The paper presents the results of experiments on the influence of the organic matter’s characteristics on the formation potential of water chlorination by-products – representatives of the following groups:
trihalomethanes, haloacetonitriles, haloketones, chloral hydrate and chloropicrin. The products of water fractionation (the hydrophobic and hydrophilic acids, hydrophobic and hydrophilic bases, and hydrophobic and
hydrophilic neutral fractions) were chlorinated with sodium hypochlorite. Its dose was adjusted to obtain a
residual free chlorine concentration between 3 and 5 mg/dm3
after 24 h. After this time, the water chlorination
by-products were analyzed with gas chromatography. The results’ analysis has defined the fractions, which have
the highest potential to form particular groups of volatile organic water chlorination by-products.
The paper addresses the effect of a compost prepared from tobacco wastes with an admixture of bark and straw on the enzymatic activity and certain chemical properties of a grey-brown podzolic soil amended with that compost.
The study was conducted under the conditions of a pot experiment in which the soil material was collected from the surface horizon of the grey-brown podzolic soil. The effect of the application of the compost was compared with soil without such amendment. The test plant was maize cv. Kosmo 230. Fertilisation of the light soil with the compost studied caused changes in the enzymatic activity of the soil that were related both to the dose of the compost and to the kind of enzyme studied. With increase in the dose of the compost there was an increase in dehydrogenase activity (highest dose) and a significant decrease in the activity of acid phosphatase. Moreover, it was observed that tobacco compost was a significant source that enriched the light soil in organic matter, total nitrogen, and available forms of phosphorus, magnesium and potassium, which was evident in increased yields of maize grown as the test plant.
Significant correlations were also demonstrated between a majority of the biochemical and chemical parameters, which indicates that those parameters characterise well the biological properties of a grey-brown podzolic soil amended with tobacco compost.
The article presents research results of the introduction of powdery activated carbon to the existing technological system of the groundwater treatment stations in a laboratory, pilot plant and technical scale. The aim of the research was to reduce the content of organic compounds found in the treated water, which create toxic organic chlorine compounds (THM) after disinfection with chlorine. Nine types of powdery active carbons were tested in laboratory scale. The top two were selected for further study. Pilot plant scale research was carried out for the filter model using CWZ-30 and Norit Sa Super carbon. Reduction of the organic matter in relation to the existing content in the treated water reached about 30%. Research in technical scale using CWZ-30 carbon showed a lesser efficiency with respect to laboratory and pilot-plant scale studies. The organic matter decreased by 15%. Since filtration is the last process before the individual disinfection, an alternative solution is proposed, i.e. the second stage of filtration with a granular activated carbon bed, operating in combined sorption and biodegradation processes. The results of tests carried out in pilot scale were fully satisfactory with the effectiveness of 70–100%.
Abstract: Introduction and development of membrane techniques in the production of drinking water and purifi cation of wastewaters, in the last 40 years, was important stage in the field of water treatment effectiveness. Desalination of sea and brackish water by RO is an established way for drinking water production. Signifi cant improvements in design of RO, the application of alternative energy sources, modern pretreatment and new materials have caused the success of the process. NF is the method of water softening, because NF membranes can retain di- and multivalent ions, but to a limited extend monovalent. Drinking water containing viruses, bacteria and protozoa, as well as other microorganisms can be disinfected by means of UF. Viruses are retained by UF membranes, whereas bacteria and protozoa using both UF and MF membranes. For the removal of NOM it is possible to use direct NF or integrated systems combining UF or MF with coagulation, adsorption and oxidation. The use of NF, RO and ED, in the treatment of water containing micropollutants for drinking and industrial purposes, can provide more or less selective removal of the pollutants. The very important are disinfection byproducts, residue
of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds. For endocrine disrupting compounds, special attention is paid onto polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and surface-active substances, chlorinated pesticides, phthalates, alkylphenols, polychlorinated biphenyls, hormones, synthetic pharmaceuticals and other substances disposed to the environment. The application of MF and UF in the removal of inorganic and organic micropollutants is possible in integrated systems with: coagulation, adsorption, complexion with polymers or surfactants and biological reactions.
The aim of the study was to determine the impact of selected factors on the reduction of organic pollutants, expressed in BOD5 and CODCr, in wastewater treated in a laboratory scale model of moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR). The factors included in the experiment: the degree of filling the fluidized bed with biomass carriers, hydraulic load, and aeration intensity. The tested model of the bioreactor consisted of five independent chambers with diameter D = 0.14 m and height H = 2.0 m, which were filled with biomass carriers at 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 70% of their active volume. During the test period, hydraulic loads at the level of Qh1 = 0.073 m3·m-2·h-1 and Qh2 = 0.036 m3·m-2·h-1 were applied, which ensured one-day and two-day sewage retention, respectively.The said reactors were subjected to constant aeration at P1 = 3.0 dm3·min-1 and P2 = 5.0 dm3·min-1. The highest efficiency of the reduction of the analysed indicators was demonstrated by reactors filled with carriers in the degree of 40–60%. Based on the statistical analyses (the analyses of the ANOVA variations and the Kruskal-Wallis test) carried out, it was found that the studied factors significantly modified the mutual interaction in the process of reducing BOD5 in treated wastewater of the reactors tested. The significance of the impact of the discussed factors on the values of the studied indicators in treated wastewater depends on mutual interactions between the investigated factors.
