Chemosphere, 2004 Jun, 55(9), 1189 - 96 Degradation of azo dye Acid Red 14 in aqueous solution by electrokinetic and electrooxidation process; Wang A et al.; A new wastewater treatment technology--electrokinetic-electrooxidation process (EK-EO process) is developed in this paper . The EK-EO process can take advantage of both electrooxidation on the anode surface and the electrokinetic process of anionic impurities under an electric field, which can enhance the TOC removal in electrolysis process . The degradation of an anionic azo dye Acid Red 14 (AR14) was experimentally investigated . It was found that under an electric field AR14 could be migrated into anode compartment and be efficiently mineralized . After 360 min electrolysis of 100 mgl(-1) AR14 solutions at 4.5 mAcm(-2), complete discoloration was observed in both cathode and anode compartment . About 60% TOC was electromigrated from cathode compartment to anode compartment, and more than 25 mgl(-1) TOC was abated in anode compartment . A possible degradation mechanism of AR14 by EK-EO process was proposed . Additionally, the effect of current density, recycling flux, and electrolyte concentration on the EK-EO degradation of AR14 was also investigated . Sci Total Environ, 2004 May 25, 324(1-3), 201 - 10 Tertiary filtered municipal wastewater as alternative water source in agriculture: a field investigation in Southern Italy; Pollice A et al.; Results are reported concerning a 2-year field investigation on municipal wastewater reclamation for the irrigation of two experimental crops: tomato and fennel . Throughout the investigation, approximately 500 m(3) of tertiary membrane filtered wastewater without further disinfection was supplied to one of two parcels (500 m(2) each) of a test field located in Southern Italy . The second parcel was comparatively irrigated with 500 m(3) of conventional well water . Objectives of the investigation were (i) the evaluation of the performance of a membrane filtration pilot plant (productivity=0.7 m(3)h(-1)) for tertiary treatment and (ii) the comparison between agronomic results (features of soil and crops) after irrigation with reclaimed wastewater versus conventional groundwater . Over long term operation, the pilot plant performance resulted very good in terms of suspended solids and bacterial removal . Referring to the agronomic results, no substantial differences were observed after 2 years, both in terms of microbiological quality of the crops and characteristics of the soil . The whole results indicate membrane filtered municipal effluent as a viable alternative water resource for irrigation. Bioresour Technol, 2004 Aug, 94(1), 9 - 12 Optimization of a biological process for treating potato chips industry wastewater using a mixed culture of Aspergillus foetidus and Aspergillus niger; Mishra BK et al.; Potato chips industry wastewater was collected and analyzed for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS) and total carbohydrates . Two Aspergillus species, A . foetidus and A . niger, were evaluated for their ability to grow and produce biomass and reduce the organic load of the wastewater . A . foetidus MTCC 508 and A . niger ITCC 2012 were able to reduce COD by about 60% and produce biomass 2.4 and 2.85 gl(-1), respectively . Co-inoculation of both Aspergillus strains resulted in increased fungal biomass production and higher COD reduction than in individual culture at different culture pH . pH 6 was optimum for biomass production and COD reduction . Amendment of the wastewater with different N and P sources, increased the biomass production and COD reduction substantially . Under standardized conditions of pH 6 and amendment of wastewater with 0.1% KH2PO4 and 0.1% (NH4)2 SO4, a mixed culture gave 90% reduction in COD within 60 h of incubation. J Hazard Mater, 2004 Apr 30, 108(1-2), 111 - 7 Removal of lead from aqueous solutions using an immobilized biomaterial derived from a plant biomass; Chandra Sekhar K et al.; Because of the severity of heavy metal contamination and potential adverse health impact on the public, a tremendous effort has taken place to purify waters containing toxic metal ions . Traditional methods which have been employed prove to be costly and prohibitive for low level waste remediation . Biosorption is presented as an alternative to traditional physicochemical means for removing toxic metals from ground and wastewaters . Most recently, plant based biomaterials have been of interest . The bark of Hemidesmus indicus, an extensively available plant biomass commonly called as Indian sarsaparilla was used as biomaterial for removal of lead from aqueous streams . Batch experiments were carried out with immobilized biomass of H . indicus (IPBFIX) to optimize the experimental parameters like effect of contact time, initial metal concentration, initial IPBFIX concentration and co-metal ion effect on biosorption of lead from contaminated waters . Column experiments were performed under flow conditions for regeneration and recycle efficiency of IPBFIX and was found to be effective for three cycles . Elution experiments were carried out to remove lead ions from loaded IPBFIX and 100% elution was achieved with a 0.1M HNO(3) solution . The effectiveness of the IPBFIX for biosorption of lead ions was demonstrated using the wastewater samples emanating from a non-ferrous metal industry and the results are presented in this paper . The results from these studies will be useful for a novel phytofiltration technology to remove and recover lead from wastewaters and this can also be well adapted for secondary treatment or polishing of wastewaters . An attempt has been made to remove lead from the lead polluted waters (both ground and surface) from an industrially contaminated sites. Waste Manag, 2004, 24(4), 359 - 63 The BATINTREC process for reclaiming used batteries; Xia YQ et al.; The Integrated Battery Recycling (BATINTREC) process is an innovative technology for the recycling of used batteries and electronic waste, which combines vacuum metallurgical reprocessing and a ferrite synthesis process . Vacuum metallurgical reprocessing can be used to reclaim the mercury (Hg) in the dry batteries and the cadmium (Cd) in the Ni-Cd batteries . The ferrite synthesis process reclaims the other heavy metals by synthesizing ferrite in a liquid phase . Mixtures of manganese oxide and carbon black are also produced in the ferrite synthesis process . The effluent from the process is recycled, thus significantly minimizing its discharge . The heavy metal contents of the effluent could meet the Integrated Wastewater Discharge Standard of China if the ratio of the crushed battery scrap and powder to FeSO4.7H2O is set at 1:6 . This process could not only stabilize the heavy metals, but also recover useful resource from the waste. Waste Manag, 2004, 24(4), 353 - 8 Physico-chemical removal of iron from semi-aerobic landfill leachate by limestone filter; Aziz HA et al.; Limestone has been proven effective in removing metals from water and wastewater . A literature review indicated that limestone is capable of removing heavy metals such as Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Ni, Cr, Fe and Mn are through a batch process or by filtration technique . The removal capability is reported at up to 90% . However, to date most of the studies have been focused on synthetic wastewater . The present study attempts to investigate the suitability of limestone to attenuate total iron (Fe) from semi aerobic leachate at Pulau Burung Landfill Site in Penang, Malaysia . Iron was found in significant quantities at the landfill site . The study also aims to establish the Fe isotherm and breakthrough time of the proposed limestone filter for post-treatment to the migrating landfill leachate before its release to the environment . The Fe isotherms were established using a batch equilibrium test, while the breakthrough characteristics were determined using continuous flow permeating through a limestone column . The latter was used in order to simulate the continuous flow of leachate that would occur in the proposed limestone filter . The limestone media used in the experiment contain more than 90% CaCO3 with particle sizes ranging from 2 to 4 mm . Four filter columns (each 150 mm in diameter and 1000 mm depth) were installed at the landfill site . Metal loadings were kept below 0.5 kg /m3 day and the experiment was run continuously for 30 days . Initial results indicated that 90% of Fe can be removed from the leachate based on retention time of 57.8 min and surface loading of 12.2 m3/m2 day . For the batch study on the Fe isotherm, the results indicated that limestone is potentially useful as an alternative leachate treatment system at a relatively low cost. J Agric Food Chem, 2004 Apr 21, 52(8), 2372 - 5 Separation of sardine oil without heating from surimi waste and its effect on lipid metabolism in rats; Toyoshima K et al.; Sardine oil was obtained by centrifugation of surimi wastewater without heating or chemical refining . This oil (CE) showed light yellow color and the peroxide value was less than 1.0 meq/kg . The main lipid class of CE was triacylglycerol (TG) (>99%) . These features indicate that CE can be directly used as food materials without further purification . Commercial sardine oil (CO) is usually prepared via some kind of refining process with high temperature (250 degrees C) and chemical treatment . The comparative study on the physiological effects of these sardine oils (CE and CO) revealed that the dietary sardine oils were more effective in reducing abdominal fat pads, plasma total cholesterol, and TG levels of rats than was a soybean oil diet (control) . Furthermore, these effects were greater in CE than CO, although there was little difference in the fatty acid composition of both oils . Although the main lipid class of CE was TG (>99%), CE was prepared by centrifugation from surimi waste and directly used as dietary fat without further purification . Therefore, CE may contain some kinds of minor components, which could be attributed to the higher physiological activity of CE . To reveal the involvement of the minor compounds in CE, we prepared TG from CE by column chromatography and measured its effect on lipid metabolism of rats . TG from CE also showed the reducing effects on abdominal fad pads and plasma lipid levels . The effect of TG from CE was almost the same as that of original CE, suggesting that the higher nutritional activity of CE than CO may not be due to the minor compounds in CE. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 331 - 7 Textile wastewater treatment and reuse by solar catalysis: results from a pilot plant in Tunisia; Bousselmi L et al.; Based on results from bench-scale flow-film-reactors (FFR) and aerated cascade photoreactors, a solar catalytic pilot plant has been built at the site of a textile factory . This plant has an illuminated surface area of 50 m2 and is designed for the treatment of 1 m3 h(-1) of wastewater . The preliminary results are presented and compared with a bench-scale FFR using textile wastewater and dichloroacetic acid . Equivalent degradation kinetics were obtained and it was demonstrated that the solar catalytic technology is able to remove recalcitrant compounds and color . However, on-site optimization is still necessary for wastewater reuse and for an economic application. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 325 - 30 Photocatalytical polishing of paper-mill effluents; Moiseev A et al.; Photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) is a promising technology for purification of biological pretreated wastewater or destruction of non-biodegradable compounds . For this reason PCO has been investigated as a last step of purification of biologically pre-treated paper-mill effluents . The influence of the parameters pH, TiO2-modification, TiO2-concentration, catalyst re-use, concentration of substances to be oxidised (wastewater quality) has been determined . The TOC of the biologically pretreated wasterwater was up to 55 mg L(-1) . This wastewater was treated with a previously presented aerated cascade photoreactor which was modified for batch experiments . A high specific oxidation rate of up to 0.76 g TOC m(-2) h(-1) as well as a complete TOC mineralization has been achieved after the optimisation of the process parameters . The complete destruction of recalcitrant compounds will offer the opportunity to reuse the wastewater in the production process . The increase of the BOD5/TOC ratio after a short irradiation period indicates the transformation of recalcitrant organic compounds to better biodegradable intermediates . The use of PCO as a pre-treatment step for the enhancement of the biodegradability of wastewater, containing recalcitrant or inhibitory compounds is an alternative to a long and energy-intensive total pollutant mineralization. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 311 - 7 Recycling of dyehouse effluents by biological and chemical treatment; Krull R et al.; A combined biological and chemical process of purification and recycling of residual dyehouse effluents was developed, investigated and installed at a textile finishing company which produces 330,000 m3 colored wastewater effluents per year . The process divided effluent into two streams . Both streams were subjected to anaerobic dye-cleavage, aerobic mineralization of cleavage-products and biomass separation . One stream was also membrane filtered and treated with ozone, which made possible the recycling of 60% of the total discharge . By these means it was possible to increase the quality of the treated streams for recycling purposes, as well as the dye capacity of the textile mill, and to minimize the operating costs . Furthermore, the municipal wastewater treatment plant into which the textile finishing mill's water is discharged, did not need to enhance its capacity. