Sonochemical Degradation of Pharmaceutical Wastewater

This study presents the influence of the addition of additives such as activated carbon, carbon tetra chloride, hydrogen peroxide, and potassium dichromate on ultrasonic reduction of pharmaceutical wastewater chemical oxygen demand (COD) under laboratory conditions. The addition of activated carbon increased the % COD reduction whereas the combined addition of activated carbon and H₂O₂/CCl₄/K₂Cr₂O₇ was found to show higher reduction. Among the various combinations investigated, the combined addition of activated carbon and CCl₄ was found to be the best combination. However, the environmental and health problems associated with these chemicals limit the applicability of the process in an industrial level. Further investigation with this system showed that the initial pH and initial COD have significant influence on the removal rate. The data obtained were fitted with first order and Langmuir–Hinshelwood kinetic models. The values of the rate constants obtained indicated that the pharmaceutical wastewater can be treated efficiently by the proposed methods.     

The Impact of Human Activities on Freshwater Aquatic Systems

The roles of oxygen and its activated species (superoxide radicals, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radicals), as well as that of sulfur compounds, are considered in relation to biological quality and the self-cleaning capacity of freshwater aquatic systems. The effects on the aquatic redox-processes are discussed in terms of atmospheric fallout of sulfur compounds, bottom sediment composition, and input of wastewaters containing reducing substances. It is shown that the totality of anthropogenic influences, and/or unfavourable natural geochemical conditions, as well as climatic effects in a region can increase the significance of one-electron transfer processes in bio-geochemical cycles of oxygen, sulfur and manganese, compared with the significance of two-electron transfer processes. The resulting, reactive intermediate products of one-electron transfer processes are very important with respect to the composition and properties of aquatic systems. Examples are given of practical applications of wastewater treatment, using hydrogen peroxide and UV-irradiation, and of regulation of consumers’ activities which affect natural waters.     

Biological activity and physicochemical properties of thermally activated water types: Mollusk-based bioassay

Physicochemical and bioassay methods are used to carry out a comprehensive study of the properties of two types of activated waters: “thermally activated,” i.e., thermal water, referred to as “white spring” or “cold boiling water” in folk medicine, and “melt” water after quick freeze. The test object for bioassay were apple shell mollusks Pomacea canaliculata from a laboratory culture used to carry out patented and widely tested methods of freshwater quality bioassay. Oxygen and hydrogen peroxide concentrations and pH were determined in water. The integral biological activity of water was evaluated by a method based on the use of absorption spectra to evaluate the rate of redox transformation in the quinone-hydroquinol system. Similar studies were carried out with three types of reference samples: settled original tap water, the same water cooled to the freezing point, and water artificially enriched with hydrogen peroxide. The water activated by thermal impact has been found to have higher biological activity than the original tap water.     

Elimination of Swimming Pool Water Disinfection By‐products with Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs)

Ozonation is a treatment step which was first applied in the 1960s in pool water treatment for disinfection as well as for oxidation of pool water contaminants. Contact time between ozone and pool water was identified to be of significance with an increased elimination efficiency regarding chloramines, trihalogenmethane formation potential and the permanganate index for longer reaction times. Oxidation via OH radicals might be the dominating pathway. In this study ozonation was compared with the ozone based advanced oxidation processes ozone/UV and ozone/hydrogen peroxide regarding the elimination efficiency of both disinfection by‐products (DBPs) and DBP precursors. It was observed that AOPs in comparison to ozonation showed an increased elimination efficiency regarding total organic carbon (TOC), the organically bound halogens adsorbable on activated carbon (AOX) and AOX formation potential. A contact time of 3 minutes between pool water and oxidant turned out to be practically sufficient. Just for the trihalomethane (THM) formation potential ozonation showed a slight advantage compared to the AOPs because ozonation is a highly selective oxidant and OH radical reactions are known to produce small reactive molecules which are easier transformed to THMs. Combination of membrane filtration and AOPs resulted in an elimination of 10 to 90 % of the DBPs and their precursors. The ozone/hydrogen peroxide process is suggested for pool water treatment because of the higher elimination rates compared to ozonation and of economic reasons compared to the ozone/UV process.     

