Dynamic Evolution and Covariant Response Mechanism of Volatile Organic Compounds and Residual Functional Groups during the Online Pyrolysis of Coal and Biomass Fuels

Novel Developments and Progress in Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopy (2D-COS)

This first of the two-part series of the comprehensive survey review on the progress of the two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) field during the period 2021-2022, covers books, reviews, tutorials, novel concepts and theories, and patent applications that appeared in the last two years, as well as some inappropriate use or citations of 2D-COS. The overall trend clearly shows that 2D-COS is continually growing and evolving with notable new developments. The technique is well recognized as a powerful analytical tool that provides deep insights into systems in many science fields.

Diverse Applications of Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopy (2D-COS)

This second of the two-part series of a comprehensive survey review provides the diverse applications of two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) covering different probes, perturbations, and systems in the last two years. Infrared spectroscopy has maintained its top popularity in 2D-COS over the past two years. Fluorescence spectroscopy is the second most frequently used analytical method, which has been heavily applied to the analysis of heavy metal binding, environmental, and solution systems. Various other analytical methods including laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy, dynamic mechanical analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, capillary electrophoresis, seismologic, and so on, have also been reported. In the last two years, concentration, composition, and pH are the main effects of perturbation used in the 2D-COS fields, as well as temperature. Environmental science is especially heavily studied using 2D-COS. This comprehensive survey review shows that 2D-COS undergoes continuous evolution and growth, marked by novel developments and successful applications across diverse scientific fields.

Association between Ambient Volatile Organic Compounds Exposome and Emergency Hospital Admissions for Cardiovascular Disease

The limited research on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has not taken into account the interactions between constituents. We used the weighted quantile sum (WQS) model and generalized linear model (GLM) to quantify the joint effects of ambient VOCs exposome and identify the substances that play key roles. For a 0 day lag, a quartile increase of WQS index for n-alkanes, iso/anti-alkanes, aromatic, halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons, halogenated saturated chain hydrocarbons, and halogenated unsaturated chain hydrocarbons were associated with 1.09% (95% CI: 0.13, 2.06%), 0.98% (95% CI: 0.22, 1.74%), 0.92% (95% CI: 0.14, 1.69%), 1.03% (95% CI: 0.14, 1.93%), 1.69% (95% CI: 0.48, 2.91%), and 1.85% (95% CI: 0.93, 2.79%) increase in cardiovascular disease (CVD) emergency hospital admissions, respectively. Independent effects of key substances on CVD-related emergency hospital admissions were also reported. In particular, an interquartile range increase in 1,1,1-trichloroethane, methylene chloride, styrene, and methylcyclohexane is associated with a greater risk of CVD-associated emergency hospital admissions [3.30% (95% CI: 1.93, 4.69%), 3.84% (95% CI: 1.21, 6.53%), 5.62% (95% CI: 1.35, 10.06%), 8.68% (95% CI: 3.74, 13.86%), respectively]. We found that even if ambient VOCs are present at a considerably low concentration, they can cause cardiovascular damage. This should prompt governments to establish and improve concentration standards for VOCs and their sources. At the same time, policies should be introduced to limit VOCs emission to protect public health.

Molecular-level insights into the temperature-dependent formation dynamics and mechanism of water-soluble dissolved organic carbon derived from biomass pyrolysis smoke

Water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) derived from biomass pyrolytic smoke is deposited through atmospheric aerosols, negatively affecting aquatic ecological quality and safety. However, the temperature-dependent molecular diversity and dynamic formation of smoke-derived WSOC remain poorly understood in water. Herein, we explored the molecular-level formation mechanism of pyrolytic smoke-derived WSOC in water to explain the evolution, heterogeneous correlations, and sequential responses of molecules and functional groups to increasing pyrolysis temperature. Two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy was used to innovatively establish the characteristic correlations between spectroscopy and Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Temperature-dependent formation of WSOC exhibited diversity in absorbance/fluorescent components, unique/common molecules, and their chemical parameters, showing the simultaneous formation and degradation reactions. The common WSOC molecules with lower and higher degrees of oxidation showed significant positive and negative correlations with the fluorescent components, respectively. The primary sequential response of WSOC molecules to increasing pyrolysis temperature (lignin-like molecules → unsaturated hydrocarbons, condensed aromatic molecules → lipid-like/aliphatic-/peptide-like molecules) corresponded to the temperature response of functional groups (carboxylic/alcoholic → polysaccharides → aromatics/amides/phenolic/aliphatic groups), demonstrating well synergistic relationships between them. These novel findings will contribute to the comprehensive understanding and assessments of potential environmental behavior or risks of WSOC in aquatic ecosystems.