This study presents the spatial variability and dynamics of soil organic carbon (SOC), soil organic matter (SOM) and soil pH contents at the Wonji Shoa Sugar Estate (WSSE), Ethiopia. Soil samples were collected immediately after the sug-arcane was harvested and then analysed for SOC, SOM and pH content using standard procedures. The analysis resultsshowed that the pH value varied between 6.7–8.4 (neutral to moderately alkaline) and 7.3–8.5 (neutral to strongly alkaline) for the top and bottom soil profiles, respectively. The SOM content is in the range of 1.1–6.7% and 0.74–3.3% for the upper and lower soil layers, respectively. Nearly 45% of the samples demonstrated a SOM content below the desirable threshold (<2.1%) in the bottom layer and, hence, inadequate. Moreover, most of the topsoil layer (95%) has an SOM content exceed-ing the desirable limit and hence is categorized within the normal range. Interestingly, the SOC content showed a spatial variability in both the surface and sub-surface soil layers. A lower SOC and SOM content was found for the sub-soil in the south and southwestern part of the plantation. A further decline in the SOC and SOM content may face the estate if the cur-rent waterlogging condition continues in the future for a long period. Overall, the study result emphasizes the need to min-imize the pre-harvest burning of sugarcane and action is needed to change the irrigation method to green harvesting to fa-cilitate the SOC retention in the soil and minimize the greenhouse emission effect on the environment, hence improving soil quality in the long-term.
In the Polish sector of the Magura Nappe have long been known and exploited carbonate mineral waters, saturated
with carbon dioxide, known as the “shchava (szczawa)”. These waters occur mainly in the Krynica Subunit
of the Magura Nappe, between the Dunajec and Poprad rivers, close to the Pieniny Klippen Belt (PKB). The
origin of these waters is still not clear, this applies to both “volcanic” and “metamorphic” hypotheses. Bearing
in mind the case found in the Szczawa tectonic window and our geological and geochemical studies we suggest
that the origin of the carbon dioxide may be linked with the thermal/pressure alteration of organic matter of the
Oligocene deposits from the Grybów Unit. These deposits, exposed in several tectonic windows of the Magura
Nappe, are characterized by the presence of highly matured organic matter – the origin of the hydrocarbon accumulations.
This is supported by the present-day state of organic geochemistry studies of the Carpathian oil and
gas bed rocks. In our opinion origin of the carbon-dioxide was related to the southern, deep buried periphery of
the Carpathian Oil and Gas Province. The present day distribution of the carbonated mineral water springs has
been related to the post-orogenic uplift and erosion of the Outer (flysch) Carpathians.
Raman spectroscopy and vitrinite reflectance measurements of dispersed organic matter from Carboniferous shales in boreholes in the northern part of the Intra-Sudetic Basin were used for thermal history reconstruction. Microscopic investigations have shown that the organic matter is dominated by the vitrinite maceral group. In analysed samples, organic matter shows a varied degree of thermal alteration determined by the mean random vitrinite reflectance (VRo) ranging from 0.72% to 3.80%. Mean apparent maximum vitrinite reflectance (R’max) values reached 4.98%. The full width at half maximum of D1 and G bands in Raman spectra are well-correlated with mean VRo and R’max. Thermal maturity in the boreholes shows a regular increase with depth. Geological data combined with Raman spectroscopy and mean vitrinite reflectance results indicate that the analysed Carboniferous strata reached maximum paleotemperatures from c. 110 to c. 265°C. The regional paleogeothermal gradient in the late Paleozoic was c. 80°C/km. The Variscan heating event presumably caused a major coalification process of organic matter. The Carboniferous–Permian magmatic activity must have contributed to high heat flow, adding to the effect of sedimentary burial on the thermal maturity.
In general, Antarctic marine bacteria are small, with biovolumes ranging from 0.139 to 0.204 μm-3 cell-1, but their total biomass in seawater is considerable due to relatively high numbers that approximate to 1020 cells km-3. Bacterial biomass becomes more concentrated closer to land. Our multi-year Antarctic studies demonstrated an average total bacterial biomass of 504 tons in Admirality Bay (24 km3) or 21 tons per 1 km3, versus 6.4 tons per 1 km3 in the open ocean. Strikingly, bacterial biomass reached 330 tons per 1 km3 of seawater at the sea-ice edge, as sampled in Goulden Cove in Admiralty Bay. Bacterial biomass in Admirality Bay, which we believe can be enriched by halotolerant and thermotolerant fresh water bacteria from glacial streams, is equal to or even exceeds that of the standing stock of krill (100-630 tons per bay) or other major living components, including phytoplankton (657 tons), flagellates (591 tons), and ciliates (412 tons). However, the bacterial biomass is exceeded by several orders of magnitude by non-living organic matter, which constitutes the basic bacterial carbon source. Factors regulating high bacterial abundance in the vicinity of land are discussed.