Meththika Vithanage

Trichloroethylene adsorption by pine needle biochars produced at various pyrolysis temperatures.

In this study, pine needles were converted to biochar (BC) at different pyrolysis temperatures of 300, 500, and 700 °C to sorb trichloroethylene (TCE), and the changes in BC properties with each temperature were evaluated. Pyrolysis temperature showed a pronounced effect on BC properties. Decreases in molar H/C and O/C ratios resulted from removing O- and H-containing functional groups with increasing temperature, and produced high aromaticity and low polarity BCs. BCs produced at higher temperature showed greater TCE removal efficiency from water due to their high surface area, micro-porosity, and carbonized extent. The performance of various BCs for TCE removal was assessed by the Freundlich, Langmuir, Temkin, and Dubinin-Radushkevich adsorption models, among which the Temkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich models best described TCE adsorption onto various BCs, indicating prevailing sorption mechanism as pore-filling.

Pyrolysis condition affected sulfamethazine sorption by tea waste biochars

Sulfamethazine (SMT) as a veterinary drug has been detected frequently in the environment. In this study, six biochars produced from tea waste (TW) at 300 and 700 °C with or without N2 and steam activation were characterized and evaluated for SMT sorption in water. The sorption of SMT was interpreted as a function of biochar production condition, SMT concentration, pH and physicochemical characteristics of biochar. Distribution coefficient data showed high sorption of SMT at low pH (∼3) and the highest sorption density of 33.81 mg g(-1) was achieved by the steam activated biochar produced at 700 °C. The steam activation process increased the adsorption capacity by increasing the surface area of the biochar. The π-π electron donor-acceptor interaction, cation-π interaction and cation exchange at low pH were the primary mechanisms governing SMT retention by biochars. Overall, steam activated tea waste biochar could be a promising remedy of SMT removal from water.

Sorption and transport of sulfamethazine in agricultural soils amended with invasive-plant-derived biochar

Sulfonamides (SAs) are one of the most frequently used antibiotics in the veterinary industry, showing high mobility in soils. Objectives of this research were to determine the sorption, distribution coefficients and involvement of different ionic forms of sulfamethazine (SMZ), a representative SAs, and to evaluate the transport of SMZ in biochar treated soils. Biochars were produced from an invasive plant, burcucumber (Sicyos angulatus L.), under slow pyrolysis conditions at peak temperatures of 300xa0°C (biochar-300) and 700xa0°C (biochar-700), respectively. The abilities of the biochars to retain SMZ in loamy sand and sandy loam soils were examined under different pHs and SMZ loadings. Soil column experiments were performed with and without biochars addition. Results showed that biochar-700 had a high degree of SMZ retention, with resultant decreased pH in both soils. Modeled effective sorption coefficients (KD,eff) values indicated that the observed high SMZ retention at pH 3 could be attributed to the π-π electron donor-acceptor interaction and electrostatic cation exchange, whereas at pH 5 and 7, cation exchange was the main mechanisms responsible. There was no temporal retardation of SMZ in biochar treated soil as compared to the untreated soil. However, biochar-700 treatment achieved up to 89% and 82% increase in the SMZ retention in sandy loam and loamy sand soils, respectively. The overall results demonstrated that burcucumber biochar produced at higher temperature was effective in reducing the mobility of SMZ in the studied soils.

Arsenic uptake by plants and possible phytoremediation applications: a brief overview

This review focuses the behaviour of arsenic in plant–soil and plant–water systems, arsenic–plant cell interactions, phytoremediation, and biosorption. Arsenate and arsenite uptake by plants varies in different environment conditions. An eco-friendly and low-cost method for arsenic removal from soil–water system is phytoremediation, in which living plants are used to remove arsenic from the environment or to render it less toxic. Several factors such as soil redox conditions, arsenic speciation in soils, and the presence of phosphates play a major role. Translocation factor is the important feature for categorising plants for their remediation ability. Phytoremediation techniques often do not take into account the biosorption processes of living plants and plant litter. In biosorption techniques, contaminants can be removed by a biological substrate, as a sorbent, bacteria, fungi, algae, or vascular plants surfaces based on passive binding of arsenic or other contaminants on cell wall surfaces containing special active functional groups. Evaluation of the current literature suggests that understanding molecular level processes, and kinetic aspects in phytoremediation using advanced analytical techniques are essential for designing phytoremediation technologies with improved, predictable remedial success. Hence, more efforts are needed on addressing the molecular level behaviour of arsenic in plants, kinetics of uptake, and transfer of arsenic in plants with flowing waters, remobilisation through decay, possible methylation, and volatilisation.

