Towards the abatement of environmental mercury pollution: An electrochemical characterization

Electrochemical experiments in acetic acid-acetate buffer (pH 4.5) are conducted in order to understand metallic and ionic mercury adsorption processes on the pyrite surface. The nature as well as the extent of the spontaneous interaction between pyrite and mercuric ions was evaluated. The spontaneous reduction of mercury species onto pyrite surface was confirmed. These results represent a first step for the use of mining wastes rich in pyrite for mercury pollution abatement. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Elementos-traço em dois latossolos após aplicações anuais de lodo de esgoto por treze anos

This experiment aim was to evaluate the contamination of the trace elements (TE) arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, copper, mercury, molybdenum, nickel, lead, selenium, and zinc considered in the CONAMA resolution 375 after 13 years long using sewage sludge (SS) as fertilizer in two soils: an Eutroferric Clayed Red Latosol (Rhodic Eutrudox - RE) and a Dystrophic Red Latosol (Typic Haplorthox - TH). Experiment in the field under maize cultivation had four treatments (0, 5, 10, and 20 t of SS ha(-1), dry weight), five replications and an experimental design in randomized blocks. The agrochemicals (dolomitic limestone, single superphosphate, and potassium chloride), SS, soils, and the certified reference materials were digested according to the USEPA 3051A method and the chemical elements were quantified by ICP OES. The TE contents found in the agrochemicals used should not cause immediate environmental impact. The higher TE values were found in the RE and they did not reach the agricultural (more stringent) Investigation Level (IL) yet, according to 420 CONAMA resolution. Persisting the actual SS fertilization amount applied in the soil and the TE concentration in the SS is foreseen that Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn will be the first elements to reach the IL in the RE.

Differential environmental impacts on small and medium size rivers from center of São Paulo State, Brazil, and regional management perspectives

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Degradação ambiental e qualidade de vida na microbacia do Córrego do Gramado – Presidente Prudente/São Paulo

The late industrialization, together with other factors, ended up directing much of the rural population to cities, without adequate planning, resulting in high density and irregular settlements in risk areas to low-income population. The man settled in the urban site to break environmental laws that eventually causing an imbalance in the natural environment, causing or exacerbating the shortage in availability of water resources. This situation also happened in Presidente Prudente, especially in the east, the focus of this research. Therefore, this study aims to understand the causes of degradation of waterways in urban areas, focusing on society's relationship with nature and its consequences on environmental quality and quality of life of urban population located in the watershed of stream of Gramado, Presidente Prudente - São Paulo. In this catchment there is the irregular deposition of solid waste in the valley, remnants of old pollution release of domestic sewage and industrial (currently collected and intended for treatment), accelerated processes of erosion in some areas of intensive use of the relief and consequently, the bed siltation of streams that are part of the basin. The quality of urban life was seen through socioeconomic and environmental indicators, which were identified through questionnaires to residents, according to local residence in the landscape, divided into three segments: the tops 60 residents, 90 residents and 112 residents in the areas in valley bottoms. With these data we can relate them to the degradation of the basin and aggregate them to the quality of life of residents. Field studies were needed to visualize the changes that occurred in the watershed over the past three years, with the implementation of works aimed at improvements to the community as the conduit stream of Gramado and construction and operation of Sewage Pumping Stations... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Análise morfológica de brânquias de peixes Oreochromis niloticus (tilápia) expostos ao níquel

Water is an essential factor in maintaining the vital functions of living beings. We have observed a growing commitment of quality, are due to pollution from many sources and even entire watersheds, whether for industrial waste, sewage, or for substances used in farming such as pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Nickel is the 24th most abundant element on earth, is a heavy metal that, in the form of chloride, is a proven genotoxic and mutagenic. Due to its industrial use, there was considerable increase of its concentration in surface sediments. Fish combine characteristics that make them excellent experimental models for aquatic toxicology studies, which are particularly usable as warn about the potential danger of chemicals or the possibility of environmental pollution. Due to impaired water quality and the few published studies relating the nickel with the tissue change, this study aimed at assessing the consequences of the presence of nickel in the aquatic environment. For this analysis, we used individuals of Oreochromis niloticus, exposed for 96 hours at three different concentrations of nickel dissolved in water compared to a control group. After exposure, the gills were removed and these were analyzed by ultramorphological, histological and histochemical analysis. The results indicate that all concentrations used in the experiment altered the histophysiology of exposed individuals. We observed the following changes: rupture of paviment cells, thus resulting in bleeding, loss of microridges surface of these cells and epithelial loss in the gills of all animals in all treatments with nickel chloride, the histochemical analysis showed non-proliferation of chloride cells. However, there was a dose-dependent increase of mucus cells in all animals. Therefore, nickel has toxic potential to fish, from the smallest concentration used up to twice as permitted by law, indicating... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Caracterização química e estudo térmico de lodos provenientes da estação de tratamento de esgotos de Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil

Pós-graduação em Química - IQ

Evaluation of the genotoxicity of waters impacted by domestic and industrial effluents of a highly industrialized region of So Paulo State, Brazil, by the comet assay in HTC cells

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Flashover phenomenon: an analysis with influence of the thickness of the layer pollution of the high voltage polluted insulators

Results of the analysis of dynamic behavior of flashover phenomenon on the high voltage-polluted insulators are presented. These results were taken from a mathematical and an experimental model that introduce the variable thickness influence of the layer pollution deposited on the high-voltage insulator surface. Analysis of the flashover was done by way of introducing a variation in the thickness of the channel of Obenaus' model, simulating a layer pollution of variable thickness. The objective was to obtain a better reproduction of the real layer pollution deposited on the insulator that works in the polluted regions. Two types of thickness variations were used: a sudden variation, using a step; and a soft variation, using a ramp; that were put along the way of the discharge. Comparison between the mathematical and experimental models showed that introduction of a ramp makes Obenaus' model more efficient in analyzing behavior of flashover phenomenon.

