Search

Background and Purpose: Although progression of small deep subcortical infarct (PSDI) comprises 12% to 36% of all small deep subcortical infarcts, the therapy for progression is not clear. This study investigated whether induced-hypertension therapy using phenylephrine is a useful therapy for PSDI., Methods: A group of 2427 consecutive patients, diagnosed with stroke at a tertiary hospital over a period of 4years was reviewed retrospectively. We analyzed patients with small deep subcortical infarct using clinical, laboratory, and pulse wave velocity (PWV). PSDI is defined as one or more increase in the motor score according to the NIHSS. Good outcome was designated as a modified Rankin scale of 0 to 2 at discharge., Results: Among all 662 patients who had a small deep subcortical infarct, 66 patients experienced motor progression (9.97%). The induced-hypertension therapy group (n=25) received phenylephrine, and the conventional group (n=41) received anticoagulation therapy such as heparin, volume expansion, or both. Although there were no significant differences in baseline clinical and laboratory findings, the PSDI group showed a significantly more frequent decrease in blood pressure at progression (P<0.0001) and higher PWV (P=0.001). The phenylephrine group (vs the conventional group) had a lower NIHSS score (P=0.036) and good outcome at discharge (P=0.004). In multiple regression analysis, PWV (OR, 1.004 per 1-cm/s increase; 95% CI, 1.001-1.008; P=0.018) was an independent predictor of good outcome in the phenylephrine group. A side effect of phenylephrine treatment was dysuria (n=1)., Conclusions: The present study suggests that vascular stiffness can be not only a predictor for PSDI but also a predictor of motor improvement after induced-hypertension therapy using phenylephrine in lacunar stroke., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

We demonstrated that water-soluble aminopropyl magnesium functionalized phyllosilicate could be used as a soil-flushing agent for heavy metal contaminated soils. Soil flushing has been an attractive means to remediate heavy metal contamination because it is less disruptive to the soil environment after the treatment was performed. However, development of efficient and non-toxic soil-flushing agents is still required. We have synthesized aminoclays with three different central metal ions such as magnesium, aluminum, and ferric ions and investigated applicability of aminoclays as soil flushing agents. Among them, magnesium (Mg)-centered aminoclay showed the smallest size distribution and superior water solubility, up to 100mg/mL. Mg aminoclay exhibited cadmium and lead binding capacity of 26.50 and 91.31 mg/g of Mg clay, respectively, at near neutral pH, but it showed negligible binding affinity to metals in acidic conditions. For soil flushing with Mg clay at neutral pH showed cadmium and lead were efficiently extracted from soils by Mg clay, suggesting strong binding ability of Mg clay with cadmium and lead. As the organic matter and clay compositions increased in the soil, the removal efficiency by Mg clay decreased and the operation time increased., (Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

We report a method for the removal of malachite green (MG) by adsorption and precipitation using nano-sized aminopropyl functionalized magnesium phyllosilicate (AMP) clay. MG, which is used in aquaculture and fisheries, is a carcinogenic and mutagenic compound. In response to these health risks, many efforts have been focused on adsorption of MG onto various adsorbents, which is a versatile and widely used technique for removing MG from water. Herein, we describe the adsorption and precipitation of MG using AMP clay, as well as the alkaline fading phenomenon of MG. In this study, prepared AMP clay and the precipitate product after the reaction of MG-AMP clay mixture were characterized. In addition, adsorption isotherms and kinetics, as well as thermodynamic studies are presented. Based on the results, we suggest a macro- and microscopic removal mechanism for the adsorption and precipitation of MG using AMP clay. An AMP clay dosage of 0.1 mg mL(-1) exhibited a maximum removal capacity of 334.80 mg g(-1) and 81.72% MG removal efficiency. With further increases of the AMP clay dosage, removal capacity by AMP clay gradually decreased; at dosage above 0.2 mg mL(-1) of AMP clay, the removal efficiency reached 100%., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

We describe a facile and simple one-pot synthesis of water-soluble amino-organoclay under ambient conditions. The clay was used to successfully remove environmentally toxic anionic metals, such as arsenate, chromate, and ferricyanide. The electrostatic interactions between the anionic metals and the protonated amino (ammonium) groups of the amino-organoclay resulted in rapid precipitation, within 3 min, with a high removal capacity. The maximum removal capacities (in units of mg metal per g organoclay) of the amino-organoclay clay toward HAsO(4)(2-), CrO(4)(2-), or Fe(CN)(6)(3-) were, 30.73 mg/g, 34.67 mg/g, or 218.88 mg/g in case of 0.02 g, 0.03 g, and 0.005 g of the amino-organoclay, respectively. The removal efficiencies of 0.07 g, 0.09 g, and 0.03 g of the amino-organoclay whose dosage of clay was at the highest removal efficiency (%) for arsenate, chromate, and ferricyanide, respectively, presented 59.79%, 89.54%, and 97.43%. Furthermore, humic acid that ubiquitous in the organic matter present in water or soil environments, inhibited the removal rate of anionic metals, and thus the removal efficiencies toward all anionic metals were markedly reduced. Humic acid preferentially precipitated with the interaction of amino-organoclay prior to the anionic metals., (Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