Surface complexation modeling and spectroscopic evidence of antimony adsorption on iron-oxide-rich red earth soils.

Few studies have investigated surface complexation of antimony (Sb) on natural sorbents. In addition, intrinsic acidic constants, speciation, and spectroscopic data are scarce for Sb sorption in soil. Only simple sorption models have been proposed to describe the sorption of Sb(V) on specific mineral surfaces. This study therefore assessed the mechanisms of Sb(III) and Sb(V) adsorption on natural red earth (NRE), a naturally occurring iron coated sand, at various pHs and Sb loadings. The Sb(V) adsorption followed typical anion adsorption curve with adsorption reaching maximum around pH 4-5, while no pH dependence was observed for Sb(III) sorption. The FT-IR spectra revealed that shifts in absorbance of the hydroxyl groups in iron-oxide were related to the Fe-O-Sb bonds and provided evidence for inner sphere bond formation. Direct evidence on the strong interaction of Sb(III) and Sb(V) with ≡Fe-O and ≡Al-O was observed from the decrease in Fe-2p, Al-2p, and Si-2p peaks of the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) data before and after Sb(V) and Sb(III) adsorption on NRE. Successful data modeling using the 2-pK diffuse double layer model (DDLM) with the FITEQL revealed that sorption occurs through the formation of bidentate mononuclear and binuclear complexes. Model simulations showed a high affinity to the ≡FeOH sites at high Sb loadings, whereas at low loadings, both≡ FeOH and ≡AlOH sites showed similar affinities to Sb. In the case of Sb(V), multilayer formation was also revealed in addition to surface complexation by the isotherm data fitted with the Freundlich model and two sites Langmuir equations, which indicated heterogeneous multilayer adsorption of Sb(V) on NRE.

Toxicity of synthetic chelators and metal availability in poultry manure amended Cd, Pb and As contaminated agricultural soil.

Chelating agents added to contaminated soils may increase solubility and phytoextraction efficiency of soil metals. However, they can create negative effects on soil biological quality. A 90-day incubation experiment was conducted to evaluate mixed effects of chelating agents and poultry manure on changes in available Cd, Pb and As, CO2-C efflux, microbial biomass C, dissolved organic C (DOC), and N mineralization in metal-polluted agricultural soil. Application of poultry manure resulted in a considerable increase in soil pH, DOC, CO2-C efflux, net N mineralization, net N nitrification, and microbial biomass C compared to those in unmanured soil. Availability of arsenic increased twice in manure amended soil due to changes in pH and DOC. However, adding poultry manure did not affect the concentrations of available Pb and Cd compared to those in control soil. Chelating agents increased CO2-C efflux, DOC, and metal availability but decreased microbial biomass C and net N mineralization. Maximum decrease in microbial biomass C, net N mineralization, and net N nitrification, was observed in EDTA applied soil possibly due to high metal availability to soil microorganisms. Overall results revealed that the application of synthetic chelators in combination with poultry manure enhances available As and demonstrates better environment for soil biota.

Role of chelating agents on release kinetics of metals and their uptake by maize from chromated copper arsenate-contaminated soil

Kinetic aspects of metal release were investigated to understand the effects of synthetic chelating agents (EDTA, EDDS and NTA) and low molecular weight (LMW) organic acids (oxalic and citric acids) on the release kinetics of Cr, Cu and As in chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-contaminated soil, as well as their uptake by maize (Zea mays L.). The results showed that the release of metals from soil was better described by parabolic diffusion, power function or simple Elovich model than by the first- and second-order models, indicating a heterogeneous diffusion of metals. Synthetic chelating agents afforded a higher release of Cu than that of LMW organic acids, whereas citric acid was the most effective chelating agent for Cr and As release. The most effective treatments for stimulating metal uptake in plant shoots were EDDS for Cu, EDTA for Cr, and citric acid for As, as indicated by the removal efficiencies of 0.046%, 0.036%, and 0.004%, respectively. However, Zea mays is not an attractive species for chelate-enhanced phytoremediation of CCA-contaminated soils due to its low phytoextraction rate, even in the presence of chelating agents and ligands.

