Effect of Humic Acid on Adsorption of Polychlorinated Biphenyls onto Organoclay

Mitigation of risks stemming from contaminated sediments in freshwater and estuarine environments remains an important challenge to the field of environmental science and engineering. Capping sediments with reactive materials is one approach that has recently been the subject of research and development. This research evaluated the use of organoclay as a sorbent in a reactive cap for in situ remediation of contaminated sediments, and provides an original contribution by presenting the sorption characteristics of individual polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) congeners in the presence of high concentrations of humic acids typical of sediment porewater environments. Sorption of coplanar and noncoplanar PCBs on three commercially available organoclays was studied in this work. Studies were conducted to evaluate the kinetics of adsorption of PCBs on organoclay and to determine the effect of humic acid on the kinetics of adsorption. Isotherm studies were conducted to determine the adsorption affinity of PCBs for organoclays in the presence and absence of humic acid. Studies showed a 45 to 96% reduction in the sorption affinity for organoclays after preloading with high concentrations of humic acid, depending both on the congener and the composition of organoclay. Desorption of PCBs upon addition of humic acid after PCBs were equilibrated with organoclay was statistically significant, although the magnitude of the effect was much smaller than that observed from preloading of humic acid

Evaluation of Activated Carbon as a Reactive Cap Sorbent for Sequestration of PCBs in Presence of Humic Acid

This study investigated the interferences caused by high humic acid concentrations on the adsorption of coplanar and noncoplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on coconut shell activated carbon. In particular, the research focuses on the application of activated carbon as a reactive cap for contaminated sediment sites, a possible intervention to reduce contaminant flux through pore water, and to organisms in aquatic environments. Kinetic and equilibrium studies were conducted using activated carbon as a sorbent for individual PCB congeners including BZ 1, 52, 77, 153, and 169, respectively, in the presence and absence of humic acid. Results showed that preloading of activated carbon with humic acid significantly reduced the adsorption affinity for all selected PCB congeners. Experiments conducted without preloading of activated carbon demonstrated that desorption upon subsequent spiking with humic acid (simulating long-term exposure to pore water that contains high humic acid concentrations) was not found to be statistically significant, and varied with coplanarity of PCBs. Results provide important information for the design of reactive caps in sediments where high concentrations of dissolved organic carbon are found, and highlight the importance of considering site conditions when designing effective reactive caps

Sediment identification using free fall penetrometer acceleration-time histories

Abstract Knowledge of physical properties of near-surface sediments is an important requirement for many studies of the seafloor. Dynamic or Free Fall Penetrometers (FFP), instrumented with accelerometers, are widely used to assess the mechanical properties of the sediment by deriving penetration resistance from the deceleration response of the probe as it impacts and embeds the seabed. Other field investigations, a priori knowledge or a very basic description of the type of sediment (such as a description of the sediment as soft, medium or hard) derived from studying the deceleration response (accelerometer-time histories) are used for sediment identification prior to the application of an appropriate strength determination model. In many cases this information is site-specific and in others the penetration resistance is overestimated due to the dilatory effects observed in sediment with an undetected grain fraction. In this study variables affecting a dynamic penetrometer-sediment interaction system are identified. Using data from field investigations and literature we found a relationship among five variables: peak acceleration, embedment depth, total embedment time, velocity of impact and grain size. This is used to formulate a sediment identification model. The model accounts for variables that may vary widely within one deployment and it can be applied to other FFPs with different physical characteristics (such as a different mass or size). This may lead to the increased use of FFP as a deployment tool for rapid in situ characterization of the seafloor

Reversal of β cell de-differentiation by a small molecule inhibitor of the TGFβ pathway

Dysfunction or death of pancreatic β cells underlies both types of diabetes. This functional decline begins with β cell stress and de-differentiation. Current drugs for type 2 diabetes (T2D) lower blood glucose levels but they do not directly alleviate β cell stress nor prevent, let alone reverse, β cell de-differentiation. We show here that Urocortin 3 (Ucn3), a marker for mature β cells, is down-regulated in the early stages of T2D in mice and when β cells are stressed in vitro. Using an insulin expression-coupled lineage tracer, with Ucn3 as a reporter for the mature β cell state, we screen for factors that reverse β cell de-differentiation. We find that a small molecule inhibitor of TGFβ receptor I (Alk5) protects cells from the loss of key β cell transcription factors and restores a mature β cell identity even after exposure to prolonged and severe diabetes. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02809.00

Type 1 diabetes: translating mechanistic observations into effective clinical outcomes

Type 1 diabetes remains an important health problem, particularly in Western countries where the incidence has been increasing in younger children(1). In 1986, Eisenbarth described Type 1 diabetes as a chronic autoimmune disease. Work over the past 3 ½ decades has identified many of the genetic, immunologic, and environmental factors that are involved in the disease and have led to hypotheses concerning its pathogenesis. Based on these findings, clinical trials have been conducted to test these hypotheses but have had mixed results. In this review, we discuss the findings that have led to current concepts of the disease mechanisms, how this understanding has prompted clinical studies, and the results of these studies. The findings from preclinical and clinical studies support the original proposed model for how type 1 diabetes develops, but have also suggested that this disease is more complex than originally thought and will require broader treatment approaches

Leaching Behavior of Estuarine Sediments and Cement-Stabilized Sediments in Upland Management Environments

Contaminated surficial sediments in major ports and harbors remain a significant economic liability during routine dredging operations. Numerous beneficial uses have been suggested in recent years that promise reduced sediment management costs concomitant with a productive material use. This manuscript describes the leaching of metals and metalloids from surficial sediments and from controlled low strength material (flowable fill) produced using the estuarine sediments as replacement for sand. Sediments from two locations within the New York/New Jersey Harbor area (Gowanus Canal and Newtown Creek) (USA), were subjected to pH-dependent leaching tests and liquid-to-solid ratio dependent leaching tests. Results indicate that, in general, maximum contaminant levels for drinking water, used here as a benchmark for metals concentrations in leachate, were exceeded only at pH values less than 5 or greater than 9. Leaching as a function of increasing liquid-to-solid ratio demonstrated that pH controlled the observed behavior: unamended sediment leached lower concentrations of all elements except for the oxyanion arsenate. The flowable fill material, despite dilution of the sediment and incorporation into a cementitious matrix, leached higher element concentrations except for arsenic due to the high pH of the material. It was also shown that a much more grossly contaminated material (Newtown Creek) had a very similar leaching behavior to the less contaminated Gowanus Canal material. Speciation calculations demonstrated that dissolved organic carbon plays a significant role in the leaching observed from these estuarine sediments and the flowable fill made with the high organic matter content sediments