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 261 - 6 H2O2/UV enhanced degradation of pesticides in wastewater; Kowalska E et al.; Photodegradation of organic pesticides in industrial wastewater was examined in a UV/H2O2/air system . An experimentally determined optimal amount of hydrogen peroxide (0.008% v/v) indicates that hydrogen peroxide concentration controlled the efficiency of photodegradation . Pre-treatment operations such as sedimentation, filtration and coagulation were used to obtain better efficiency of pesticide removal and to cut down on irradiation time . Finally, scale-up experiments in the air-sparged hydrocyclone (ASH) reactor were carried out . After 5 min irradiation of 100 dm3 industrial wastewater almost all pesticides were destroyed . Thus the ASH reactor proved to be an effective contactor for carrying out photochemical reactions. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 219 - 25 Treatment of dyehouse effluents with a carbon-based adsorbent using anodic oxidation regeneration; Brown NW et al.; Adsorption is an attractive route for the removal of coloured, toxic and non-biodegradable organics from wastewater as very low discharge standards can be achieved . This paper reports on the use of a novel carbon-based material, Nyex100, as an adsorbent material for the treatment of dyehouse effluent . The adsorbent has low porosity and high electrical conductivity and these factors have allowed the adsorbent to be electrochemically regenerated . This work has demonstrated that the adsorbent can be cycled through the process of adsorption and regeneration a number of times with little drop in adsorptive capacity . However regeneration appears to modify the preference for organic species adsorption . Electrochemical regeneration can be rapidly achieved (15-20 minutes) using low current densities (< 20 mA cm(-2)) . However, the low adsorptive capacity of the adsorbent, because of its small surface area, means that large quantities of adsorbent would need to be cycled within the process to treat the effluent volume generated in even small dyehouses . Thus, it is believed that operating the process in this mode limits the practical application of this technology. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 213 - 8 Treatment of non-biodegradable wastewater by electro-Fenton method; Chang PH et al.; A novel electro-Fenton method, called the Fered-Fenton method, applying H2O2 and electrogenerated ferrous ions for treating organic-containing wastewater was investigated . By combining electrochemical reduction and chemical oxidation, the process can regenerate ferrous ions and remove organic compounds simultaneously in a batch reactor . Because the generation rate of ferrous ions is one of the key parameters in evaluating the oxidation efficiency of the reaction system, the initial current efficiencies (eta(i)) for iron (III) reduction are examined first . It shows that increasing initial ferric ion concentration can achieve high initial current efficiency . In addition, eta(i) decreased (ca . 20-100%) with increasing current density of cathode (ca . 40-199 A/m2) . For illustration, the wastewater from chemical (i.e . electroless) nickel plating was treated in this investigation owing to its non-biodegradability and high organic concentration . The average pH, COD and Ni concentrations of this wastewater were about 5.0, 30,000 and 2,000 mg/L, respectively . Experimental results indicate that traditional Fenton method only removed 60% of COD when using 5,000 mg/L of ferrous ions . However, the COD removal efficiency was promoted after the electricity was introduced into the system (i.e . Fered-Fenton method) . Moreover, Ni concentration was reduced from 2,080 to 0.3 mg/L, indicating that the removal efficiency was higher than 99.9%. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 207 - 12 Electrochemical advanced oxidation process using DiaChem electrodes; Troster I et al.; The electrochemical advanced oxidation process (EAOP) using boron doped diamond (DiaChem, registered trademark of Condias GmbH) has been studied for wastewater treatment and drinking water disinfection . DiaChem electrodes consist of preferentially metallic base materials coated with a conductive polycrystalline diamond film by hot-filament chemical vapour deposition . They exhibit high overpotential for water electrolysis as well as high chemical inertness and extended lifetime . In particular the high overpotential for water decomposition opens the widest known electrochemical window, allowing the energy efficient production of hydroxyl radicals directly from aqueous solutions . The hydroxyl radicals on the other hand are effectively used for the oxidation of pollutants . The EAOP using DiaChem electrodes thus facilitates the direct and, if necessary, complete decomposition of even hazardous or persistent pollutants in different wastewaters . Current efficiencies of more than 90%, also without the use of additives for hydroxyl radical generation, have been demonstrated . Additionally, for drinking water preparation diamond electrodes facilitate disinfection with and without the support of chlorine. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 189 - 93 Paper mill wastewater detoxification by solar photocatalysis; Sattler C et al.; In the WATER project the German Aerospace Center, and the Universidade Federal de Uberlandia, analyse the possibilities of treating paper mill effluents by solar photocatalysis for the paper mill of the Brazilian paper producer Votorantim Celulose e Papel, VCP, at Luiz Antonio, SP, Brazil . The degradation of the bio-polymer lignin is a vast problem in paper production . The tests have shown that treatment by the photocatalyst TiO2 and solar radiation is an ecological future oriented approach to solve this problem . The treatment of lignin containing process water by solar photocatalysis was optimised and the economics for solar treatment plants of different sizes was estimated to check the possibilities for implementing the technology in industrial processes. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 129 - 34 Characterization of effects of selected organic substances on decomposition of hydrogen peroxide during Fenton reaction; Namkung KC et al.; This study aims to investigate the effects of selected organic substances on the degradation of hydrogen peroxide during the Fenton reaction . Since the presence of organic substances can strongly affect the mechanism of the Fenton reaction, the information on effects of organic substances on the reaction would be a vital guide to the success of its application to the destruction of organics in wastewater . Several organic compounds having different structures were selected as model pollutants: 4-chlorophenol, 1,4-dioxane, chloroform, a dye (reactive black-5), and EDTA . Oxidation of 4-chlorophenol and reactive black-5 resulted in enormously fast degradation of hydrogen peroxide, while others such as 1,4-dioxane and chloroform showed much slower degradation . These experimental data were compared to simulation results from a computational model based on a simple *OH-driven oxidation model . Modelling results for chloroform and 1,4-dioxane were in relatively good agreement with the experimental data, while those for 4-chlorophenol and reactive black-5 were very different from the experimental data . The results for EDTA showed a different trend to those for other compounds . From these results, classification of organic substances into several sub-groups was tried. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 103 - 8 Treatment of oilfield wastewater by Fenton's process; Gao YX et al.; A combination of coagulation and Fenton's process was used for the removal of total oxygen carbon (TOC) from oilfield wastewater . Compared with aluminium sulfate, ferric coagulant had better TOC removal efficiency at the same mass dosage . In Fenton's process, the effect of H2O2 and Fe2+ dose on the removal of TOC was studied . The optimum conditions required for TOC removal were an Fe3+ concentration of 40-50 mg/L, an H2O2 dose of 50 mmol/L and an Fe2+ concentration of 1.0 mmol/L . GC-MS chromatographic analysis indicated that most of the alkyl hydrocarbons of carbon numbers < 21 were removed in the first minute of Fenton's process mainly through adsorption . Alkyl hydrocarbons and phenols were oxidized almost completely following 120 min of treatment . The pathway of newly formed intermediates in Fenton's process was proposed on the basis of the GC/MS chromatogram. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 97 - 102 Application of electro-Fenton oxidation for the detoxification of olive mill wastewater phenolic compounds; Khoufi S et al.; Olive mill wastewaters are powerful pollutants that are difficult to treat as they contain high concentrations of recalcitrant and toxic polyphenolics of different molecular masses . We report in this paper that pre-treatment of phenolic fractions extracted from olive mill wastewaters as well as a synthetic phenolic mixture by the electro-Fenton method is a highly efficient procedure in which low mass phenolics are polymerised to polyphenolics and removed by precipitation . This decreases the toxicity load by 78% and makes the waste amenable to further anaerobic post-treatment. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 91 - 6 Evaluation of predominant reaction mechanisms for the Fenton process in textile dyeing wastewater treatment; Bae W et al.; This research quantitatively evaluated the predominant reactions in a large-scale Fenton process that treated dyeing wastewaters and suggested an economical and effective treatment process . Through plant analysis, it was found that a great part of the COD was removed by ferric coagulation . The comparative evaluation of Fenton oxidation and ferric coagulation revealed that ferric coagulation was the predominant mechanism to remove COD and colour . In Fenton oxidation, the removal efficiencies of SCOD and colour were 67.7% and 84.7%, respectively . In ferric coagulation, those of SCOD and colour were 60.8% and 62.0%, respectively . A combined process with iron coagulation/precipitation and Fenton oxidation reduced the hydrogen peroxide dosage by over 40% compared to a conventional dosage. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 69 - 74 Use of iron(VI) and iron(V) in water and wastewater treatment; Sharma VK; Fe(VI) (Fe(VI)O4(2-)) and Fe(V) (Fe(V)O4(3-)) have high oxidizing power, selectivity, and upon decomposition produce a non-toxic by-product, Fe(III), which makes them potential oxidants in water and wastewater treatment . Rates of oxidation increase with a decrease in pH and are related to protonation of Fe(VI)O4(2-) and Fe(V)O4(3-) . Oxidation of sulfur- and nitrogen-containing pollutants by Fe(VI) can be accomplished in seconds to minutes with formation of non-hazardous products . Fe(VI) can easily oxidize the amino acid components of microcystins and is a suitable disinfectant for detoxifying toxins in water . The oxidation of pollutants and amino acids with Fe(V) is 3-5 orders of magnitude faster than with Fe(VI) . The use of ionizing radiation and photocatalytic techniques in the presence of Fe(VI) results in Fe(V) formation and may have synergistic effects on the oxidation of pollutants and removal of toxins in water and wastewater . This paper summarizes the results of multi-functional properties of Fe(VI) and Fe(V) to treat water and wastewater. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 45 - 9 Catalyzed ozonation process with GAC and metal doped-GAC for removing organic pollutants; Oh BS et al.; The purpose of this study was to investigate the catalytic role of granular activated carbon (GAC), and metal (Mn or Fe) doped-GAC, on the transformation of ozone into more reactive secondary radicals, such as hydroxyl radicals (*OH), for the treatment of wastewater . The GAC doped with Mn showed the highest catalytic performance in terms of ozone decomposition into OH radicals . Likewise, activated carbon alone accelerated the ozone decomposition, resulting in the formation of *OH radicals . In the presence of promoters, the ozone depletion rate was enhanced further by the Mn-GAC catalyst system, even under aqueous acidic pH conditions. Water Sci Technol, 2004, 49(4), 31 - 6 Influence of mass transfer on the ozonation of wastewater from the glass fiber industry; Byun S et al.; The mass transfer rate (kLa) is one of the most important parameters in the ozonation of wastewater, because it frequently constitutes the rate-determining step . This study investigated the influence of kLa on the ozonation of glass fiber wastewater using a high-performance jet loop reactor (HJLR), which is well known for its high mass transfer property, and compared the results of this investigation with those obtained using the bubble column reactor . It was found that the higher kLa achieved by increasing the energy input did not lead to higher ozonation efficiency, since the reaction involving the OH radical was greatly hindered at the low pH produced as a result of ozonation . By maintaining the pH at a value greater than 8.0, the higher kLa in the HJLR reactor contributed to increasing not only the TOC removal of wastewater, but also the ozone consumption efficiency, as expressed by the specific ozone consumption . The specific ozone consumption in the HJLR reactor (7.1 g ozone/ g TOC) was 20% better than that in the bubble column reactor. J Environ Qual, 2004 Mar-Apr, 33(2), 735 - 9 Fate of phosphorus in dairy wastewater and poultry litter applied on grassland; Johnson AF et al.; Large and repeated manure applications can exceed the P sorption capacity of soil and increase P leaching and losses through subsurface drainage . The objective of this study was to evaluate the fate of P applied with increasing N rates in dairy wastewater or poultry litter on grassland during a 4-yr period . In addition to P recovery in forage, soil-test phosphorus (STP) was monitored at depths to 180 cm in a Darco loamy sand (loamy, siliceous, semiactive, thermic Grossarenic Paleudults) twice annually . A split-plot arrangement of a randomized complete block design comprised four annual N rates (0, 250, 500, and 1000 kg ha(-1)) for each nutrient source on coastal bermudagrass {Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.