Effect of aluminum and chromium on the growth and germination of mesquite (Prosopis juliflora swartz.) DC.

Prosopis seeds were grown under controlled environment in solution of aluminum and chromium at different concentration alone as well as combined together. The effect of these metals was studied on seed germination, root length, shoot length, seedling length and dry biomass. Aluminum and chromium alone, and combined together showed no effects on germination and dry biomass. Chromium alone was found toxic to root, shoot and seedling length. However, application of different concentrations of aluminum increased the root, shoot and seedling growth. It may be concluded that aluminum is not as toxic as chromium, and their combined treatment showed the intermediate effect by ameliorating the impact of one another.     

Delving into Allende's dark secrets

What are the strange dark clasts within carbonaceous chondrites? How did they form? And what do they tell us about the early solar system? Mark Sephton, one of a team investigating the Allende meteorite, summarizes their findings.     

Wave trapping and flow around an irregular near circular island in a stratified sea

Wave trapping and induced flow around an island is examined. The exactly circular island solutions are reprised and the solutions extended, and shown to apply to a stratified sea. The homogeneous solutions are then used to deduce the wave trapping and flow around a near circular island. It turns out that the cotidal pattern for a perfectly circular island is relatively immune to variations in geometry and radially dependent depth variations. This helps explain the similarity in the behaviour of the tides around various islands (the Pribilof Islands near Alaska, Oahu in Hawaii, Cook Island off north west Australia, Bermuda off the eastern coast of the USA, and Bear Island in the Norwegian Sea). The dominant steady drift and its rate of decay off-shore is also calculated.     

Experimental and Isothermal Studies on Sorption of Congo Red by Modified Mycelial Biomass of Wood‐rotting Fungus

Batch biosorption experiments were carried out for the removal of Congo red from aqueous solution using native and pretreated mycelial pellets/biomass of Trametes versicolor. The effect of process parameters such as contact time, dye concentration, and pH on the extent of Congo red biosorption has been investigated. Higher dye concentrations resulted in lower biosorption. Increases in biomass dosage led to increases in the levels of biosorption. Biosorption kinetics and equilibrium data are essential basic requirements to develop an effective and accurate design model for the removal of the dye. A kinetic study showed that the biosorption of the dye on fungal biomass was a gradual process. Pseudo‐first‐order, pseudo‐second‐order, and Bangham's model were used to fit the experimental data. The results of the kinetic studies showed that the second‐order kinetic model fitted well for the present experimental data. Equilibrium isotherms were analyzed by Langmuir, Freundlich, Dubnin‐Radushkevich, and Temkin isotherms. The biosorption equilibrium data obeyed the Langmuir and Temkin isotherms well. Acidic pH was favorable for the biosorption of the dye. Studies on the pH effect and desorption show that chemisorption seems to play a major role in the biosorption process. Among the native and pretreated biomass studied, autoclaved biomass showed a better biosorption capacity.     

Investigations on different positions of electrodes and their effects on the distribution of Cr at the water sediment interface

In most mining areas, significant concentrations of metals such as Pb, Cu, Cr, Zn, Cd, Fe, Mn, Co, Ni, Hg, Ar, halogenated organic compounds and radionuclides are found. Of those, Cr is one of the well-known heavy metals that forms toxic species. It is necessary to study the mobilization and accumulation of Cr at the sediment water interface in an electric field at varying different positions and conditions of the electrode arrangement. The tests were carried out with a natural sediment containing heavy metals from the river Weisse Elster (Germany). The electrokinetic experiments have been performed in columns filled with sediment using electrodes made of conductive polymers (polyethylene with carbon black) at a maximum current density of 0.5 mA/cm². The experimental results suggest that the mobilization and accumulation of Cr highly depends on chemical factors for e.g., pH value, redox potential, respectively redox status and the content of Fe, A1 and organic matter in the soil or sediment. The sorption of Cr (III, VI) is very high in the pH range > 4.5. As expected, a high mobilization of Cr (III, VI) was seen in the case of the experiments with the anode at the sediment, because the pH value was lower than mentioned above. On the opposite, the best conditions for the Cr (III, VI) immobilization is high pH values (cathode at the sediment).     

Speciation of heavy metals in electroplating industry sludge and wastewater residue using inductively coupled plasma

The speciation of metals in environmental samples is a critical factor in assessing the potential environmental impacts, before their disposal. The distribution and speciation of toxic heavy metals in plating wastewater residues and sludge was investigated for four samples using sequential extraction method. Tessier method was used to fractionate the metal content into exchangeable, acid extractable, reducible and oxidizable fractions. Residual and total metal contents were determined in aqua regia digest. The extracts were analysed for metals using inductively coupled plasma -atomic emission spectrometry. The bioavailable fraction (exchangeable and acid extractable fractions) is comprised less than the other forms. The oxidisable and reducible forms are dominants for all the four samples studied. The major metal constitute in the samples is iron, the wastewater residue contains (12.3 and 7.4 g/Kg respectively on dry basis) and the sludge contains (31.5 and 41.6 g /Kg) respectively. Cr concentration is higher in wastewater residue of second electroplating industry. The descending order of the average total metal contents for these four samples were Fe > Cr > Sn > Zn >Cu > Ni > Mn > Pb > Cd > Ag. Based on the average of absolute values for the four samples the highest bioavailability order of metals is Cr (39 %) in wastewater residues and Zn (32 %) in sludge samples. Metal recovery was good, with < 10 % difference between the total metal recovered through the extractant steps and the total metal determined using aqua regia extract.     

Ethnic change and diversity in England, 1981–2001

The paper compares ethnic change and diversity across two recent decades using common group and area definitions. Ethnic minority groups are shown to be growing rapidly at 41 per cent between 1981 and 1991 and 39 per cent between 1991 and 2001. Some groups have grown swiftly (Black Africans, Bangladeshis), while others have seen moderate expansion (Indians, Other Asians). The White population has hardly grown and the White British population has probably declined. Black and Ethnic Minority (BEM) populations remain concentrated in metropolitan areas in 2001 as in 1991 and 1981. Whereas between 1981 and 1991, BEM groups were concentrating into metropolitan areas, between 1991 and 2001 deconcentration began for most groups. The London region stands out as highly dominant, housing more than 50 per cent of BEM populations as a whole in 1991 and 2001. However, between 1991 and 2001, BEM groups grew outside their core areas. The consequence of BEM population growth and spread has been a dramatic increase in ethnic diversity in all regions.