Thermally induced behavior of the K-exchanged erionite. A further step in understanding the structural modifications of the erionite group upon heating

Fibrous erionite is a naturally occurring zeolite considered to be highly carcinogenic upon inhalation, even more than crocidolite. Since no iron is typically present in erionite, its toxicity has been attributed to ion-exchanged Fe participating in Fenton chemistry. Recently, a study aimed at investigating possible fiber inactivation routes surprisingly showed that, despite having completely occluded all available pores with K ions, the erionite-Na sample preserved the property to upload Fe (II) within the structure. In this work, the thermal behavior of the K-exchanged erionite-Na was investigated by TG/ DSC and in situ XRPD analyses in order to provide relevant information for modeling the thermally induced behavior of the erionite group. Rietveld refinement results evidenced a general trend of cell parameters and volume with temperature similar to that observed for erionite-K from Rome (Oregon, USA). However, the dependence of Tdehydrand Tbreakfrom Si/Si+Al ratio observed in zeolites (high Si content favours a lower Tdehydrand a higher Tbreak) is not observed, possibly due to the effect of the relevant amount of large K ions dispersed within the erionite cage, acting as reinforcing blocks for the framework. Heating produces a progressive emptying of the Ca sites, common effect previously observed in erionite samples showing different chemistry. In addition, K1 s.s. remains unchanged evidencing the absence of any “internal ion exchange” process, whereas s.s. at K2 increases in the range 438-573 K and then slowly decreases in the range 700-1218 K. Both Rietveld and DSC data suggest the motion of K ions from OW sites toward the walls of the erionite cavity during dehydration

Chemical characterization and surface properties of a new bioemulsifier produced by Pedobacter sp. strain MCC-Z

A novel biopolymer was described in the form of an extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) by Pedobacter sp.strain MCC-Z, a member of a bacterial genus not previously described as an emulsifier producer. Thenew biomolecule was extracted, purified and characterized, and its surface and emulsifying propertieswere evaluated. The purified bioemulsifier, named Pdb-Z, showed high emulsifying activity (E24% = 64%)and reduced the surface tension of water up to 41 mN/m with a critical micelle concentration value of2.6 mg/mL. The chemical characterization of Pdb-Z was performed using1H NMR, FT-IR, HPLC/MS/MS andGC/MS. Pdb-Z was found to contain 67% of carbohydrates, consisting mainly of galactose and minor quan-tities of talose, 30% of lipids, being pentadecanoic acid the major lipidic constituent, and 3% of proteins. Thebioemulsifier was a glycolipids-protein complex with an estimated molecular mass of 106Da. Further-more, Pdb-Z emulsified pure aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons as well as diesel more efficiently thancommercial synthetic surfactants, used for comparison. Our results suggest Pdb-Z has interesting prop-erties for applications in remediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated environments and bioremediation processes

Platinum levels in natural and urban soils from Rome and Latium (Italy): significance for pollution by automobile catalytic converter.

Platinum concentrations in topsoil samples collected in 1992 (48) and in 2001 (16) from the urban area of Rome have been determined by ICP–MS.Concentrations in 47 soil samples collected in 1992 from natural sites of Latium (an area around Rome) have been determined for a first assessment of natural background levels.The Pt concentrations in Rome urban soils collected in 1992 range from 0.8 to 6.3 ngyg ( s3.8"1.0) overlapping the concentration range ¯X of natural soils from Latium ( s3.1"2.1 ngyg).No significant correlation has generally been found between Pt ¯X contents in the ‘natural’ soils and related bedrock or major pedogenetic parameters.These results suggest that there is no evidence of Pt pollution in Rome urban soils at that time, because the massive use of the automobile catalytic converter has only just started.Higher (up to six times more) Pt concentrations, than those measured in the 1992 samples, have been measured, in some cases, in Rome urban soils collected in 2001, suggesting a possible start of Pt accumulation because of the large-scale use in the last decade of automobile catalytic converters.At the same time, a clear decrease of lead levels in Rome urban soils with respect to the levels measured in 1992 has been observed, paralleling the decreasing number of lead gasoline-fuelled cars.Her e we present one of the first systematic studies for defining background levels of Pt in Italian natural soils, thus allowing for monitoring, in the future, should any possible Pt pollution caused by the use of automobile catalytic converter, especially in urban soils, occur.Published47-574.4. Scenari e mitigazione del rischio ambientaleJCR Journalrestricte

Deep explosive focal depths during maar forming magmatichydrothermal eruption: Baccano Crater, Central Italy

Abstract We describe the eruptive activity of the Pleistocene composite Baccano maar crater in the Sabatini Volcanic Complex (Central Italy) combining stratigraphy, grain size/componentry and rare earth element and Yttrium (REY) composition of its eruptive products with the stratigraphy and geothermal data derived from deep wells drilled on the Baccano structural high. The main lithological characteristics of the basal Baccano maar pyroclastic deposit, composed of more than 60% wt of non-thermometamorphosed lithic clasts from the sedimentary basement, show that the first eruption was magmatic-hydrothermal in nature. The lithology of the sedimentary lithic clasts indicates that the fragmentation level was at a depth of −1,000 to −1,200 m, with fragment depth verified by deep well stratigraphy. The 15% wt juvenile non-vesicular glass components suggest that magma played a minor role in powering the eruption. Assuming that the high-salinity hot hydrothermal fluids (365<T<410°C and P∼25 MPa), hosted in the highly permeable and confined aquifer below the Baccano maar are representative of those at the time of the eruption, we propose that hydrofracturing would have triggered the eruption caused by overpressure at the top of the geothermal aquifer. REY analysis performed on pyroclastic fragments and basement rocks suggest that partial dissolution of the deeper limestones (>−1,400 m) by the aggressive hydrothermal fluids enriched in acid components (HF, HCl, and H2SO4) may have contributed to increased CO2 partial pressure that helped to drive the hydrofracturing. This could have caused rapid vapour separation and pressure drop, allowing the almost simultaneous breaking of the aquifer cover and brecciation of the calcareous units down to −1,000 to −1,200 m depth. The relative abundance of calcareous lithics in the basal part of the first Baccano eruptive unit, representing about the upper 200 m of stratigraphy below the top of the Baccano structural high, reveals the descent of the piezometric surface during the eruption. Combining deep well information and maar product stratigraphy, using also REY data from maar pyroclastic fragments and the basement rocks we draw an interpretative model for the Baccano maarforming eruption, concluding that a) magmatic-hydrothermal eruptions may originate deeper than previously thought, and b) hydrothermal fluids circulating in limestone aquifers m