} over-seeded with ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L . cv . TAM90) . Increasing annual rates of N and P in wastewater and poultry litter increased P removal in forage (P = 0.001) . At the highest N rate of each nutrient source, less than 13% of applied P was recovered in forage . The highest N rates delivered 8 times more P in wastewater or 15 times more P in poultry litter than was removed in forage harvests during an average year . Compared with controls, annual P rates up to 188 kg ha(-1) in dairy wastewater did not increase STP concentrations at depths below 30 cm . In contrast, the highest annual P rate (590 kg ha(-1)) in poultry litter increased STP above that of controls at depth intervals to 120 cm during the first year of sampling . Increases in STP at depths below 30 cm in the Darco soil were indicative of excessive P rates that could contribute to nonpoint-source pollution in outflows from subsoil through subsurface drainage. J Environ Qual, 2004 Mar-Apr, 33(2), 703 - 12 Phytoavailability of biosolids phosphorus; O'Connor GA et al.; Efficient utilization of biosolids P for agronomic purposes requires accounting for differences in the phytoavailability of P in various biosolids . Greenhouse studies were conducted with a common pasture grass grown in two P-deficient soils amended with 12 biosolids and a commercial fertilizer (triple superphosphate, TSP) to quantify P uptake and to assess the relative phytoavailabilities of the P sources . Biosolids were grouped into three general categories of phytoavailability relative to TSP: high (> 75% of TSP), moderate (25-75% of TSP), and low (< 25% of TSP) . Two biosolids, produced via biological phosphorus removal (BPR) processes, were in the high category, and mimicked fertilizer P with regard to P phytoavailability . Most biosolids produced by conventional wastewater and solids digestion and additional treatments like composting were in the moderate category . Also included in this category was a BPR that had been pelletized and another BPR supplemented with Al . The low category included biosolids containing greater than normal (> 50 g kg(-1)) total Fe and Al concentrations and processed to high (> 60%) solids content. J Environ Qual, 2004 Mar-Apr, 33(2), 695 - 702 Use of commercial plant species in a hydroponic system to treat domestic wastewaters; Vaillant N et al.; The objectives in this work were to investigate a conceptual layout for an inexpensive and simple system that would treat primary municipal wastewater to discharge standards . A commercial hydroponic system was adapted for this study and the wastewater was used to irrigate wooly digitalis (Digitalis lanata Ehrh.) and foxglove (Digitalis purpurea L.) . These plants are medicinal and produce cardenolide compounds . Influent and effluent samples were collected once a month for six months and analyzed to determine the various parameters relating to water quality . The legal discharge levels for total suspended solids (SS), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were reached for the two tested plants after 48 h of wastewater treatment; the removal was 82, 93, and 79%, respectively, for wooly digitalis and 92, 92, and 84%, respectively, for foxglove . Similar results were obtained during a 6-mo period although the sewage composition varied widely . The system tended to be unable to remove N and P to concentrations below regulated levels . Compared with the nutrient solution composition, the wastewater was more concentrated in Na+ and Cl- and less in N, K+, and Ca2+ . These variations can lead to the decline of wooly digitalis plants . Foxglove developed a significant root system to increase mineral absorption wastewater being used as the unique nutritive source . After 10 wk all the wooly digitalis seedlings were dead . Despite this fact, however, the root system remained in place for a significant time (< 4 mo), thus continuing to filter wastewater and to be used as a bacterial support thus making it possible to have a security period to replace the dead plants. Environ Sci Technol, 2004 Mar 15, 38(6), 1901 - 9 Life cycle assessment as a tool for the environmental improvement of the tannery industry in developing countries; Rivela B et al.; A representative leather tannery industry in a Latin American developing country has been studied from an environmental point of view, including both technical and economic analysis . Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) methodology has been used for the quantification and evaluation of the impacts of the chromium tanning process as a basis to propose further improvement actions . Four main subsystems were considered: beamhouse, tanyard, retanning, and wood furnace . Damages to human health, ecosystem quality, and resources are mainly produced by the tanyard subsystem . The control and reduction of chromium and ammonia emissions are the critical points to be considered to improve the environmental performance of the process . Technologies available for improved management of chromium tanning were profoundly studied, and improvement actions related to optimized operational conditions and a high exhaustion chrome-tanning process were selected . These actions related to the implementation of internal procedures affected the economy of the process with savings ranging from US dollars 8.63 to US dollars 22.5 for the processing of 1 ton of wet salt hides, meanwhile the global environmental impact was reduced to 44-50% . Moreover, the treatment of wastewaters was considered in two scenarios . Primary treatment presented the largest reduction of the environmental impact of the tanning process, while no significant improvement for the evaluated impact categories was achieved when combining primary and secondary treatments. Environ Sci Technol, 2004 Mar 15, 38(6), 1753 - 8 Production of macromolecular chloramines by chlorine-transfer reactions; Bedner M et al.; Chlorination of treated wastewaters is undertaken to prevent dispersal of human pathogens into the environment . Except in well-nitrified effluents, the primary agents in chlorination, Cl2(g) or NaOCl(aq), are short-lived and quickly transfer oxidative chlorine to secondary agents (N-chloramines), which then participate in the disinfection process . Maturation of residual chlorine resulting from chlorine-transfer reactions is still poorly characterized . Using gel permeation and reversed-phase liquid chromatography combined with a novel, oxidant-specific detector, unanticipated trends during the maturation of residual chlorine in wastewater are identified . Within 2 min after addition of NaOCl, and continuing for several hours at least, significant amounts of oxidative chlorine are transferred to secondary agents that are moderately to strongly hydrophobic and to agents that have high relative molecular masses (Mr 1300-25000) . It is hypothesized that hydrophobic stabilization of organic chloramines (RNHCl(o)) thermodynamically drives these transfers, making macromolecular chloramines the ultimate oxidative chlorine carriers . Macromolecular chloramines are expected to be sluggish oxidants, as observed in their reduction by sulfite, and are expected to be poor disinfectants . If transfer of oxidative chlorine to high Mr components occurs widely at treatment plants, then this phenomenon offers a new, physicochemical explanation for the well-known impotency of organic chloramines in wastewater disinfection. Environ Monit Assess, 2004 Apr-May, 93(1-3), 125 - 38 Characteristics of and human influences on nitrogen contamination in Yellow River system, China; Chen J et al.; Nitrogen (N) contamination in the Yellow River mainstream and its tributaries was studied using data from 1960 to 2000 from 312 monitoring sites in the Yellow River system . Data showed that N concentrations in the Yellow River have increased since 1960, especially after 1990 . N concentrations in the Yellow River mainstream increased from the upper reaches (less than 1.0 mg L(-1) for TN and less than 0.10 mg L(-1) for NH4(+)-N) to lower reaches (higher than 4-5 mg L(-1) for TN and higher than 1.0 mg L(-1) for NH4(+)-N) . However, the highest N contaminations (50-250 mg L(-1) for TN and 10-20 mg L(-1) for NH4(+)-N) was found in some tributaries, which was attributed as an effect of industrial wastewater and municipal sewage . Nitrogen concentrations from several monitoring sites were positively correlated with several regional socio-economic indices, such as population density, fertilization rates, livestock, industrial input and GDP . Depending on location, seasonal N concentrations contrasted among watersheds . Monitoring stations located in rural and agricultural areas showed higher N concentrations during the flood season while those located in areas with urban and industrial centers showed higher N concentration during the dry season . Mainstream flow and N concentrations showed a strong inverse relationship; with higher N concentrations as the river flow declined . Intensive water extraction for agricultural irrigation and increasing N input to the river from fertilized agricultural fields could explain the increasing N concentrations during extensive droughts. J Hazard Mater, 2004 Mar 19, 107(3), 115 - 21 Integrated Fenton's reagent-coagulation/flocculation process for the treatment of cork processing wastewaters; Peres JA et al.; In the present work two methods were tested for the treatment of cork processing wastewaters . In a first phase, a coagulation/flocculation method was applied using FeCl3 as flocculating agent and Ca(OH)2 as base-precipitant . One cycle of the treatment (1000 ppm of FeCl3) reduced chemical oxygen demand (COD), total polyphenols and aromatic compounds of the effluent by 45, 71 and 58%, respectively . Two cycles of treatment (2x 1000 ppm of FeCl3) increase these reductions until values of 67, 92 and 85%, respectively . In a second phase, an integrated Fenton-coagulation/flocculation process was applied (this second method only requires the addition of H2O2) . One cycle of the integrated process (1000 ppm of FeCl3 and 0.5 mol/l of H2O2) reduced the COD, total polyphenols and aromatic compounds of the effluent by 74, 99 and 98%, respectively, which supposes a considerable improvement compared with the first method. J Chromatogr A, 2004 Apr 9, 1033(1), 83 - 90 Measuring naphthenic acids concentrations in aqueous environmental samples by liquid chromatography; Yen TW et al.; Naphthenic acids are found in wastewaters from petroleum refineries and oil sands extraction plants . Currently, the concentrations of these toxic carboxylic acids are determined by extracting them into methylene chloride and measuring the absorption of the carboxyl group by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy . An improved HPLC method, that is simpler and faster than the FTIR method, was used to detect the 2-nitrophenylhydrazides of the naphthenic acids at concentrations as low as 5 mg l(-1) . Analyses of 58 oil sands water samples showed that the naphthenic acids concentrations determined by FTIR were on average 11% higher than those determined by HPLC. Anal Sci, 2004 Mar, 20(3), 531 - 5 Synthesis of a new oxime and its application to the construction of a highly selective and sensitive Co(II) PVC-based membrane sensor; Ganjali MR et al.; A cobalt(II) ion-selective membrane sensor has been fabricated from a poly vinyl chloride (PVC) matrix membrane containing a new oxime compound (oxime of 1-(2-oxocyclohexyl)-1,2-cyclohexanediol, OXCCD) as a neutral carrier, sodium tetraphenyl borate (NaTPB) as an anionic excluder and o-nitrophenyloctylether (o-NPOE) as a plasticizing solvent mediator . The membrane sensor exhibits a linear potential response in the concentration range of 1.0 x 10(-1) - 1.0 x 10(-6) M of Co2+ . The electrode displays a Nernstian slope of 29.8 mV decade(-1) in the pH range of 3.5 - 8.0 . The sensor also exhibits a fast response time of < 25 s . The detection limit of the proposed sensor is 9.0 x 10(-7) M (approximately 40 ng/ml), and it can be used over a period of two months . The selectivity of the sensor with respect to other cations (alkali, alkaline earth, transition and heavy metal ions) is excellent . The practical utility of the sensor has been demonstrated by using it as an indicator electrode in the potentiometric titration of Co2+ with EDTA and for the direct determination of Co(II) in wastewater of the electroplating industry. Bioresour Technol, 2004 Jul, 93(3), 269 - 78 Sedimentological evolution in an UASB treating SYNTHES, a new representative synthetic sewage, at low loading rates; Aiyuk S et al.; The changes in the sedimentological attributes of the sludge bed in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor fed with a low-strength wastewater mimicking raw domestic sewage were assessed in this study . The reactor was inoculated with 250 ml of granular sludge from a full-scale UASB reactor . The organic loading rate (OLR) varied from 1 to 2 g COD/ld . During the half-year long study, the reactor was operated at hydraulic retention times (HRTs) of 4.8 and 10 h, at 33 degrees C . Sludge sedimentology showed that the original granular sludge experienced serious instability and disintegration, leading to a much finer final grain assemblage, mainly due to substrate transfer limitation and cell starvation