compared to conventional MBR leading to significant decrease in acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) concentration in the biocake. More than 90, 45, and 49% of COD, NH₄–N, and PO₄ ^3?–P removal efficiencies elucidate that QQ bacterial consortium could effectively reduce membrane biofouling without compromising the MBR efficiency. Comparatively lower concentration of bound EPS in AC-MBRs restricted the bacterial adhesion to membrane resulting in enhanced membrane permeability depicting that a broader range of signal molecules could be hydrolyzed using antifouling consortium than single or no QQ strain in the submerged MBR.     

Comparison of different models of water quality index in the assessment of surface water quality

The method of water quality index is widely used in evaluation of the surface water quality because of its capability to summarize a number of water quality parameters into one numeric value, along with defined scale of water quality range. The current investigation includes application of modified model for calculating water quality index values, generated using experimental data and literary models. Software was created using modular design. Fourteen physical, chemical and biological parameters representing water quality state along with the assigned weights were elected. Comparison between models generated based on Serbian and American models of water quality index was done. Selected parameters differ mutually in number of parameters used in calculation of index, as well as in values of the weighting factors. In order to enable an efficient water quality analysis and to reconcile the requirements of both Serbian and American model, two software solutions were generated and processed on the example of the water quality of the Danube River in Serbia. Danube water quality was assessed at seventeen measuring locations along the river flow. Index values obtained from the two generated software applications were compared with the results of the official Serbian online calculator. Water quality determined using new generated models shows stricter approach and one class lower water quality compared to the existing Serbian model. Therefore, modular and open-generated simulation software is of great significance for the comparison and testing of different water quality models, not just those two shown in this study.     

Management of shock loads wastewater produced from water heaters industry

Water heater manufacturing represents one sector of household electrical appliance industry. It includes several batch processes which resulted in a highly polluted wastewater as shock loads. The objective of this study was to manage the shock loads wastewater with a simple and cost-effective approach prior to final discharge into municipality. To achieve this objective, two approaches were studied. The first approach was the chemical treatment of the accumulated shock loads wastewater using alum and an anionic polymer. Although this approach produced a very high-quality effluent, it was economically and technically infeasible. The second approach was a controlled release of the shock loads to the normal daily discharge in a way that guarantees the compliance of the end-off-pipe with the National Regulatory Standards. This solution required establishment of an equalization tank for normal daily flow and a holding tank for controlled release of the shock loads. Mathematical calculations were carried out to determine the most violating parameters in order to calculate the mixing ratio the of shock loads with the normal daily flow. Full engineering design of the proposed solution was carried out. This approach was implemented and proved to be simple, easy to operate, cost-effective and can be replicated in similar batch processing manufacturing plants.     

Isolation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus cereus</Emphasis> from botanical soil and subsequent biodegradation of waste engine oil

Waste engine oil causes a vital environmental pollution when it spill during change and transportation and products of waste engine oil causes lethal effects to the living systems. Thus, abiotic and biotic approaches are being extensively used for removal of waste engine oil pollution. Therefore in present study, waste engine oil degradation was accomplished by a new bacterial culture, isolated from the soil by an enrichment technique. Morphological, biochemical and gene sequence analysis revealed that isolate was Bacillus cereus. Subsequently, biodegradation potential of B. cereus for waste engine oil was studied. Experimental variables, such as pH, substrate concentration, inoculum size, temperature and time on the biodegradation, were checked in mineral salt medium. The biodegradation efficiency of B. cereus was determined by gravimetry, UV–visible spectrophotometry and gas chromatography. In addition, waste engine oil was also characterized by GC–MS and FTIR for its major constituents, which showed total 38 components in waste engine oil, including hopanes, benzopyrene, long-chain aliphatic hydrocarbons, dibenzothiophenes, biphenyl and their derivatives. Results of successive biodegradation indicated that B. cereus was capable to degrade 1% of waste engine oil with 98.6% degradation potential at pH 7 within 20 days. Hence, B. cereus presents an innovative tool for removing the engine oil from the contaminated area.