Characterization and advanced oxidation treatment of dyeing effluent by Fenton’s reagent

Textile effluent from dyeing process has been a serious environmental threat for years. This study was intended to evaluate the performance of Fenton’s process for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), colour and turbidity. Experiments were conducted by laboratory-scale reactors fed with cotton dyeing effluent. The Fenton process employs ferrous ions and hydrogen peroxide H₂O₂ under acidic pH conditions. The experimental variables studied include doses of iron salts and hydrogen peroxide, oxidation time, pH for oxidation and coagulation. The COD, color and turbidity removal reached a maximum of 97.2, 96.8 and 84.8% respectively at a reaction time of 20 min under optimum doses of H₂O₂ and Fe²⁺. Hydrogen peroxide dose ranging from 0.5 to 2.0 mL/500 mL and FeSO₄ · 7H₂O in the range of 0.5–4.0 gm/500 mL were selected to be examined at different reaction times between 10 and 30 min. Optimum dose of hydrogen peroxide and ferrous sulphate were 2.0 mL and 1.0 gm respectively for 500 mL of sample. In this study optimized pH 4.0 and 6.0 was found effective for oxidation and coagulation respectively.     

Removal of Pesticides in Drinking Water Treatment Entfernung von Pestiziden bei der Trinkwasseraufbereitung

The most effective process for the pesticide removal from a raw water is the adsorption on activated carbon except for polar substances. Activated carbon can be used as powdered carbon or granular carbon. However in both processes it has to be taken into account that the efficiency of the activated carbon adsorption is affected by the origin and the concentration of the natural organic background in the raw water and the initial concentration of the pesticide itself.     

The Influence of the Concentration of Dissolved Oxygen on the Determination of the Dehydrogenase Activity of Activated Sludge Using the Method of TTC Test

Due to its oxidation-reduction potential, oxygen occurs in the TTC test for the determination of the dehydrogenase activity as a competitive hydrogen acceptor. At different oxygen concentrations in the solution to be tested and also at varying rates of oxygen depletion, e.g. in activated sludge samples, thus the formazan formation from TTC shows differences. Under similar anaerobic conditions, the test results of the dehydrogenase activity are higher in most cases and show a smaller range of variation than under aerobic conditions. The importance of the oxygen concentration is demonstrated in investigations with activated sludge, anaerobic conditions being set by addition of Na₂SO₃.     

Abwasserreinigung in der Produktion von Phenolformaldehydharzen

As investigations on model solutions and real wastewaters with 30 … 33 g/l phenol and 5 … 10 g/l formaldehyde as well as pH = 2 … 3 have shown, the following technique of sewage purification proves to be optimal: condensation with addition of 7 g/l sulphuric acid at 98 °C, settling of the condensation products formed for 8 h, centrifugation of the supernatant and adsorption on activated carbon or a polymer sorbent (XAD 4). Preference should be given to activated carbon. The residual concentrations amount to 0.1 mg/l for both phenol and formaldehyde. The adsorbents are largely fully regenerated with methanol, the regeneration solution containing 11 … 20 g/l phenol.     

AOX‐Bildung bei der sonolytischen Oxidation von Salicylsäure in Gegenwart von Chlorid

AOX‐formation by the Sonochemical Treatment of Salicylic Acid in Presence of Chloride Ultrasound shows great potential for improving water, wastewater and sludge treatment processes. However, a number of questions exist: for example the influence of suspended solids or salts. In this paper the influence of chloride in view of AOX‐formation should be investigated. As organic model compound salicylic acid (0.05…1 mmol/L) was used. Formation of AOX (adsorbable organically bound halogens) was measured in dependence upon chloride concentrations (1.4…141 mmol/L) and pH 2 and 9. Ultrasound irradiation was performed in glass reactor (500 mL) at 206 kHz and 353 kHz by continuous bubbling argon:oxgen (4:1) at a flow rate of 1 L/min into the solutions. The elimination of salicylic acid and the formation of hydrogen peroxide were not influenced by the presence of chloride (up to 56 mmol/L). The rate of salicylic acid elimination and the formation rate of hydrogen peroxide are at concentrations of mmol/(L min) levels but those of AOX formation of μmol/(L min) levels. The reactions leading to chlorinated by‐products can be seen as minor reaction paths. The yield of AOX depending on frequency, pH and chloride concentration lies between 10 μg/L and 900 μg/L. In acidic medium they were twice as high as in basic medium. Below the ratio chloride : salicylic acid of 2 mol/mol, AOX could not be identified.     