at the interior of larger granules . With time, the size uniformity tended to decrease, sphericity tended to increase, the skewness of the granule size distribution became negative, and the kurtosis became peaked and leptokurtic . In spite of the observed size reduction, reactor efficiency increased to a CODtotal removal of 96% . Biomass (sludge) yield was 0.012 g VS/g COD removed . The CH4 content of the biogas was high (up to 96%) . This study thus highlights the treatment of a new type of wastewater with the deployment of the UASB reactor . It also reports the evolutionary trend of the biomass particle size distribution, making reference to a classic sedimentological appraisal . Bioresour Technol, 2004 Jul, 93(3), 241 - 7 Anaerobic treatment of wastewater with high suspended solids from a bulk drug industry using fixed film reactor (AFFR); Rao AG et al.; Studies are carried out on the treatment of wastewater from a bulk drug industry using an anaerobic fixed film reactor (AFFR) designed and fabricated in the laboratory . The chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total dissolved solids (TDS) of the wastewater are found to be very high with low Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) to COD ratio and high total suspended solid (TSS) concentration . Acclimatization of seed consortia and start up of the reactor is carried out by directly using the wastewater, which resulted in reducing the period of startup to 30 days . The reactor is studied at different organic loading rates (OLR) and it is found that the optimum OLR is 10 kg COD/m3/day . The wastewater under investigation, which is having considerable quantity of SS, is treated anaerobically without any pretreatment . The COD and BOD of the reactor outlet wastewater are monitored and reduction at steady state and optimum OLR is observed to be 60-70% of COD and 80-90% of BOD . The reactor is subjected to organic shock loads at two different OLR and it is observed that the reactor could withstand shocks and performance could be restored to normalcy at that OLR . The results obtained indicated that AFFR could be used efficiently for the treatment of wastewater from a bulk drug industry having high COD, TDS and TSS . Biotechnol Prog, 2004 Mar-Apr, 20(2), 636 - 8 Modeling and biokinetics in anaerobic acidogenesis of starch-processing wastewater to acetic acid; Ahn JH et al.; Starch-processing wastewater was anaerobically treated to produce acetic acid in laboratory-scale, continuously stirred tank reactors . The optimal conditions, in which the maximum acetic acid production occurred, were 0.56 d hydraulic retention time, pH 5.9, and 36.1 degrees C . Acetic acid production at the optimum conditions was 672 +/- 20 mg total organic carbon(equivalent) L(-)(1), which indicated a 75% conversion efficiency of influent total organic carbon into acetic acid . A fourth order Runge-Kutta approximation was used to determine the Monod kinetics of the acidogens by using unsteady-state data from continuous unsteady-state experiments at the optimum conditions . The model outputs and experimental data fit together satisfactorily, suggesting that the unsteady-state approach was appropriate for the evaluation of acidogenic biokinetics . These included micro(m), K(s), Y, and k(d), which were evaluated as being 0.13 h(-)(1), 25 mg total carbohydrate (TC) L(-)(1), 0.38 mg volatile suspended solid mg(-)(1) TC, and 0.002 h(-)(1), respectively. Water Environ Res, 2004 Jan-Feb, 76(1), 29 - 36 A simplified headspace biochemical oxygen demand test protocol based on oxygen measurements using a fiber optic probe; Min B et al.; Batch respirometric tests have many advantages over the conventional biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) method for analysis of wastewaters, including the use of nondiluted samples, a more rapid exertion of oxygen demand, and reduced sample preparation time . The headspace biochemical oxygen demand (HBOD) test can be used to obtain oxygen demands in 2 or 3 days that can predict 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) results . The main disadvantage of the HBOD and other respirometric tests has been the lack of a simple and direct method to measure oxygen concentrations in the gas phase . The recent commercial production of a new type of fiber optic oxygen probe, however, provides a method to eliminate this disadvantage . This fiber optic probe, referred to here as the HBOD probe, was tested to see if it could be used in HBOD tests . Gas-phase oxygen measurements made with the HBOD probe took only a few seconds and were not significantly different from those made using a gas chromatograph (t test: n = 15, R2 = 0.9995, p < 0.001) . In field tests using the HBOD probe procedure, the probe greatly reduced sample analysis time compared with previous HBOD and BOD protocols and produced more precise results than the BOD test for wastewater samples from two treatment plants (University Area Joint Authority {UAJA} Wastewater Treatment Plant in University Park, Pennsylvania, and The Pennsylvania State University {PSU} Wastewater Treatment Plant in University Park) . Headspace biochemical oxygen demand measurements on UAJA primary clarifier effluent were 59.9 +/- 2.4% after 2 days (HBOD2) and 73.0 +/- 3.1% after 3 days (HBOD) of BOD, values, indicating that BOD5 values could be predicted by multiplying HBOD2 values by 1.67 +/- 0.07 or HBOD3 by 1.37 +/- 0.06 . Similarly, tests using PSU wastewater samples could be used to provide BOD5 estimates by multiplying the HBOD2 by 1.24 +/- 0.04 or by multiplying the HBOD3 by 0.97 +/- 0.03 . These results indicate that the HBOD fiber optic probe can be used to obtain reliable oxygen demands in batch respirometric tests such as the HBOD test. Water Environ Res, 2004 Jan-Feb, 76(1), 15 - 22 Cyanide removal from wastewater using gas membranes: pilot-scale study; Shen Z et al.; Results are presented for the removal of cyanide from four different wastewaters using hollow-fiber gas membranes . The pilot-scale membrane facility had a maximum treatment capacity of 1000 L using 10 hollow-fiber modules with a total membrane surface area of 180 m2 . The results are in general agreement with previous laboratory-scale studies . However, different wastewaters contain different dissolved solutes . These dissolved solutes reduce the predicted efficiency of the cyanide removal process and the purity of the recovered cyanide . Other volatile species present in the wastewater could be removed with the cyanide into the strip solution . Further osmotic pressure differences between the wastewater and strip solution could lead to water vapor passing through the gas-filled pores of the microporous hollow-fiber membranes. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(3), 787 - 801 Oxidative treatment of cyanide in wastewater using hydrogen peroxide and homogeneous catalyst; Lee TY et al.; Batch kinetic tests were conducted to determine the effects of experimental conditions and catalysts on cyanide degradation . Cyanide degradation by hydrogen peroxide was found to follow first-order kinetics . Reaction rates increased with increasing pH and decreasing temperature . The activation energy for cyanide degradation by hydrogen peroxide was found to be -13.81 kJ/mol . The addition of Cu2+ or Cd2+ as catalysts resulted in increasing reaction rates . In alkaline conditions, the catalytic effects of Cu2+ or Cd2+ were accelerated and Cu2+ was found to be a more effective catalyst than Cd2+ . The practical relevance of the laboratory oxidation method of cyanide was demonstrated for actual industrial wastewater. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(3), 773 - 86 P-nitrosodimethylaniline (RNO)-based evaluation of enhanced oxidative potential during electrochemical treatment of high-salinity wastewater; Tanaka F et al.; The electrochemical bleaching of p-nitrosodimethylaniline (RNO) was investigated in order to apply its reactions to evaluating electrochemical oxidation . The bleaching rate of RNO during electrochemical treatment was accelerated by the presence of chloride ions . The initial bleaching rate of RNO was found to be accelerated during the electrolysis of NH4Cl, suggesting that electrochemically generated chloramines are sufficiently strong oxidants to convert RNO . A method of evaluating direct or indirect oxidative potential for electrochemical treatment was proposed, provided that the initial bleaching rate of RNO is consistent with low concentrations of RNO . The saline wastewater of Japanese pickle production processes (brown mustard and Japanese radish) was electrochemically treated . The ammonium ion (18 and 8 mg L(-1)) was almost completely removed after 1 h of treatment in the presence of NaCl (3%) . The removal rate of total organic carbon (TOC) exceeded 90% for 7mgL(-1) and 60% for 352mgL(-1), indicating that electrochemical treatment is useful in removing ammonium ions and organic substances from high-salinity wastewater. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(3), 759 - 71 Organic removals from highly proteinous wastewater from soya milk and tofu manufacturing plant; Satyanarayan S et al.; Combined wastewater from soya milk and tofu manufacturing industry was treated by physico-chemical method using conventional coagulants such as lime, alum . ferric chloride, and ferrous sulphate in combination with synthetic cationic polyelectrolyte . The wastewater samples were analyzed as per the Standard Methods and the experiments were carried out using Jar test apparatus (Phipps & Birds) . The ferric chloride in combination with synthetic cationic polymer (Oxyfloc-FL-11) in the ratio of 250:20 mg L(-1) resulted in very good removals of COD, BOD, and SS of 75.4, 79.8, and 96.0% respectively with complete removal of odor, color and turbidity. J Environ Monit, 2004 Apr, 6(4), 327 - 34 Epub 2004 Feb 16. Use of sequential extraction to assess the influence of sewage sludge amendment on metal mobility in Chilean soils; Ahumada I et al.; In Chile, the increasing number of plants for the treatment of wastewater has brought about an increase in the generation of sludge . One way of sludge disposal is its application on land; this, however involves some problems, some of them being heavy metal accumulation and the increase in organic matter and other components from sewage sludge which may change the distribution and mobility of heavy metals . The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of sewage sludge application on the distribution of Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn and Pb in agricultural soils in Chile . Three different soils, two Mollisols and one Alfisol, were sampled from an agricultural area in Central Chile . The soils were treated with sewage sludge at the rates of 0 and 30 ton ha(-1), and were incubated at 25 degrees C for 45 days . Before and after incubation, the soils were sequentially extracted to obtain labile (exchangeable and sodium acetate-soluble), potentially labile (soluble in moderately reducing conditions, K4P2O7-soluble and soluble in reducing conditions) and inert (soluble in strong acid oxidizing conditions) fractions . A two-level factored design was used to assess the effect of sludge application rate, incubation time and their interaction on the mobility of the elements under study . Among the metals determined in the sludge, zinc has the highest concentration . However, with the exception of Ni, the total content of metals was lower than the recommended limit values in sewage sludge as stated by Chilean regulations . Although 23% of zinc in sludge was in more mobile forms, the residual fraction of all metals was the predominant form in soils and sludge . The content of zinc only was significantly increased in two of the soils by sewage sludge application . On the other hand, with the exception of copper, the metals were redistributed in the first four fractions of amended soils . The effect of sludge application rate, incubation time and their interaction depended on the metal or soil type . In most cases an increase in more mobile forms of metals in soils was observed as the final effect. Biotechnol Bioeng, 2004 Apr 20, 86(2), 226 - 35 High-rate sulfate reduction at high salinity (up to 90 mS.cm(-1)) in mesophilic UASB reactors; Vallero MV et al.; Sulfate reduction in salt-rich wastewaters using unadapted granular sludge was investigated in 0.9 L UASB reactors (pH 7.0 +/- 0.2; hydraulic retention time from 8-14 h) fed with acetate, propionate, or ethanol at organic loading rates up to 10 gCOD x L(-1) x day(-1) and in excess sulfate (COD/SO(4) (2-) of 0.5) . High-rate sulfate reduction rates (up to 3.7 gSO(4) (2-) x L(-1).day(-1)) were achieved at salinities exceeding 50 gNaCl.L(-1) and 1 gMgCl(2) x L(-1) . Sulfate reduction proceeded at a salinity of up to 70 gNaCl x L(-1) and 1 gMgCl(2) x L(-1) (corresponding to a conductivity of about 85-90 mS x cm(-1)), although at lower rates compared to a conductivity of 60-70 mS x cm(-1) . Ethanol as well as propionate were suitable substrates for sulfate reduction, with acetate and sulfide as the end products . The successful high-rate treatment was due to the proliferation of a halotolerant incomplete oxidizing SRB population present in the unadapted inoculum sludge . Bioaugmentation of this sludge with the acetate oxidizing halotolerant SRB Desulfobacter halotolerans was unsuccessful, as the strain washed out from the UASB reactor without colonizing the UASB granules . Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom, 2004, 18(7), 765 - 74 Sensitive determination of acidic drugs and triclosan in surface and wastewater by ion-pair reverse-phase liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry; Quintana JB et al.; A new method is presented for the determination of 12 acidic pharmaceuticals (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and bezafibrate), including two metabolites from aqueous samples, together with triclosan as a personal care product . Ion-pair liquid chromatography (IP-LC) with electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) in the negative ion mode was employed . The ion-pairing agent (tri-n-butylamine) increased the signal intensity for all acidic analytes and detection limits of 6-200 ng/L were obtained by multiple reaction monitoring . This allows analysis of wastewater samples by direct injection into the LC/MS system without the need for a preceding enrichment step . When combined with a solid-phase extraction (SPE) step, limits of quantification between 0.15 and 11 ng/L were obtained from 100-mL sample volumes, which is adequate for most applications . The occurrence of matrix effects was studied and standard addition was required for reliable quantification after SPE from wastewater . The method was finally applied to surface and wastewaters, with analyte concentrations ranging from below the detection limit up to 5.5 microg/L . J Colloid Interface Sci, 2004 May 1, 273(1), 95 - 101 Adsorption of Cr(III) from wastewater by wine processing waste sludge; Li YS et al.; Wine processing waste sludge has been shown to be an effective adsorbent for the adsorption of Cr(III) from aqueous solution . The sludge has been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-rays (EDX) . The effect of pH, initial concentration of Cr(III), sludge particle size, and temperature on the adsorption studied . The equilibrium data could be described well by the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm equations . A separation factor was used to judge the favorable adsorption . The calculated thermodynamic parameters, deltaH0 and deltaS0, are 1.95 kJ/mol and 27.16 J/molK, respectively . The deltaG0 values range from -5.98 to -6.79 J/mol, which shows the physical adsorption properties of the sludge . Adsorption dynamics had been successfully studied by the Lagergren model and an intraparticle diffusion model. Chemosphere, 2004 May, 55(7), 1035 - 41 A mild photochemical approach to the degradation of phenols from olive oil mill wastewater; Cermola F et al.; Photooxidation of cathecol (1) is carried out in aqueous solution at lambda > 300 nm using different sensitizers: rose bengal (RB), 9,10-dicyanoanthracene (DCA), 2,4,6-triphenylpyrylium tetrafluoroborate (Pyryl) . The highest degradation is observed in the UV/RB-sensitized reaction (66% after 15 h of irradiation), mineralization and formation of dimers are the final events . This procedure has been extended to tyrosol (2), caffeic acid (3), vanillic acid (4), 4-hydroxycinnamic acid (5) and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (6) as well as to a mixture of all phenols . A reduced toxicity of the UV/RB-irradiated solutions of cathecol and tyrosol towards alga Ankistrodesmus braunii is also verified. Chemosphere, 2004 May, 55(7), 951 - 63 Occurrence of UV filter compounds from sunscreens in surface waters: regional mass balance in two Swiss lakes; Poiger T et al.; Consumer care products often contain UV filters, organic compounds which absorb ultraviolet light . These compounds may enter surface waters directly (when released from the skin during swimming and bathing) or indirectly via wastewater treatment plants (when released during showering or washed from textiles) . Predicted and measured UV filter concentrations were compared in a regional mass balance study for two Swiss lakes: Lake Zurich, a typical midland lake which is also an important drinking water resource, and Huttnersee, a small bathing lake . Both lakes are extensively used for recreational activities and considerable direct input of UV filters is thus expected . This input was estimated from the number of visitors at swimming areas around the lakes and a survey of the usage of sunscreen products among these visitors . Possible additional indirect input via wastewater treatment plants was not considered in this study . The quantitatively most important UV filters, as indicated by the survey data, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, octocrylene, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane, and benzophenone-3, all lipophilic compounds, were selected for analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry . Concentrations of individual UV filters in water from Lake Zurich were low, ranging from <2 ng l(-1) (detection limit) to 29 ng l(-1), and somewhat higher at Huttnersee, ranging from <2 to 125 ng l(-1), with the highest concentrations found in summer, consistent with direct inputs to the lakes during this time . The concentrations were clearly lower than predicted from input estimates based on the surveys . This may be in part due to (i) an overestimation of these inputs (e.g . less than the 50% wash-off of UV filters assumed to occur during swimming), and (ii) some removal of these compounds from the lakes by degradation and/or sorption/sedimentation . UV filters were also detected in semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) deployed at Lake Zurich and Greifensee, another midland lake, at concentrations of 80-950 ng SPMD(-1), confirming the presence of the compounds in surface waters and indicating a certain potential for bioaccumulation . SPMD-derived water concentrations were in the range of 1-10 ng l(-1) and thus corresponded well with those determined in water directly . No UV filters were detected above blank levels in SPMDs deployed at a remote mountain lake used for background measurements. Bioresour Technol, 2004 Jun, 93(2), 205 - 8 Performance and characteristics of an anaerobic baffled reactor; Wang J et al.; The performance and the characteristics of a laboratory scale anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) were investigated using synthetic wastewater . The experimental results showed that among different volatile fatty acids (VFAs), acetate was the main intermediate of acidogenic degradation of glucose . The VFA concentration decreased longitudinally down the reactor . The analysis of the biogas composition revealed that methane concentration increased steadily from compartment 1 to 5, while hydrogen content decreased in the first compartments . There was no detectable hydrogen in the last two compartments . The methane-producing activity of anaerobic sludge in different compartments depended on the substrate, which suggests that the proper anaerobic consortium in each separate compartment was developed according to the substrate(s) availability and the specific environmental conditions . The ABR has the potential to provide a higher efficiency at higher loading rates and be applicable for extreme environmental conditions and inhibitory compounds . Sci Total Environ, 2004 Apr 5, 321(1-3), 115 - 25 Phosphorus release rates from sediments and pollutant characteristics in Han River, Seoul, Korea; Kim LH et al.; The Han River is 469.7-km long and drains a 26219-km(2) watershed . The sediments in the river are highly polluted due to inputs from upstream tributaries as well as partially treated municipal wastewaters that are discharged to the river . The water quality and strategy for control are important because the river is the primary drinking water supply for the City of Seoul, as well as being a major source for irrigation and industrial water . The Jamsil submerged dam partitions the river to isolate an upstream area for drinking water, but also captures sediments . Samples from four sites were studied to determine sediment pollutant concentrations and phosphorus release rates . Phosphorus tends to desorb from sediments when the concentration of overlying water is less than 1.4 mg/l . Water column P concentrations range from 0.04 to 0.1 mg/l, which suggests that sediments will act as a P source . In a series of batch experiments, P was released at approximately 15-20 mg/m(2)week in the winter (1-5 degrees C) and as much as 90 mg/m(2)week in the summer (20-24 degrees C), and is also a function of pH and dissolved oxygen concentration . The sediment total phosphorus concentration, which averages 833 mg/kg, is evenly distributed among non-apatite-P (33%), apatite-P (32%) and residual-P (34%) . An equilibrium model is proposed to describe release rate. Can J Microbiol, 2001 Jan, 47(1), 1 - 8 Ultrastructure of interaction in alginate beads between the microalga Chlorella vulgaris with its natural associative bacterium Phyllobacterium myrsinacearum and with the plant growth-promoting bacterium Azospirillum brasilense; Lebsky VK et al.; Chlorella vulgaris, a microalga often used in wastewater treatment, was coimmobilized and coincubated either with the plant growth-promoting bacterium Azospirillum brasilense, or with its natural associative bacterium Phyllobacterium myrsinacearum, in alginate beads designed for advanced wastewater treatment . Interactions between the microalga and each of the bacterial species were followed using transmission electron microscopy for 10 days . Initially, most of the small cavities within the beads were colonized by microcolonies of only one microorganism, regardless of the bacterial species cocultured with the microalga . Subsequently, the bacterial and microalgal microcolonies merged to form large, mixed colonies within the cavities . At this stage, the effect of bacterial association with the microalga differed depending on the bacterium present . Though the microalga entered a senescence phase in the presence of P . myrsinacearum, it remained in a growth phase in the presence of A . brasilense . This study suggests that there are commensal interactions between the microalga and the two plant associative bacteria, and that with time the bacterial species determined whether the outcome for the microalga is senescence or continuous multiplication. Sante, 2003 Oct-Dec, 13(4), 269 - 72 {Parasitological analysis of the untreated wastewater of the "Ville Haute" urban emissary (Mâamora district, Kenitra, Morocco)}; Zamo AC et al.; The domestic wastewaters of the city of Kenitra (North-East of Morocco) are rejected without preliminary processing by six emissaries into the Sebou river, the Atlantic Ocean and the Fouarate lake . The present study is based on a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the wastewater parasites load of the "Ville Haute" urban district of Maamora (Kenitra, Morocco) . Untreated wastewater samples taken at the exit of the urban emissary are pretreated and analysed by the modified Bailenger method at the parasitological and hydrobiological laboratory of the Sciences Faculty of Kenitra (Ibn Tofail University) . For diagnostic confirmation purposes, other complementary analysis were made at the parasitological laboratory of the National Institute of Hygiene (Rabat) The results obtained pointed to the existence of the helminths parasites eggs of Ascaris spp., Toxocara spp., Trichuris spp., Hymenolepis spp., Taenia spp and Fasciola hepatica species with respective concentrations of 3 eggs/L, 17 eggs/L, 7 eggs/L, 2 eggs/L, 1 eggs/L and 1 egg/L . The mean concentration is about 31 eggs/L of untreated wastewater . Furthermore, on the samples examined, the percentages of positives tests is 86% for nematodes, 10% for cestodes, and 4% for trematodes . At the end of this preliminary study we insist on the very high level of parasitic helminths transported by untreated wastewater and we recommend that those wastewater be processed before there are recycled in the Sebou river. Ultrasonics, 2004 Apr, 42(1-9), 87 - 91 Use of ultrasonic energy for intensification of the bio-preparation of greige cotton; Yachmenev VG et al.; Raw unscoured cotton contains approximately 90% cellulose and various noncellulosic impurities such as waxes, pectins, proteins, and fats . To remove these hydrophobic noncellulosics and produce a highly absorbent fiber that can be dyed and finished uniformly, the greige cotton is traditionally processed with relatively harsh and environmentally unfriendly chemicals . New bio-preparation processes that utilize highly specific enzymes instead of conventional organic/inorganic chemicals are becoming increasingly popular in the textile industry . The major shortcoming of this new technology is that the processing time is much longer than the conventional method . This limitation was overcome by use of ultrasound energy in combination with enzyme processing . The combined enzyme/ultrasound bio-preparation of greige cotton offers significant advantages such as less consumption of expensive enzymes, shorter processing time, better uniformity of treatment and a notable decrease in the amount and toxicity of the resulting textile wastewater effluents. Environ Sci Technol, 2004 Mar 1, 38(5), 1435 - 44 Determination of monochloramine formation rate constants with stopped-flow spectrophotometry; Qiang Z et al.; The production of monochloramine by the reaction of aqueous ammonia and free chlorine is important in both drinking water and wastewater treatment systems . Accurate prediction of the rate of monochloramine formation is a prerequisite for any modeling work related to this fundamental reaction . There are significant discrepancies between rate constants reported in the literature . Furthermore, little information is available on the temperature dependence of the reaction rate constant . The purposes of this study were to kinetically examine the potential reaction pathways, accurately determine the specific rate constants, and establish the Arrhenius equation for the reaction of monochloramine formation using the stopped-flow technique . Results indicate that the rate constants are highly pH dependent due to the speciation of both free chlorine and ammonia . From a strictly kinetic point of view, monochloramine formation could be explained by either the nonionic pathway between HOCl and NH3 or the ionic pathway between OCl- and NH4+ . However, because the ionic pathway is mechanistically implausible the reaction is shown to be between the nonionic species (HOCl and NH3) . The specific rate constant for the nonionic pathway at 25 degrees C was determined to be 3.07 x 10(6) (M(-1) x s(-1)) . The Arrhenius equation was obtained as k(HOCl,NH3) = 5.40 x 10(9) exp(- 2237/T), which provided an activation energy of 18.6 kJ x mol(-1). Anal Bioanal Chem, 1996 Jun, 355(3-4), 319 - 20 Mercury determination by CV-AAS in wastewater and sewage sludge from a stabilization pond system; Araujo K et al.; The mercury concentrations in wastewater and sewage sludge of a stabilization pond system have been evaluated . The system is built by three parallel facultative ponds followed by two systems of three maturation ponds in series . The samples of wastewater and sludge were digested using nitric acid and placed into a Parr-type bomb for 4 h at 110 degrees C . Mercury was measured by Cold Vapour Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (CV-AAS) at 253.7 nm with sodium tetrahydroborate as reductant . The methodologies were checked with an USEPA quality control sample, a standard reference material from NIST and with another method of mineralization (cold mineralization) showing good results . Concentrations of mercury in wastewater between 1.47 +/- 0.75 microgl(-1) have been found at the entrance of the system and 0.74 +/- 0.0 microgl(-1) at the exit, while in sludge the results were between 0.29 +/- 0.12 microgkg(-1) in the facultative pond and 0.04 +/- 0.02 microgkg(-1) in the second maturation pond (exit). FEMS Microbiol Lett, 2004 Apr 1, 233(1), 77 - 82 Analysis of microbial diversity in oligotrophic microbial fuel cells using 16S rDNA sequences; Phung NT et al.; Molecular ecological techniques were applied to analyze the bacterial diversity of two oligotrophic microbial fuel cells (MFCs) enriched using river water or artificial wastewater (AWW) as fuel . Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of the PCR amplified 16S rDNA showed that different microbial communities were present in the two MFCs and these were different from the river sediment used to initiate the enrichment . Nearly complete 16S rDNA was amplified and sequenced . Over 80% of the clones were Proteobacteria . Betaproteobacteria were the dominant clones (46.2%) in MFCs fed with river water, and about 64.4% of the clones in MFCs fed with AWW were Alphaproteobacteria . Actinobacteria were found only in the MFC fed with AWW, and Deltaproteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Chloroflexi and Verrucomicrobia in the MFC fed with river water . Many clones were related to uncultured bacteria, some with homology less than 95%, indicating that many novel bacteria were enriched in the oligotrophic MFCs. Anal Bioanal Chem, 2004 Jul, 379(5-6), 818 - 24 Epub 2004 Mar 24. Chemometric procedure for the study of fractionated wastewater ingredients using RP-HPLC/diode array spectrophotometer; Kotti ME et al.; A fast screening method of domestic wastewater is reported based on fractionation with RP-HPLC and diode array absorption detection implemented by chemometric treatment of the spectra using cluster analysis, deconvolution, simulation, and multiple regression statistical techniques . The proposed method is limited to constituents that absorb in the UV-Vis region which include most of the toxic organic pollutants. Mar Pollut Bull, 2004 Apr, 48(7-8), 768 - 77 Resurvey of a reef flat in American Samoa after 85 years reveals devastation to a soft coral (Alcyonacea) community; Cornish AS et al.; One of the earliest quantitative surveys of soft corals, on a reef flat in Pago Pago Harbour, American Samoa, was repeated 85 years later . The alcyoniid communities there, which were the dominant benthic organisms during the initial survey, have suffered a drastic decline of 99% cover in the interim . The most likely causes of the decline are anthropogenic disturbance associated with reclamation along the harbour from the 1940s to early 1960s, compounded by chronic pollution from industrial wastewater discharge from the mid-1950s to late 1980s . The decline in one dominant species, Sinularia polydactyla, is likely to have serious consequences for the reef as unusually for a soft coral, this had been the major reef building species . Life-history traits of certain Sinularia and Sarcophyton, such as slow growth and low rates of sexual reproduction, mean they will be slower to recover from severe disturbance than many scleractinian corals. Chemosphere, 2004 May, 55(6), 893 - 904 Photocatalytic degradation of formaldehyde containing wastewater from veterinarian laboratories; Arana J et al.; The photocatalytic destruction of methanol, formaline (mixture of formaldehyde, methanol and water) and formaline wastes from the preservation of vertinarian physiologic samples has been attempted by two different processes, at high concentrations of reagents and by dossification of reagents, varying pH in both . Experiment evolution has been monitored by measuring the organic matter such as TOC and formaldehyde concentrations {H2CO} . Also, methanol and methanol-formaldehyde interactions with the TiO2 surface have been analysed by FTIR spectroscopy . Results indicate that at high concentrations the catalyst surfacial alterations given by methoxy, formates or carbonates, according to the pH of the sample can profoundly affect catalyst behaviour . It has been established that reagent dossification is advantageous for enhancing photonic efficiency as it minimizes the adsorbate presence that hampers the photocatalytic process. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2004 Mar, 57(3), 303 - 10 Temporal and spatial variability in the estrogenicity of a municipal wastewater effluent; Hemming JM et al.; The estrogenicity of a municipal wastewater effluent was monitored using the vitellogenin biomarker in adult male fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) . The variability in the expression of vitellogenin was evident among the monitoring periods . Significant (alpha< or =0.05) increases in plasma vitellogenin concentrations were detected in March and December, but not in August or June . Additionally, the magnitude of expression was variable . Variability in the spatial scale was also evident during the March and June exposure months . Concurrent exposures in both the creek receiving the effluent from a wastewater treatment plant and an experimental wetland showed estrogenicity to be different with distance from the respective effluent inflow sites . March exposures showed estrogenicity to be somewhat persistent in the receiving creek (>600 m), but to decrease rapidly within the experimental wetland (<40 m) . Results are discussed relative to the monitoring season, to the spatial distribution of the response in both receiving systems, and to possible causative factors contributing to the effluent estrogenicity. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2004 Mar, 57(3), 278 - 89 Toxic effects of mining effluents on fish gills in a subarctic lake system in NW Russia; Tkatcheva V et al.; The mining company Karelian Pellet in northwestern Russia extracts iron ore and processes it locally into pellets . The production operations affect the environment in the form of air pollution and wastewater emissions to lakes downstream from the factory . The toxic effects of the mining effluents on gills of perch (Perca fluviatilis) and roach (Rutilus rutilus) were studied . In lakes close to the factory, heavy metal concentrations in gills were not high, even though the metal content in sediment was elevated . In fish gills the relative proportion of phosphatidylcholine was elevated and cholesterol reduced, while the histological structure of the gills was changed . The number of mucus cells, as well as the sizes and the lengths of open areas in the chloride cells, had increased in spring and summer . The hypertrophy of chloride cells is possibly caused by the increased ambient concentrations of K+ and Li+ . Changes in gill cholesterol and phospholipid proportions increase the fluidity of membranes and possibly strengthen their protective qualities, counterbalancing the adverse changes in chloride cell structure . The bioavailability and toxic effects of metals on fish are reduced by the hardness and high pH of water discharged by the mining plant. Environ Monit Assess, 2004 Mar, 92(1-3), 119 - 35 Adaptive consensus principal component analysis for on-line batch process monitoring; Lee DS et al.; As the regulations of effluent quality are increasingly stringent, the on-line monitoring of wastewater treatment processes becomes very important . Multivariate statistical process control such as principal component analysis (PCA) has found wide applications in process fault detection and diagnosis using measurement data . In this work, we propose a consensus PCA algorithm for adaptive wastewater treatment process monitoring . The method overcomes the problem of changing operating conditions by updating the covariance structure recursively . The algorithm does not require any estimation compared to typical multiway PCA models . With this method process disturbances are detected in real time and the responsible measurements are directly identified . The presented methodology is successfully applied to a pilot-scale sequencing batch reactor for wastewater treatment. J Chromatogr A, 2004 Mar 12, 1029(1-2), 255 - 61 Speciation of V, Cr and Fe by capillary electrophoresis-bandpass reaction cell inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry; Yeh CF et al.; Capillary electrophoresis-dynamic reaction cell inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (CE-DRC-ICP-MS) for the speciation of iron(III/II), vanadium(V/IV) and chromium(VI/III) is described . Two different CE migration modes were employed for separating the six metal ions using pre-capillary complexation . One is counter-electroosmotic mode in which iron(III/II) and vanadium(V/IV) ions were well separated using a 60 cm x 75 microm i.d . fused silica capillary . The voltage was set at +22 kV and a 15 mmol l(-1) tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (Tris) buffer (pH 8.75) containing 0.5 mmol l(-1) ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and 0.5 mmol l(-1) ortho-phenanthroline (phen) was used as the electrophoretic buffer . The other is co-electroosmotic mode in which chromium(VI/III) ions were well separated while the applied voltage was set at -22 kV and a 10 mmol l(-1) ammonium citrate buffer (pH 7.7) containing 0.5 mmol l(-1) diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) and 0.01% polybrene was used as the electrophoretic buffer . The mass spectra were measured at m/z 51, 52 and 56 for V . Cr and Fe, respectively . The interfering polyatomic ions of 35Cl16O+, 40Ar12C+ and 40Ar16O+ on 51V+, 52Cr+ and 56Fe+ determination were reduced in intensity significantly by using NH3 as the reaction cell gas in the DRC . The detection limits were in the range of 0.1-0.5, 0.4-1.3 and 1.2-1.7 ng ml(-1) for V, Cr and Fe, respectively . Applications of the method for the speciation of V, Cr and Fe in wastewater were demonstrated . The recoveries were in the range of 92-120% for various species. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(1), 269 - 80 Dynamic post-treatment response of olive mill effluent wastewater using activated carbon; Azzam MO et al.; Olive mill eflluent (OME) wastewater represents a serious environmental problem in the Mediterranean area . It has extremely high values of COD, BOD, and phenolic content . A new approach of treatment steps composed of settling, centrifugation, and filtration is suggested to be used to condition OME wastewater . The filtrate is then subjected to a post-treatment process, namely adsorption on activated carbon . The dynamic response of phenols concentration, pH, and COD, using different concentrations of activated carbon, shows a peak at which maximum adsorption capacity is achieved . The maximum adsorption capacity for the tested concentrations of activated carbon is reached in less than 4 h . The maximum removal of phenols is about 94%, while it reaches about 83% for organic matter. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(1), 173 - 83 An electrochemical method for decreasing the concentration of sulfate and molybdenum ions in industrial wastewater; Panayotova M et al.; An electrochemical method is proposed for decreasing the concentration of sulfate and molybdenum species in industrial wastewater . The method is based on electromigration, electroosmosis, electrolysis, and subsequent secondary processes . The treatment has been carried out in electrolytic cells with graphite electrodes and anodic and cathodic compartments separated by a special ceramic membrane . Influence of the equipment design and working conditions on the treatment effectiveness has been studied . The concentrations of sulfate and molybdenum were decreased from 2000-2200 mg/L to 900-1100 mg/L and 1.9-2.2 mg/L to 0.8-1.2 mg/L, correspondingly . The pH of the treated water was 8.0-8.5, no additional chemicals were introduced and voluminous sludge was not formed . The method proposed is environmentally friendly and seems to be economically feasible for treating wastewater with large flow. Prikl Biokhim Mikrobiol, 2004 Jan-Feb, 40(1), 114 - 9 {Effect of heavy metals on wheat seedlings; activation of antioxidant enzymes}; Murzaeva SV; Accumulation of heavy metals in wheat grain exposed to multicomponent pollutants (industrial waste-water) was studied . The absolute content of metals (Zn, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Mn) was found to be determined by the extent of purification of wastewater . An increase in the degree of grain contamination with heavy metals was accompanied by activation of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, EC 1.15.1; catalase, EC 1.11.1.6; and peroxidase, EC 1.11.1.7) in leaves and activation of superoxide dismutase and peroxidase in roots . The ratio of activity of membrane enzymes to activity of cytosol enzymes was demonstrated to be high . It was concluded that the membrane-tropic effect of multicomponent contaminants was due to accumulation of heavy metals capable of inducing the antioxidant protection in the next generation of wheat seedlings. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 455 - 64 Ion exchange extraction of heavy metals from wastewater sludges; Al-Enezi G et al.; Heavy metals are common contaminants of some industrial wastewater . They find their way to municipal wastewaters due to industrial discharges into the sewerage system or through household chemicals . The most common heavy metals found in wastewaters are lead, copper, nickel, cadmium, zinc, mercury, arsenic, and chromium . Such metals are toxic and pose serious threats to the environment and public health . In recent years, the ion exchange process has been increasingly used for the removal of heavy metals or the recovery of precious metals . It is a versatile separation process with the potential for broad applications in the water and wastewater treatment field . This article summarizes the results obtained from a laboratory study on the removal of heavy metals from municipal wastewater sludges obtained from Ardhiya plant in Kuwait . Data on heavy metal content of the wastewater and sludge samples collected from the plant are presented . The results obtained from laboratory experiments using a commercially available ion exchange resin to remove heavy metals from sludge were discussed . A technique was developed to solubilize such heavy metals from the sludge for subsequent treatment by the ion exchange process . The results showed high efficiency of extraction, almost 99.9%, of heavy metals in the concentration range bound in wastewater effluents and sludges . Selective removal of heavy metals from a contaminated wastewater/sludge combines the benefits of being economically prudent and providing the possibility of reuse/recycle of the treated wastewater effluents and sludges. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 445 - 54 Potential use of economic instruments in waste management in the Arab countries; Saqqar MM; Changing public behavior towards the environment is considered an essential component in the environmental strategies of all the Arab countries . An important mechanism is using economic instruments (pricing, charges, taxes, and financial incentives) to achieve the desired changes . This article presents potential applications for the use of economic instruments in waste management in the Arab countries . Applications are suggested for implementation in several fields that include wastewater, solid waste, hazardous waste, and agricultural pollution . Examples are presented based on real data from Jordan . In addition, the requirements needed to implement the economic instruments are explained. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 397 - 407 Heavy metals content of municipal wastewater and sludges in Kuwait; Al Enezi G et al.; Municipal wastewater may contain heavy metals, which are hazardous to the environment and humans . With stringent regulations concerning water reuse and sludge utilization in agriculture, there is a great need to determine levels of heavy metals in liquid wastes, sludges and agricultural crops . The state of Kuwait has programs to utilize waste sludge produced at wastewater treatment plants as soil conditioner and fertilizer for greenery and agricultural development projects and to reuse treated wastewater effluents in irrigation . The common metals found in Kuwait's raw wastewater and sludge are Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn . The effects of accumulation of heavy metals in soil are long lasting and even permanent . In this study, the variations in the concentration levels of heavy metals were measured in wastewater and sludge produced at Ardiya municipal wastewater treatment plant in Kuwait . A relationship was observed between the concentrations of heavy metals in treated wastewater and sludge used for agriculture and the level of accumulated heavy metals found in residual tissues of some crops. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 385 - 95 Application of granular media filtration in wastewater reclamation and reuse; Hamoda MF et al.; Laboratory experiments were conducted at room temperature (20-25 degrees C) using four identical filter columns made of Plexiglas, each of 1 m height and 15 cm internal diameter, packed with granular media of 70 cm depth . Each filter was operated at a constant filtration rate, thus four rates were tested in the range of 2-15 m(3) m(-2) d(-1) . Mono-media (sand) and dual-media (sand and anthracite) were tested and three types of municipal wastewaters, namely raw, primary and secondary-treated effluents were applied . The results obtained indicate that considerable improvements in effluent quality could be attained by tertiary sand filtration . Removal of solids, organics and bacteria was not significantly affected by the increase in filtration rate from 2 to 15 m(3) m(-2) d(-1) . The highest removal efficiency was obtained at low filtration rate of 2 m(3) m(-2) d(-1), but higher filtration rates achieved acceptable removal efficiencies and provided effluents of good quality to satisfy the irrigation water quality standards . Since the conventional sand filters in wastewater treatment plants operate at a rate in the range of 2-5 m(3) m(-2) d(-1), utilization of high rate filtration is advantageous and would result in significant cost savings . However, with high filtration rates the filters require more frequent backwashing . Dual-media filters achieved 50% reductions in BOD suggesting that filtration could be used to treat primary effluents in emergency cases. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 365 - 74 Quality of the bottom sediment prior to dredging in the Golden Horn of Istanbul; Kinaci C et al.; The Golden Horn has experienced severe pollution due to uncontrolled domestic and industrial wastewater discharges until recent years . A restoration project has been developed by our universities, upon a request from Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality . Two principal alternatives for the dredging and disposal of the bottom sediments were considered: disposing on the land and disposing in the sea . Both of these alternatives include several sub-alternatives . Characterization of the sediment quality is crucially important for selecting the best alternative considering the cost, environmental impact and public acceptance . However, only a few and rather old studies were present with which it was not possible to get a comprehensive information on the critical sediment characteristics . Therefore, the aim of this study was determination of spatial distribution of sediment characteristics . The project area, at which the sediment quality determined, covers the part of the Golden Horn remaining at the upstream of Valide Sultan Bridge . The number of sampling stations were thirteen and the sediment samples were collected from 0.0m, 5.0m and 10.0m from the bottom surface . The following parameters were measured on each sample: Total solids, organic matter, total phosphorus, TKN, oil and grease, total sulphur, and sediment oxygen demand (SOD) . Sediment oxygen demand parameter was further divided into three fractions, namely, biological (SOD-B) and chemical (SOD-C) . Average organic content of the bottom sediment was around 10% while ammonia and sulfur exhibit very high levels . It is found that the bottom sediment is well stabilized with very low organic content below 5.0m from the bottom surface . It can be said that, removing the upper 5m of the bottom sediment will be enough for creating a relatively stable bottom surface which will cause oxygen depletion in the overlaying water at acceptable levels . High SOD values of the bottom sediment makes the alternatives considering disposal in the Marmara Sea and Black Sea inapplicable . High SOD-C values, especially, indicate that the sediment will cause a tremendous reduction in the oxygen concentration in a very short time at any marine environment, and even it may create anaerobic conditions . Therefore, disposal of dredged sediment into abandoned mines 4km from the Golden Horn by a pressure pipeline has been chosen as the best applicable alternative. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2004, 39(2), 329 - 39 Changes in the environmental parameters of treated wastewater in soils; Ghosn AA et al.; Available data about treated sanitary and industrial wastewater in Kuwait were collected and reviewed . Potential changes in the environmental parameters of these waters when permeated through predominantly loamy sand soil samples collected from three agricultural sites in Kuwait, an arid land desert area . The environmental parameters investigated included pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), total organic content (TOC), and total hydrocarbon content (THC) . The results indicated these parameters have generally reflected marked variations . These variations were attributed to the interactions between soil, soil pore water, and influent wastewaters used in this study . The results also indicated that the above-investigated environmental parameters stayed well within the allowable limits set for the reuse of tertiary treated sanitary and industrial wastewaters in agricultural irrigation applications. Environ Technol, 2004 Jan, 25(1), 15 - 22 Removal of 2-fluoro and 2-iodophenol from aqueous solutions using industrial wastes; Jain AK et al.; A comparative study of the adsorbents prepared from several industrial wastes for the removal of 2-fluorophenol and 2-iodophenol has been carried out . The results show that maximum adsorption on carbonaceous adsorbent prepared from fertilizer industry waste has been found to be 35.3 and 235.3 mg g(-1) for 2-fluorophenol and 2-iodophenol, respectively . Compared to carbonaceous adsorbent, the other three adsorbents (viz., blast furnace sludge, dust, and slag) adsorb phenols to a much smaller extent . This has been attributed to the carbonaceous adsorbent having a larger porosity and consequently higher surface area . The adsorption of phenols on this adsorbent has been studied as a function of contact time, concentration and temperature . The adsorption has been found to be endothermic, and the data conform to the Langmuir equation . The further analysis of data indicates that adsorption is a first order process and pore diffusion controlled . A comparative study of adsorption results with those obtained on standard activated charcoal sample shows that prepared adsorbent is about 45% as efficient as standard activated charcoal and therefore, can be fruitfully employed for the removal of phenolic pollutants from wastewaters. Water Res, 2004 Apr, 38(7), 1715 - 32 Application of multiway ICA for on-line process monitoring of a sequencing batch reactor; Yoo CK et al.; Multiway principal component analysis has been shown to be a powerful monitoring tool in many industrial batch processes . However, it has the shortcomings that all batch lengths should be equal, the measurement variables must be normally distributed and that future values of the current batch must be estimated to allow on-line monitoring . In this work, it is shown that multiway independent component analysis (MICA) can be used to overcome these drawbacks and obtain better monitoring performance . The on-line MICA monitoring of batch processes is based on a new unfolding method and independent component analysis (ICA) . ICA provides better monitoring performance than PCA in cases with non-Gaussian data because it is not based on the assumption that the latent variables are normally distributed . The MICA algorithm does not require any estimation of future batch values and can also be applied to non-equal batch length data sets . This article describes the application of on-line MICA monitoring of a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) . It is successfully applied to an 80L SBR for biological wastewater treatment, which is characterized by a variety of disturbance sources with non-Gaussian characteristics . The SBR poses an interesting challenge from the point of process monitoring characterized by non-stationary, batchwise, multiscale, and non-Gaussian characteristics . The results of the bench-scale SBR monitoring clearly showed the power and advantages of MICA monitoring in comparison to conventional monitoring methods. J Chromatogr Sci, 2004 Feb, 42(2), 91 - 9 Analysis of unknown organic pollutants in sewage by solid-phase extraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; Gao H et al.; A rapid, simple, and reliable method of solid-phase extraction (SPE) combined with gas chromatography (GC)-mass spectrometry (MS) is developed for the analysis of a wide range of polarity of unknown organic pollutants in sewage . Wastewater samples are extracted by passing them through disposable C(18) cartridges, and the extracts are then analyzed by GC-MS . Different SPE parameters for ten organic compounds in the list of priority pollutants suggested by the China Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are studied, and their breakthrough volumes are determined . Extraction recoveries for the tested compounds are greater than 60%, except the recovery of 1,2-dichloroethane is 48% . The relative standard deviations are less than 7.8% (n = 3) . The developed approach is successfully applied for the identification of organic components in a sewage sample . Over 220 organic pollutants are identified, with 5 of these present in the list of priority pollutants suggested