In the present study the adsorption of Reactive Blue 19 dye on the hydroxyapatite (HAp) nanopowders was investigated. The batch adsorption experiments were performed by monitoring the adsorbent dosage, contact time, dye solution concentration, pH and temperature. At pH 3 and 20°C, high dye removal rates of about 95.58% and 86.95% for the uncalcined and calcined nanohydroxyapatites, respectively, were obtained. The kinetic studies indicated the dye adsorption onto nanohydroxyapatite samples to follow a pseudo-second order model. The Langmuir isotherm was found to be the best to represent the equilibrium with experimental data. The maximum adsorption capacity of uncalcined and calcined nanohydroxyapatite samples has been found to be 90.09 mg/g and 74.97 mg/g, respectively.

A ceria loaded carbon nanotubes (CeO2/CNTs) nanocomposites photocatalyst was prepared by chemical precipitation, and the preparation conditions were optimized using an orthogonal experiment method. HR-TEM, XRD, UV-Vis/DRS, TGA and XPS were used to characterize the photocatalyst. Nitrogen adsorption-desorption was employed to determine the BET specific surface area. The results indicated that the photocatalyst has no obvious impurities. CeO2 was dispersed on the carbon nanotubes with a good loading effect and high loading efficiency without agglomeration. The catalyst exhibits a strong ability to absorb light in the ultraviolet region and some ability to absorb light in the visible light region. The CeO2/CNTs nanocomposites photocatalyst was used to degrade azo dye Acid Orange 7 (40 mg/L). The optical decolorization rate was 66.58% after xenon lamp irradiation for 4 h, which is better than that of commercial CeO2 (43.13%). The results suggested that CeO2 loading on CNTs not only enhanced the optical decolorization rate but also accelerated the separation of CeO2/CNTs and water.

The paper presents the results of studies on the influence of the 2010 Vistula flood on the humification process in the bottom sediments of the Goczałkowice Reservoir in southern Poland. Due to its location in the vicinity of farmlands, forests and urbanized areas, the Goczałkowice Reservoir is characterized by amplified and intense humification processes within its sediments. The studies were focused on the determining the influence of the flood wave containing organic and inorganic suspensions on these processes. Humic acids were analyzed using two spectroscopic methods: Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). Application of these methods allowed to determine the values of free radicals and of the g-factor, which are indicators of oxidation, aromatization and maturation of humic acids during the humification process, as well as the value of the 1650/1720 ratio, reflecting the dissociation of the COOH group to COO− and the formation of complexes of transitional metals with humic acids during the humification process.

The article presents a method of designing single-chamber rectangular detention reservoirs based on nomographs connecting the parameters and the shape of the inflow with the reservoir hydrograph (triangular, described by the power function and described by the gamma distribution) as well as the hydraulic characteristics of the accumulation chamber and the orifice. The preparation of nomographs involved using the SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) program with the application of numerical calculations’ results of a differential equation for the stormwater volume balance. The performed analyses confirm a high level of similarity between the results of calculating the reservoir volume obtained by using the above mentioned program and using the developed nomographs. The examples of calculations presented in the paper confirm the application aspects of the discussed method of designing the detention reservoir. Moreover, based on the conducted analyses it was concluded that the inflow hydrograph described by the gamma distribution has the greatest impact on the reservoir’s storage volume, whereas the hydrograph whose shape in the rise and recession phases is described by the power function has the smallest effect.

The decolourization of Turquoise Blue HFG by immobilized cells of Lysinibacillus fusiformis B26 was investigated. Cells of L. fusiformis B26 were immobilized by entrapment in agar and calcium alginate matrices and attached in pumice particles. The effects of operational conditions (e.g., agar concentrations, cell concentrations, temperature, and inoculum amount) on microbial decolourization by immobilized cells were investigated. The results revealed that alginate was proven to be the best as exhibiting maximum decolourization (69.62%), followed by agar (55.55%) at 40°C. Pumice particles were the poorest. Optimum conditions for agar matrix were found: concentration was 3%, cell amount was 0.5 g and temperature was 40°C (55.55%). Ca-alginate beads were loaded with 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 g of wet cell pellets and the highest colour removal activity was observed with 2.0 g of cell pellet at 40°C for alginate beads. Also, 0.5 and 1.0 g of pumice particles that were loaded with 0.25 and 0.5 g of cell pellets respectively were used and the results were found very similar to each other.

The article presents the results of research which describes antagonism between Pb-Zn in selected plant species from the area of Czestochowa – Mirow district (north-western part of the Czestochowa Upland). There were analyzed changes in the ratio of Pb/Zn in different organs of the tested plants as a function of the Zn content changes. The content of metals in the plants and the soil was determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometry AAS. In all organs of the plants there was observed antagonistic decrease of Pb uptake and accumulation, resulting from the increase in the concentration Zn.

Antagonism between Zn and Pb in roots of the tested plants occurred at Zn content of 200–600 μg/g. In turn, antagonism in stems and flowers occurred at lower contents of zinc (100–180 μg/g). In leaves, antagonism between Pb and Zn occurred when Zn was present at the level of 300–800 μg/g.