Control of BTEX Migration Using a Biologically Enhanced Permeable Barrier

A permeable barrier system. consisting of a line of closely spaced wclls. was installed perpendicular to ground water flow to control the migration of a dissolved hydrocarhon plume. The wells were charged wiih concrete briquets that release oxygen and nitrate at a controlled rate. enhancing aerobic bio-degradation in the downgradient aquifer.
Laboratory batch reactor experiments were conducted to identify concrete mixtures that slowly released oxygcn over an extended time period. Concretes prepared with urea hydrogen peroxide were unsatisfactory, while concretes prepared with calcium peroxide and a proprietary formalation of magnesium peroxide (ORC®) gradually released oxygen at a steadily declining rate. The 21 percent MgO₂ conerete cylinders and briquets released oxygen at measurable rates for up to 300 days, while the 14 percent CaO₂ briquets were exhausted by 100 days.
A full-scale permeable barrier system using ORC was constructed at a gasoline-spill site. During the first 242 days of operation. total BTFX decreased from 17 to 3.4 mg/L. and dissolved oxygen increased from 0.4 to 1.8 mg/L. during transport through the barrier. Over time, BTEX treatment efficiencies declined. indicating the barrier system had becomc less effective in releasing oxygen and nutrients to the highly contaminated portion of the aquifer. Point dilution tests and sediment analyses performed at the conclusion of the project indicated that ihc aquifer in the vicinity of the remediation wells had been clogged by precipitation with iron minerals. This clogging is believed to result from high pH from the concrete and oxygen released by ihc ORC. Oxygen-releasing permeable barriers and other aerobic bioremediation processes should be used with caution in aquifers with high levels of dissolved iron.     

An Evaluation of Soil-Gas Surveying for H2S for Locating Subsurface Hydrocarbon Contamination

A soil-gas survey was conducted at a gasoline service station and a former fire training facility to determine if surveying for hydrogen sulfide could be useful in locating nonaqueous phase hydrocarbon fuel in the subsurface. Relative; to total organic vapor, oxygen, and carbon dioxide distributions, detectable hydrogen sulfide concentrations were much more restricted to the suspected source vicinity at both sites. Appreciable levels of soil-gas hydrogen sulfide. up to 600 Vppb. were observed in areas characterized by anaerobic or microaerophilic conditions having bulk oxygen levels below 4 percent. Based on the hydrogen sulfide distribution, nonaqueous phase hydrocarbon fuel was located at each site. These results suggest that soil-gas surveying for hydrogen sulfide may help locale mobile or residual gasoline and other nonaqueous phase hydrocarbons in the subsurface.     

Isotope Approach to Assess Hydrologic Connections During Marcellus Shale Drilling

Water and gas samples were collected from (1) nine shallow groundwater aquifers overlying Marcellus Shale in north‐central West Virginia before active shale gas drilling, (2) wells producing gas from Upper Devonian sands and Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale in southwestern Pennsylvania, (3) coal‐mine water discharges in southwestern Pennsylvania, and (4) streams in southwestern Pennsylvania and north‐central West Virginia. Our preliminary results demonstrate that the oxygen and hydrogen isotope composition of water, carbon isotope composition of dissolved inorganic carbon, and carbon and hydrogen isotope compositions of methane in Upper Devonian sands and Marcellus Shale are very different compared with shallow groundwater aquifers, coal‐mine waters, and stream waters of the region. Therefore, spatiotemporal stable isotope monitoring of the different sources of water before, during, and after hydraulic fracturing can be used to identify migrations of fluids and gas from deep formations that are coincident with shale gas drilling.     

Remediation of the Wells G & H Superfund Site,Woburn, Massachusetts

Remediation of ground water and soil contamination at the Wells G & H Superfund Site, Woburn, Massachusetts, uses technologies that reflect differences in hydrogeologic settings, concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and costs of treatment. The poorly permeable glacial materials that overlie fractured bedrock at the W.R. Grace property necessitate use of closely spaced recovery wells. Contaminated ground water is treated with hydrogen peroxide and ultraviolet (UV) oxidation. At UniFirst, a deep well completed in fractured bedrock removes contaminated ground water, which is treated by hydrogen peroxide, UV oxidation, and granular activated carbon (GAC). The remediation system at Wildwood integrates air sparging, soil-vapor extraction, and ground water pumping. Air stripping and GAC are used to treat contaminated water; GAC is used to treat contaminated air. New England Plastics (NEP) uses air sparging and soil-vapor extraction to remove VOCs from the unsaturated zone and shallow ground water. Contaminated air and water are treated using separate GAC systems. After nine years of operation at W.R. Grace and UniFirst, 30 and 786 kg, respectively, of VOCs have been removed. In three years of operation, 866 kg of VOCs have been removed at Wildwood. In 15 months of operation, 36 kg of VOCs were removed at NEP. Characterization work continues at the Olympia Nominee Trust, Whitney Barrel, Murphy Waste Oil, and Aberjona Auto Parts properties. Risk assessments are being finalized that address heavy metals in the floodplain sediments along the Aberjona River that are mobilized from the Industri-Plex Superfund Site located a few miles upstream.     