by the U.S . EPA and 4 from the list by the China EPA. Water Res, 2004 Mar, 38(6), 1568 - 78 Optimisation of clarifier-thickeners processing stable suspensions for turn-up/turn-down; Martin AD; Solid-liquid separation equipment operating on wastewater duties seldom functions at steady state and may be expected to perform over a wide range of feed loads . Satisfactory control of the solids residence time in these clarifiers and thickeners is critical to their successful operation . High solids residence times can lead to hydrolysis and rising sludge . This paper addresses the design of clarifiers and thickeners with minimum solids residence times . A one-dimensional force balance theory of sedimentation is used as the basis for the optimal design . Turn-up and turn-down are considered directly within the optimisation . A robust algorithm is presented for the repeated solution of the design equations and the constrained optimisation of the solids residence time . Three types controlling phenomena are identified and illustrated with design cases . The designs are found to be taller with smaller plan areas than their point optimised equivalents. Water Res, 2004 Mar, 38(6), 1550 - 8 Electro-oxidative abatement of low-salinity reverse osmosis membrane concentrates; Van Hege K et al.; The present study encompasses the application of electrolysis as novel treatment technique for the abatement of low-salinity concentrates generated from the filtrative treatment of water and wastewater . Four different materials have been tested as anode for a number of brine samples in a one-compartment electrolytic cell in galvanostatic mode . It was found that PbO(2) and SnO(2) anodes initiated electrochemical precipitation through an increase of the pH . Boron-doped diamond (BDD) and RuO(2) anodes successfully oxidised the pollutants in the brine and a linear removal of total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) was observed during the first phase of oxidation . Oxidation was predominantly achieved through indirect hypochlorite bulk oxidation; the higher oxidation rate and extent for the BDD anode was attributed to the higher selectivity and activity of the latter . Overall performance of the BDD electrode was higher than for RuO(2): higher rates for TAN (17.9 vs . 13.5mg/Ah) and COD (74.5 vs . 20.0mg/Ah) removal as well as higher overall current efficiencies (35.2% vs . 14.5%) . Extensive colour removal was observed for both anodes (>90% decrease in absorbency at 455 nm). Water Res, 2004 Mar, 38(6), 1484 - 93 Model-based design of horizontal subsurface flow constructed treatment wetlands: a review; Rousseau DP et al.; The increasing application of constructed wetlands for wastewater treatment coupled with increasingly strict water quality standards is an ever growing incentive for the development of better process design tools . This paper reviews design models for horizontal subsurface flow constructed treatment wetlands, ranging from simple rules of thumb and regression equations, to the well-known first-order k-C* models, Monod-type equations and more complex dynamic, compartmental models . Especially highlighted in this review are the model constraints and parameter uncertainty . A case study has been used to demonstrate the model output variability and to unravel whether or not more complex but also less manageable models offer a significant advantage to the designer. J Environ Manage, 2004 Apr, 70(4), 309 - 14 Assessment of AWT systems in the metro Atlanta area; Mines RO Jr et al.; A study was conducted to evaluate the performance of six advanced wastewater treatment facilities using biological nutrient removal processes as the primary mechanism for removing carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from domestic wastewater . One year of operating data was obtained from monthly operating reports provided by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) in Atlanta . Additional information about facility operations and the types of chemicals used was gathered through review of EPD files and interviews with plant personnel . Data evaluated were: influent and effluent five-day Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD(5)); influent and effluent total suspended solids (TSS); influent Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen and effluent Total Nitrogen; and influent and effluent Total Phosphorus (TP) . Although varying from plant to plant, effluent requirements for BOD(5), TSS, ammonia, and TP were met . Chemicals utilized, design capacity, and monthly effluent concentrations are presented in this study. Environ Microbiol, 2004 Apr, 6(4), 315 - 22 Formation of granules and Methanosaeta fibres in an anaerobic migrating blanket reactor (AMBR); Angenent LT et al.; It has generally been accepted that the formation of granules in anaerobic wastewater treatment systems requires a hydraulic upflow pattern . To evaluate this hypothesis, we operated an anaerobic migrating blanket reactor (AMBR) without a hydraulic upflow pattern, using a synthetic wastewater containing acetate, propionate, butyrate and sucrose . We provided conditions amenable to the formation of granules by operating the system with a moderate hydraulic selection pressure, which in this system was not the result of a hydraulic upflow pattern, but was provided by migration of biomass and intermittent mechanical mixing . Granules were first noticed after 2 months of operation, and it took another 2 months for a mature granular blanket to develop . Besides granules, approximately 1-cm-long Methanosaeta fibres developed and, after 6 months of operation, 30% of biomass consisted of these fibres . Quantitative membrane hybridization showed that almost all the total 16S rRNA extracted from fibres consisted of 16S rRNA from Methanosaeta concilii . This finding indicates that it was possible to develop pockets consisting almost entirely of an organism with a very limited substrate utilization spectrum (only acetate) in a system that was fed a synthetic wastewater containing acetate, propionate, butyrate and sucrose and that is known for its ability to develop biomass with a complex microbial community structure. Appl Environ Microbiol, 2004 Mar, 70(3), 1617 - 26 Identification and isolation of anaerobic, syntrophic phthalate isomer-degrading microbes from methanogenic sludges treating wastewater from terephthalate manufacturing; Qiu YL et al.; The microbial populations responsible for anaerobic degradation of phthalate isomers were investigated by enrichment and isolation of those microbes from anaerobic sludge treating wastewater from the manufacturing of terephthalic acid . Primary enrichments were made with each of three phthalate isomers (ortho-, iso-, and terephthalate) as the sole energy source at 37 degrees C with two sources of anaerobic sludge (both had been used to treat wastewater containing high concentrations of phthalate isomers) as the inoculum . Six methanogenic enrichment cultures were obtained which not only degraded the isomer used for the enrichment but also had the potential to degrade part of other phthalate isomers as well as benzoate with concomitant production of methane, presumably involving strictly syntrophic substrate degradation . Our 16S rRNA gene-cloning analysis combined with fluorescence in situ hybridization revealed that the predominant bacteria in the enrichment cultures were affiliated with a recently recognized non-sulfate-reducing subcluster (subcluster Ih) in the group 'Desulfotomaculum lineage I' or a clone cluster (group TA) in the class delta-PROTEOBACTERIA: Several attempts were made to isolate these microbes, resulting in the isolation of a terephthalate-degrading bacterium, designated strain JT, in pure culture . A coculture of the strain with the hydrogenotrophic methanogen Methanospirillum hungatei converted terephthalate to acetate and methane within 3 months of incubation, whereas strain JT could not degrade terephthalate in pure culture . During the degradation of terephthalate, a small amount of benzoate was transiently accumulated as an intermediate, indicative of decarboxylation of terephthalate to benzoate as the initial step of the degradation . 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that the strain was a member of subcluster Ih of the group 'Desulfotomaculum lineage I', but it was only distantly related to other known species. J Microbiol Methods, 2004 Apr, 57(1), 79 - 93 Evaluation of a plasmid-based 16S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer region array for analysis of microbial diversity in industrial wastewater; Cook KL et al.; A plasmid-based 16S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer region (ISR) array was developed and optimized for analysis of microbial diversity within complex environmental samples . Plasmid probes with 16S-23S rDNA ISR inserts (800-1500 bp) from industrial wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) microorganisms were arrayed onto glass slides . Hybridization of fluorescently labeled target sequences from two clones from the ISR WWTP library to arrayed probes showed that there was a good linear relationship between hybridization intensity and ISR similarity (r(2)=0.82) . Hybridization was highly specific (average background from arrayed probes with less than 80% similarity in ISR sequence was less than 7%) . Strong fluorescence intensity corresponded to near-perfect match clones (99% or greater similarity in ISR sequence) . A majority of probes (79%) showed no background hybridization . However, weak background (less than 50% for arrayed probes with 90% and 95% similarity in the 16S rRNA genes) was observed from closely related microorganisms . Background fluorescence from the negative control (plasmid vector with no insert) was similar to water and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-negative controls . Hybridization using fluorescently labeled ISR sequences from a mixed community sample produced strong fluorescent signals with no background from negative controls . A Cy5-labeled reference standard, part of the vector and present in every spotted probe, was used to normalize hybridization values . These results indicate that arrayed plasmid containing ISR probe insert sequences provides specificity and sensitivity for microbial community analysis in a high-throughput array format. J Microbiol Methods, 2004 Apr, 57(1), 41 - 53 Improved specificity for Giardia lamblia cyst quantification in wastewater by development of a real-time PCR method; Bertrand I et al.; The protozoan parasite Giardia lamblia is the most common cause of waterborne disease outbreaks associated with drinking water in the United States . The conventional method used for the enumeration of Giardia cysts in water is based on immunofluorescence with monoclonal antibodies . It is tedious and time-consuming and has the major drawback to be non-specific for the only species infecting humans, G . lamblia . We have developed a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method using fluorescent TaqMan technology, which improved the specificity of G . lamblia cyst quantification compared to the immunofluorescence assay (IFA) . However, this PCR was not totally specific for G . lamblia species and amplified Giardia ardeae target as well . This method showed a sensitivity of 0.45 cysts per reaction and an efficiency of 95% in purified suspensions . We have then applied this quantification method to raw wastewater, a medium containing numerous debris, particles and PCR inhibitors . The adaptation to these environmental samples was realized by a screening of three cyst purification methods and six DNA extraction protocols . Real-time quantification was accomplished by the simultaneous amplification of unknown samples and a tenfold serial dilution of purified G . lamblia cysts . For all samples, the concentrations observed with TaqMan PCR method were compared to the IFA values . Giardia spp . cysts were detected in all non-spiked raw wastewater samples with IFA procedure and the concentrations of Giardia spp . cysts used for the comparison between the two methods ranged between 3.3x10(2)/l and 4.3x10(3)/l . The highest TaqMan PCR/IFA ratios were observed when Percoll/sucrose flotation was combined with DNA extraction protocol optimized for cyst wall lysis, impurities adsorption on a resin, and double step protein digestion and column purification . The concentrations observed with this TaqMan PCR method ranged from 2.5x10(2) to 2.4x10(3) G . lamblia cysts/l and only one sample resulted in a no amplification curve . Thus, we developed a TaqMan PCR method increasing the rapidity and specificity of G . lamblia cyst quantification . The combination of Percoll/sucrose flotation and DNA extraction optimized protocol before TaqMan assay has provided a good indication of the G . lamblia contamination level in raw sewage samples. J La State Med Soc, 2004 Jan-Feb, 156(1), 42, 44 - 9 Is fish consumption safe? Diaz JH. Louisiana's vital seafood industry provides nearly 40% of domestic seafood production . Unlike Louisianans, most Americans do not enjoy fresh seafood, yet manage to eat over 4 billion pounds of seafood annually, most of it foreign, frozen, and fried! America's commercial fisheries now face crippling economic and environmental pressures from seafood imports, over-fishing, urban and agricultural wastewater runoff, harmful algal blooms, and coastal wetlands loss . As a result of these ecosystem stresses, seafood-borne disease now causes 37% of all foodborne illness in the United States . Despite recent advisories on high mercury-containing finfish consumption, seafood provides more than a third of the world with essential dietary protein, rich in cardiovascular-protective omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids . Louisiana and other coastal-state physicians can effecti