Ex definition of the analyses confirm the presence of antagonism of lead with regard to high levels of Zn. The study also confirmed that the degree of antagonism depends on the plant species.

Nutrient pollution such as nitrate (NO3−) can cause water quality degradation in rivers used as a source of drinking water. This situation raises the question of how the nutrients have moved depending on many factors such as land use and anthropogenic sources. Researchers developed several nutrient export coefficient models depending on the aforementioned factors. To this purpose, statistical data including a number of factors such as historical water quality and land use data for the Melen Watershed were used. Nitrate export coefficients are estimates of the total load or mass of nitrate (NO3−) exported from a watershed standardized to unit area and unit time (e.g. kg/km2/day). In this study, nitrate export coefficients for the Melen Watershed were determined using the model that covers the Frequentist and Bayesian approaches. River retention coefficient was determined and introduced into the model as an important variable.

This research was conducted to study the adsorption of ammonium ions onto pumice as a natural and low-cost adsorbent. The physico-chemical properties of the pumice granular were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Modeling and optimization of a NH4+ sorption process was accomplished by varying four independent parameters (pumice dosage, initial ammonium ion concentration, mixing rate and contact time) using a central composite design (CCD) under response surface methodology (RSM). The optimum conditions for maximum removal of NH4+ (70.3%) were found to be 100 g, 20 mg/l, 300 rpm and 180 min, for pumice dosage, initial NH4+ ion concentration, mixing rate and contact time. It was found that the NH4+ adsorption on the pumice granular was dependent on adsorbent dosage and initial ammonium ion concentration. NH4+ was increased due to decrease the initial concentration of NH4 and increase the contact time, mixing rate and amount of adsorbent.

Compounds present in oil sludge such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are known to be cytotoxic, mutagenic and potentially carcinogenic. Microorganisms including bacteria and fungi have been reported to degrade oil sludge components to innocuous compounds such as carbon dioxide, water and salts. In the present study, we isolated different bacteria with PAH-degrading capabilities from compost prepared from oil sludge and animal manures. These bacteria were isolated on a mineral base medium and mineral salt agar plates. A total of 31 morphologically distinct isolates were carefully selected from 5 different compost treatments for identification using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of the 16S rRNA gene with specific primers (universal forward 16S-P1 PCR and reverse 16S-P2 PCR). The amplicons were sequenced and sequences were compared with the known nucleotides from the GenBank. The phylogenetic analyses of the isolates showed that they belong to 3 different clades; Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria. These bacteria identified were closely related to the genera Bacillus, Arthrobacter, Staphylococcus, Brevibacterium, Variovorax, Paenibacillus, Ralstonia and Geobacillus. The results showed that Bacillus species were predominant in all composts. Based on the results of the degradation of the PAHs in the composts and results of previous studies on bacterial degradation of hydrocarbons in oil, the characteristics of these bacterial isolates suggests that they may be responsible for the breakdown of PAHs of different molecular weights in the composts. Thus, they may be potentially useful for bioremediation of oil sludge during compost bioremediation.

Heavy metal pollutants in the leachate of waste landfill are a potential threat to the environment. In this study, the feasibility of using municipal sewage sludge as barrier material for the containment of heavy metal pollutants from solid waste landfills was evaluated by compaction test and hydraulic conductivity test concerning compaction property, impermeability and heavy metal retardation. Results of the compaction test showed that the maximum dry density of 0.79 g·cm−3 was achieved at the optimum water content of about 60%. The hydraulic conductivities of compacted sewage sludge permeated with synthetic heavy metal solutions were in the range of 1.3×10−8 – 6.2×10−9 cm·s−1, less than 1.0 ×10−7cm·s−1 recommended by regulations for barrier materials. Chemical analyses on the effluent from the hydraulic conductivity tests indicated that the two target heavy metals, Zn and Cd in the permeants were all retarded by compacted sewage sludge, which might be attributed to the precipitation and adsorption of heavy metal ions. The results of this study suggest that specially prepared material from sewage sludge could be used as a barrier for waste landfills for its low permeability and strong retardation to heavy metal pollutants.

The aim of the study was to analyze and assess the possibility of using a two-stage filtration system with ceramic membranes: a 3-tube module with 1.0 kDa cut-off (1st stage) and a one-tube module with 0.45 kDa cut-off (2nd stage) for treating effluent water from a juvenile African catfish aquaculture. The study revealed that during the 1st filtration stage of the effluent water, the highest degrees of retention were obtained with respect to: suspended solids SS (rejection coefficient RI=100%), turbidity (RI=99.40%), total iron (RI=89.20%), BOD5 (RI=76.0%), nitrite nitrogen (RI=62.30%), and CODCr (RI=41.74%). The 2nd filtration stage resulted in a lower reduction degree of the tested indicators in comparison to the 1st filtration stage. At the 2nd stage, the highest values of the rejection coefficient were noted in for the total iron content (RIV=100%), CODCr (RIV=59.52%; RV=64.28%, RVI=63.49%) and turbidity (RIV and RV = 45.0%, RVI=50.0%). The obtained results indicate that ceramic membranes (with 1.0 and 0.45 kDa cut-offs) may be used in recirculation aquaculture systems as one of the stages of effluent water treatment.