DOM accumulation in the hyporheic zone promotes geogenic Fe mobility: A laboratory column study

Hyporheic zone (HZ) systems have a natural purification capacity, and they are commonly used to provide high quality drinking water. However, the presence of organic contaminants in HZ systems in anaerobic environments causes the aquifer sediments to release metals (e.g., Fe) at levels above drinking water standards, which affects the quality of groundwater. In this study, the effects of typical organic pollutants (dissolved organic matter (DOM)) on Fe release from anaerobic HZ sediments were investigated. Ultraviolet fluorescence spectroscopy, three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy, excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy coupled with parallel factor analysis and Illumina MiSeq high-throughput sequencing were used to determine the effects of the system conditions on Fe release from HZ sediments. Compared with the control conditions (low traffic and low DOM as a baseline), the Fe release capacity was enhanced by 26.7 % and 64.4 % at low flow rate (85.8 m/d) and high organic matter concentration (1200 mg/L), which was consistent with the residence-time effect. The transport of heavy metals under different system conditions varied with the influent organic composition. The influent organic matter composition and fluorescence parameters (the humification index, biological index and fluorescence index) were closely related to the release of the Fe effluent, while these factors had less influence on Mn and As. From 16S rRNA analysis of the aquifer media at different depths at the end of the experiment, under low flow rate and high influent concentration conditions, reduction of Fe minerals by Proteobacteria, Actinobacteriota, Bacillus, and Acidobacteria promoted the release of Fe. These functional microbes play an active role in the Fe biogeochemical cycle in addition to reducing Fe minerals to promote Fe release. In summary, this study reveals the effects of the flow rate and influent DOM concentration on the release and biogeochemistry of Fe in the HZ. The results presented herein will contribute to a better understanding of the release and transport of common groundwater contaminants in the HZ and other groundwater recharge environments.

Revealing an unrecognized role of free ammonia in sulfur transformation during sludge anaerobic treatment

Free ammonia (FA), the unionized form of ammonium, is presented in anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge (WAS) at high levels. However, its potential role in sulfur transformation, especially H₂S production, during WAS anaerobic fermentation process was unrecognized previously. This work aims to unveil how FA affects anaerobic sulfur transformation in WAS anaerobic fermentation. It was found that FA significantly inhibited H₂S production. With an increase of FA from 0.04 to 159 mg/L, H₂S production reduced by 69.9%. FA firstly attacked tyrosine-like proteins and aromatic-like proteins in sludge EPSs, with CO groups being responded first, which decreased the percentage of α-helix/(β-sheet + random coil) and destroyed hydrogen bonding networks. Cell membrane potential and physiological status analysis showed that FA destroyed membrane integrity and increased the ratio of apoptotic and necrotic cells. These destroyed sludge EPSs structure and caused cell lysis, thus strongly inhibited the activities of hydrolytic microorganisms and sulfate reducing bacteria. Microbial analysis showed that FA reduced the abundance of functional microbes (e.g., Desulfobulbus and Desulfovibrio) and genes (e.g., MPST, CysP, and CysN) involved in organic sulfur hydrolysis and inorganic sulfate reduction. These findings unveil an actually existed but previously overlooked contributor to H₂S inhibition in WAS anaerobic fermentation.