The occurrence of UV filters in natural and drinking water in São Paulo State (Brazil)

Ultraviolet (UV) filters are widely used in the formulation of personal care products (PCPs) to prevent damage to the skin, lips, and hair caused by excessive UV radiation. Therefore, large amounts of these substances are released daily into the aquatic environment through either recreational activities or the release of domestic sewage. The concern regarding the presence of such substances in the environment and the exposure of aquatic organisms is based on their potential for bioaccumulation and their potential as endocrine disruptors. Although there are several reports regarding the occurrence and fate of UV filters in the aquatic environment, these compounds are still overlooked in tropical areas. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of the organic UV filters benzophenone-3 (BP-3), ethylhexyl salicylate (ES), ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (EHMC), and octocrylene (OC) in six water treatment plants in various cities in Southeast Brazil over a period of 6 months to 1 year. All of the UV filters studied were detected at some time during the sampling period; however, only EHMC and BP-3 were found in quantifiable concentrations, ranging from 55 to 101 and 18 to 115 ng L(-1), respectively. Seasonal variation of BP-3 was most clearly noticed in the water treatment plant in Araraquara, São Paulo, where sampling was performed for 12 months. BP-3 was not quantifiable in winter but was quantifiable in summer. The levels of BP-3 were in the same range in raw, treated and chlorinated water, indicating that the compound was not removed by the water treatment process.

Histopathological changes in the perivisceral fat body of Rhinocricus padbergi (Diplopoda, Spirobolida) triggered by biosolids

Human activities generate a great amount of sewage daily, which is dumped into the sewer system. After sewage-treatment processes, sewage sludge is generated. Such byproduct can be treated by different methods; the result of treatment is a stabilized compost of reduced pathogenicity that has a similar inorganic chemical composition to the raw sewage sludge. After such pretreatment, sewage sludge is called a biosolids, and it can be used in agriculture. In this contest, the present study evaluated the effects of a sample of biosolids on the perivisceral fat body of a diplopod. These invertebrates are soil organisms that play an important role in the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems, and as a consequence, they are in contact with xenobiotics present in this environmental compartment. Special emphasis is given on the interpretation of the effects of complex mixtures in target organs of diplopods. A semiquantitative analysis for the evaluation of histopathological changes in the perivisceral fat body was proposed. The sample-induced histopathological and ultrastructural changes in individuals exposed to it, and the severity of the effects was positively related to the exposure time, resulting in the deaths of exposed individuals after 90 days. Thus, the results indicate the need for caution in the use of biosolids as well as the need for improving waste management techniques, so they will produce environmentally innocuous final products.

Rapid determination of 12 antibiotics and caffeine in sewage and bioreactor effluent by online column-switching liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

A sewage sludge co-composting process using respirometric monitoring method in hermetic rotary reactor

This paper has the objective of monitoring the biological activity of composting process of sewage sludge, sugarcane bagasse and ground coffee in a hermetic rotary reactor using the respirometric method in laboratory scale, in order to obtain parameters and system design for large scale projects. Another particularity of this study is the use of a hermetic reactor with gas purging cycles. Purging was performed when the percentage of oxygen reached less than 5%, thus eliminating the gaseous mixture (with elevated CO2 ratio) and the introduction of environmental air with around 21% of O2, successively until the compost was stabilized. The average purge intervals obtained were 29 h and 2 min with reactor rotation frequency of 15 min. The time of the compost stabilization was optimized in 60% if compared to the 90 days in the traditional method. The results obtained can be used to design the process in industrial scale using a simple O2 gas analyzer.

Acúmulo de cádmio, crômio e níquel e isolamento de micro-organismos potenciais para biorremediação em área agrícola

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Análise histopatológica de fígado de tilápias (Oreochromis Niloticus) expostas ao herbicida 2,4-D comercial

The action of man has led, over the years, major impacts on the environment, especially in aquatic ecosystems, leading to an impairment of water quality, considered one of the essential factors for the maintenance of vital functions and consequently the life of the planet. Among the activities considered a risk for the environment are linked to pollution from many sources and even entire watersheds, whether by industrial waste, sewage, or for substances used in agriculture, such as pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. The (2,4-D) 2,4- dichlorophenoxyacetic acid is used worldwide, and the fact that its genotoxicity is proven by several studies and by its long persistence in soil, which enables the leaching and percolation of compounds affecting water bodies, toxicity studies are relevant and justifiable. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the toxicity of 2,4-D by examining the liver of the fish Oreochromis niloticus exposed to different dilutions. Portions of liver were collected and fixed for histological and histochemical techniques to detect total proteins, polysaccharides and lipids. lipids. Treatment with 2,4-D herbicide apparently did not alter the lipid profiles, the accumulation of polysaccharides, and the presence of total proteins. The 2.5 and 5.0% were lethal to fish. These mortalities are probably of high toxic and cytotoxic potential of 2,4-D herbicide results. Several histopathological changes were found, such as: loss of cytoplasmic integrity, loss of cell limit, nuclear deformation, vacuolated cytoplasm, tissue disorganization and hydropic degeneration. Statistically significant changes were: hydropic degeneration and vacuolated cytoplasm. It is concluded, therefore, that the qualitative morphological analysis is an important method for observing changes in liver toxicology studies. As the O. niloticus species is an efficient biological indicator of water pollution by 2,4-D