Role of woody biochar and fungal-bacterial co-inoculation on enzyme activity and metal immobilization in serpentine soil

PurposeIn this study, we investigated the effect of biochar (BC) and fungal bacterial co-inoculation (FB) on soil enzymatic activity and immobilization of heavy metals in serpentine soil in Sri Lanka.Materials and methodsA pot experiment was conducted with tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) at 1, 2.5, and 5xa0% (w/w) BC ratios. Polyphenol oxidase, catalase and dehydrogenase activities were determined by idometric, potassium permanganate oxidisable, and spectrophotometric methods, respectively. Heavy metal concentrations were assessed by 0.01xa0M CaCl2 and sequential extraction methods.Results and discussionAn increase in BC application reduced polyphenol oxidase, dehydrogenase, and catalase activity. The application of FB increased soil dehydrogenase activity, with the maximum activity found in 1xa0% BC700u2009+u2009FB treatment. Moreover, the CaCl2 extractable metals (Ni, Mn, and Cr) in 5xa0% BC700 amended soil decreased by 92, 94, and 100xa0%, respectively, compared to the control. Sequential extraction showed that the exchangeable concentrations of Ni, Mn, and Cr decreased by 55, 70, and 80xa0% in 5xa0% BC700, respectively.ConclusionsResults suggest that the addition of BC to serpentine soil immobilizes heavy metals and decreases soil enzymatic activities. The addition of FB to serpentine soil improves plant growth by mitigating heavy metal toxicity and enhancing soil enzymatic activities.

Antimony as a global dilemma: Geochemistry, mobility, fate and transport

Elevated concentrations of antimony (Sb) in environmental, biological and geochemical systems originating from natural, geological and anthropogenic sources are of particular global concern. This review presents a critical overview of natural geochemical processes which trigger the mobilization of Sb from its host mineral phases and related rocks to the surrounding environments. The primary source of Sb contamination in the environment is geogenic. The geochemical characteristics of Sb are determined by its oxidation states, speciation and redox transformation. Oxidative dissolution of sulfide minerals and aqueous dissolution are the most prevalent geochemical mechanisms for the release of Sb to the environment. Transformation of mobile forms of Sb is predominantly controlled by naturally occurring precipitation and adsorption processes. Oxyhydroxides of iron, manganese and aluminum minerals have been recognized as naturally occurring Sb sequestrating agents in the environment. Antimony is also immobilized in the natural environment via precipitation with alkali and heavy metals resulting extremely stable mineral phases, such as schafarzikite, tripuhyite and calcium antimonates. Many key aspects, including detection, quantification, and speciation of Sb in different environmental systems as well as its actual human exposure remain poorly understood. Identification of global distribution of most vulnerable Sb-contaminated regions/countries along with aquifer sediments is an urgent necessity for the installation of safe drinking water wells. Such approaches could provide the global population Sb-safe drinking and irrigation water and hinder the propagation of Sb in toxic levels through the food chain. Hence, raising awareness through the mobility, fate and transport of Sb as well as further transdisciplinary research on Sb from global scientific communities will be a crucial stage to establish a sustainable Sb mitigation on a global scale.

Phytotoxicity attenuation in Vigna radiata under heavy metal stress at the presence of biochar and N fixing bacteria.

This study assesses the effect of N-fixing bacteria and biochar synergism on plant growth and development of Vigna mungo under heavy metal stress (HM). Heavy metal stress is a worldwide problem, which causes critical effects on plant life due to oxidative stress. Application of biochar is a recent biological remediation technique, which often leads to an immobilization of heavy metals in soil. . Synergism of bacteria and biochar is a novel aspect to enhance plant growth under heavy metal stress. Woody biochar a byproduct of a dendro power industry was added as 1, 2.5 and 5% amounts combination with Bradyrhizobium japonicum, where mung seedlings were planted in serpentine soil rich in Ni, Mn, Cr and Co. Pot experiments were conducted for 12 weeks. The plant height, heavy metal uptake by plants, soil bioavailable heavy metal contents, soil N and P and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) were measured. The plant growth was enhanced with biochar amendment but a retardation was observed with high biochar application (5%). The soil N and P increased with the increase of biochar addition percentage while soil MBC showed reductions at 5% biochar amendment. Both soil bioavailable fractions of HM and up take of HMs by plants were gradually reduced with increase in biochar content. Based on the results, 2.5% biochar synergism with bacteria was the best for plant growth and soil nutrition status. Despite the synergism, available N was negatively correlated with the decrease of bioavailable metal percentage in soil whereas it was conversely for P.