Bestimmung der Aktivität von Belebtschlamm über die Geschwindigkeit der Biosynthese von Aminopeptidasen

The authors describe a possibility of a fast determination of the metabolic activity of various activated sludge samples. There is not used the sludge property of digestion, but the biosynthesis of aminopeptidases. Egg albumin has been found to be the optimum standard indicator. The activity of the investigated activated sludge is derived from the rate of the biosynthesis of aminopeptidases. The technique proposed can be used also for determining the toxic effects of different substances on activated sludge.     

13 C NMR spectra of tectonic coals and the effects of stress on structural components

13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is widely used for research of solid fossil energy (i.e., coal, kerogen)for three reasons. First, the spectrum and data are directly obtained from the samples; second, the samples are not destroyed during analysis, and third, multi-structure information on carbon, hydrogen and oxygen functional groups can be collected quantita- tively and semi-quantitatively. During the past 20 years, the NMR method has been used to study many aspects of coal structure [1…     

Untersuchungen zur Einzel- und Gemischadsorption von Phenolen an Aktivkohlen. Teil 2: Gemischadsorptionsgleichgewichte des Systems p-Nitrophenol/p-Chlorphenol/Aktivkohle

On the thermodynamic basis of the theory of the Ideal Adsorbed Solution (IAS) a calculation method was used to predict mixture adsorption equilibria from the individual isotherms. The results of the prediction were compared with the results of practical measurements by the example of the adsorption of p-nitro- and p-chlorophenol mixture on the activated carbon DO 4. According to the explanations concerning the graphically represented results, the mean percent differences between calculated and experimental data by the exact solution of the IAS-theory and by a described simplified method were 11 % and 13 %, respectively. It is thus confirmed that the IAS-theory is very well suited for predicting adsorption equilibria for, e.g., phenol mixtures.     

Implications of ozone depletion for surface-water photochemistry: Sensitivity of clear lakes

Increased ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B) in aquatic ecosystems brought about by stratospheric ozone depletion may result in increased formation rates of photochemical reaction products in the surface waters of aquatic ecosystems. In this study, the potential impact of increases in lower wave-length radiation on the formation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and singlet oxygen (¹O₂) was modelled for lakes over a range of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations. The impact of increased UV-B radiation on the production of carbon monoxide (CO) was also calculated for two humic stained systems. The relative increases of H₂O₂ and¹O₂ production were greater in the clear lakes (70% increase in photochemical reaction rates near the surface) than the coloured systems (25%). Production of CO in the study sites also increased under depleted ozone conditions implying increased DOC losses to the overlying atmosphere.     

不同供氧方式对水库底泥氮磷释放的影响

采用实验室模拟试验,研究了三种供氧方式——曝气、投加过氧化氢和投加过氧化钙对水库底泥氮磷释放的影响.研究结果表明:(1)溶解氧是控制底泥氮磷释放的重要因素,厌氧条件能加速底泥释放磷和氨氮;(2)曝气、投加过氧化氢和投加过氧化钙均能显著提高底部水体的溶氧水平,并能有效抑制底泥氮磷的释放.三种供氧方式对底泥释磷的控制效率依次为:投加CaO2>曝气>投加H2O2;对氨氮释放的控制效率则为:曝气>投加CaO2>投加H2O2.     

Zur Adsorptionsbehandlung von Abwässern eines pharmazeutischen Betriebes

The activity of two adsorbent polymers on the basis of polystyrene and of an activated carbon for the removal of organochlorine substances as well as of substances which are characterized by the COD-Cr or the ultraviolet absorption in the wastewater of a pharmaceutical enterprise is assessed in batch and filtration experiments. The results show a good take-up of the organochlorine compounds by the polymers. Activated carbon showed partially the best values for process wastewater.