Microbial community evolution and functional trade-offs of biofilm in odor treatment biofilters

Biofilters inoculated with activated sludge are widely used for odor control in WWTP. In this process, biofilm community evolution plays an important role in the function of reactor and is closely related to reactor performance. However, the trade-offs in biofilm community and bioreactor function during the operation are still unclear. Herein, an artificially constructed biofilter for odorous gas treatment was operated for 105 days to study the trade-offs in the biofilm community and function. Biofilm colonization was found to drive community evolution during the start-up phase (phase 1, days 0-25). Although the removal efficiency of the biofilter was unsatisfactory at this phase, the microbial genera related to quorum sensing and extracellular polymeric substance secretion led to the rapid accumulation of the biofilm (2.3 kg biomass/m³ filter bed /day). During the stable operation phase (phase 2, days 26-80), genera related to target-pollutant degradation showed increases in relative abundance, which accompanied a high removal efficiency and a stable accumulation of biofilm (1.1 kg biomass/m³ filter bed/day). At the clogging phase (phase 3, days 81-105), a sharp decline in the biofilm accumulation rate (0.5 kg biomass/m³ filter bed /day) and fluctuating removal efficiency were observed. The quorum quenching-related genera and quenching genes of signal molecules increased, and competition for resources among species drove the evolution of the community in this phase. The results of this study highlight the trade-offs in biofilm community and functions during the operation of bioreactors, which could help improve bioreactor performance from a biofilm community perspective.

Heterogeneous Dynamic Behavior and Synergetic Evolution Mechanism of Internal Components and Released Gases during the Pyrolysis of Aquatic Biomass

Evolution of gaseous contaminants from biomass pyrolysis has drawn increasing attention. However, the thermal degradation, dynamics, and synergetic evolution mechanisms during real-time biomass pyrolysis remain unclear. Herein, a novel method using thermogravimetry-Fourier transform infrared spectrometry-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TG-FTIR-GC/MS) combined with thermal kinetics and two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy was proposed to explore the chemical properties and temperature response mechanisms of gaseous species released during Phragmites communis (PC) and Typha angustifolia (TA) pyrolysis. The thermal degradation mechanisms of PC/TA pyrolysis were mainly associated with the sigmoidal rate and random nucleation mechanisms. The formation intensities of alcohols/ethers, phenols/esters, acids, aldehydes, and ketones were higher during low-temperature TA pyrolysis and high-temperature PC pyrolysis. The average carbon oxidation state (OS¯C) of gaseous species mainly ranged from -1.5 to -0.5, and the OS¯C slope of most gaseous species was greater than -2.0, which was related to the reduction of aldehyde/ketone groups. Two-dimensional (2D)-TG-FTIR-COS analysis revealed that the sequential temperature response of gaseous species followed: acids → phenols, esters → aldehydes → hydrocarbons → alcohols, ethers → aromatics during PC/TA pyrolysis. The establishment of relationships between the sequential response of gases and degraded components provides an important basis for online monitoring/recovery of gaseous contaminants during biomass pyrolysis.

Performance and mechanism of bamboo residues pyrolysis: Gas emissions, by-products, and reaction kinetics

The performances and reaction kinetics of the bamboo shoot leaves (BSL) pyrolysis were characterized integrating thermogravimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analyses. The high volatiles and low ash, N, and S contents of BSL rendered its pyrolysis suitable for bio-oil generation. The main mass loss of BSL pyrolysis occurred in the devolatilization stage between 200 and 550 °C. The peak temperatures of pseudo-hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin pyrolysis in BSL were 248.04, 322.65 and 383.51 °C, respectively, while their average activation energies estimated by Starink method were 144.29, 175.79 and 243.02 kJ/mol, respectively. The one-dimensional diffusion mechanism (f (α) = 1/(2α)) best elucidated the hemicellulose reaction. The cellulose (f (α) = 0.74 (1 - α)[-ln (1 - α)]^-13/37) and lignin (f (α) = 0.35 (1 - α)[-ln (1 - α)]^-13/7) reactions were best described by the nucleation mechanisms. The estimated kinetic triplets accurately predicted the pyrolysis process. 619.3 °C and 5 °C/min were determined as the optimal pyrolytic temperature and heating rate. The C-containing gases were dominant among the non-condensable gases evolved from the pyrolysis. The NO_x precursors (NH₃ and HCN) were found more important than NO emission in pollution control. 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran, (1-methylcyclopropyl) methanol, heptanal, acetic acid, and furfurals were the main pyrolytic by-products. BSL-derived biochar is a relatively pure carbon-rich material with extremely low N and S content. The BSL pyrolysis yielded a promising performance, as well as value-added by-products to be utilized in the fields of bioenergy, fragrance, and pharmaceuticals.