Leaching of PAHs from rubber modified asphalt pavements

The present study aimed to, for the first time, quantify the total content of 16 priority EPA PAHs in end-of-life tyre derived crumb rubber granulates and various manufactured rubberised asphalt mix designs. After identifying the availability of 16 EPA PAHs, the leaching behaviour of rubberised asphalt specimens, were evaluated using the Dynamic Surface Leaching Test (DSLT) based on CEN/TS 16637-2:2014 standard. This was prior to modelling the release mechanisms of PAHs by utilizing a mathematical diffusion-controlled leaching model. According to the results, the total content of 16 EPA PAHs in crumb rubber granulates ranged between 0.061 and 8.322 μg/g, which were associated with acenaphthene and pyrene, respectively. The total content of PAHs in rubberised asphalt specimens varied between 0.019 and 4.992 μg/g depending on the volume of crumb rubber granulates in the asphalt concrete mix design, and type of binder. Results of the leaching experiments revealed that the highest leached PAHs were benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene and naphthalene with a 64-days cumulative release per specimen surface area > 1 μg/m2. Acenaphthylene, fluoranthene, fluorene and indeno[1,2,3-c,d]pyrene were released in cumulative concentrations between 0.1 and 1 μg/m2. The PAHs with a cumulative release potential below 0.1 μg/m2 during DSLT were benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[g,h,i]perylene and chrysene. The diffusion coefficients, which were calculated by mathematical modelling of DSLT data, revealed that the leaching process of 16 EPA PAHs from surface of rubberised asphalt concrete mix designs fitted all the criteria set by the NEN 7345 standard for diffusion-controlled leaching during all stages of leaching experiments

Combiner la gestion durable des eaux pluviales et l'utilisation de la chaleur du sol ; suivi de la maison écologique Hanson, Watford, UK

Colloque avec actes et comité de lecture. Internationale.International audienc

Do plant species influence soil CO2 and N2O fluxes in a diverse tropical forest?

To test whether plant species influence greenhouse gas production in diverse ecosystems, we measured wet season soil CO2 and N2O fluxes close to ~300 large (>35 cm in diameter at breast height (DBH)) trees of 15 species at three clay-rich forest sites in central Amazonia. We found that soil CO2 fluxes were 38% higher near large trees than at control sites >10 m away from any tree (P < 0.0001). After adjusting for large tree presence, a multiple linear regression of soil temperature, bulk density, and liana DBH explained 19% of remaining CO2 flux variability. Soil N2O fluxes adjacent to Caryocar villosum, Lecythis lurida, Schefflera morototoni, and Manilkara huberi were 84%-196% greater than Erisma uncinatum and Vochysia maxima, both Vochysiaceae. Tree species identity was the most important explanatory factor for N2O fluxes, accounting for more than twice the N2O flux variability as all other factors combined. Two observations suggest a mechanism for this finding: (1) sugar addition increased N2O fluxes near C. villosum twice as much (P < 0.05) as near Vochysiaceae and (2) species mean N2O fluxes were strongly negatively correlated with tree growth rate (P = 0.002). These observations imply that through enhanced belowground carbon allocation liana and tree species can stimulate soil CO2 and N2O fluxes (by enhancing denitrification when carbon limits microbial metabolism). Alternatively, low N2O fluxes potentially result from strong competition of tree species with microbes for nutrients. Species-specific patterns in CO2 and N2O fluxes demonstrate that plant species can influence soil biogeochemical processes in a diverse tropical forest

The Potential Impact of Nuclear Conflict on Ocean Acidification

We demonstrate that the global cooling resulting from a range of nuclear conflict scenarios would temporarily increase the pH in the surface ocean by up to 0.06 units over a 5-year period, briefly alleviating the decline in pH associated with ocean acidification. Conversely, the global cooling dissolves atmospheric carbon into the upper ocean, driving a 0.1 to 0.3 unit decrease in the aragonite saturation state (Ωarag) that persists for ∼10 years. The peak anomaly in pH occurs 2 years post conflict, while the Ωarag anomaly peaks 4- to 5-years post conflict. The decrease in Ωarag would exacerbate a primary threat of ocean acidification: the inability of marine calcifying organisms to maintain their shells/skeletons in a corrosive environment. Our results are based on sensitivity simulations conducted with a state-of-the-art Earth system model integrated under various black carbon (soot) external forcings. Our findings suggest that regional nuclear conflict may have ramifications for global ocean acidification