We report microbial cell immobilization onto a hybrid support of peat moss for diesel biodegradation. Three strains isolated from a site contaminated with diesel oil were used in this study: Acinetobacter sp., Gordonia sp., and Rhodococcus sp. To increase not only diesel adsorption but also diesel biodegradation, additives such as zeolite, bentonite, chitosan, and alginate were tested. In this study, a peat moss, bentonite, and alginate (2/2.9/0.1 g, w/w/w) hybrid support (PBA) was the best support matrix, considering both diesel physical adsorption capacity and mixed microbial immobilization., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Electrokinetic remediation has been successfully used to remove organic contaminants and heavy metals within soil. The electrokinetic process changes basic soil properties, but little is known about the impact of this remediation technology on indigenous soil microbial activities. This study reports on the effects of electrokinetic remediation on indigenous microbial activity and community within diesel contaminated soil. The main removal mechanism of diesel was electroosmosis and most of the bacteria were transported by electroosmosis. After 25 days of electrokinetic remediation (0.63 mA cm(-2)), soil pH developed from pH 3.5 near the anode to pH 10.8 near the cathode. The soil pH change by electrokinetics reduced microbial cell number and microbial diversity. Especially the number of culturable bacteria decreased significantly and only Bacillus and strains in Bacillales were found as culturable bacteria. The use of EDTA as an electrolyte seemed to have detrimental effects on the soil microbial activity, particularly in the soil near the cathode. On the other hand, the soil dehydrogenase activity was enhanced close to the anode and the analysis of microbial community structure showed the increase of several microbial populations after electrokinetics. It is thought that the main causes of changes in microbial activities were soil pH and direct electric current. The results described here suggest that the application of electrokinetics can be a promising soil remediation technology if soil parameters, electric current, and electrolyte are suitably controlled based on the understanding of interaction between electrokinetics, contaminants, and indigenous microbial community., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A study of the anodic oxidation of 1,4-dioxane, a refractory water pollutant, by boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes was carried out under a range of major system variables: initial concentration, current density, temperature, pH, and electrolyte concentration. The 1,4-dioxane removal behavior was monitored by chemical oxygen demand (COD), and the results were compared with theoretical models for the electrochemical incineration of organic compounds. The removal efficiency of COD was shown to be greater than 95% in most cases, and no electrode fouling was observed during the reaction. Experimental degradation behavior agreed well with the theoretical models, implying that system variables can be predicted, even when the process is applied at pilot scale. Processes conducted at lower initial concentrations and higher temperatures yielded better energy consumption efficiency. Conditions of higher current density yielded faster degradation but need greater quantities of charge loading into the system. Therefore, a compromise between treatment time and energy consumption is required to achieve the desired efficiency. Meanwhile, pH and electrolyte concentrations did not affect reaction efficiency, suggesting that pH adjustment prior to wastewater treatment is not necessary. Thus, anodic oxidation of 1,4-dioxane by BDD electrodes promises to be both an economical and an efficient in wastewater treatment process., (2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Nowadays, many researchers have studied the environmental application of the nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) and several field applications for the groundwater remediation have been reported. Still, there are many concerns on the fate and transport of the nZVI and the corresponding risks. To avoid such concerns, it was investigated to immobilize nZVI in a support and then it was applied to degrade trichloroethylene (TCE). The nZVI and palladium-doped nZVI (Fe(0)- and Fe/Pd-alginate) were immobilized in the alginate bead where ferric and barium ions are used as the cross-linking cations of the bead. According to TEM (transmission electron microscopy), the size of the immobilized ZVI was as small as a few nanometers. From the surface analysis of the Fe/Pd-alginate, it is found that the immobilized nZVI has the core-shell structure. The core is composed of single crystal Fe(0), while most of irons on the surface are oxidized to Fe(3+). When 50 g/L of Fe/Pd-alginate (3.7 g Fe/L) was introduced to the aqueous solution, >99.8% of TCE was removed and the release of metal from the support was <3% of the loaded iron. The removal of TCE by Fe/Pd-alginate followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. The observed pseudo-first-order reaction constant (k(obs)) of Fe/Pd-alginate was 6.11 h(-1) and the mass normalized rate constant (k(m)) was 1.6 L h(-1) g(-1). The k(m) is the same order of magnitude with that of iron nanoparticles. In conclusion, it is considered that Fe/Pd-alginate can be used efficiently in the treatment of chlorinated solvent., (2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A variety of inorganic contaminants may form toxic oxyanions in aqueous systems which pose significant hazard to human health and the ecosystem. In order to remove the oxyanions from aqueous stream effectively, surfactant-modified powdered activated carbon (SM-PAC) combined with ultrafiltration (UF) was proposed in this study. As the cationic surfactant, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), adsorbs on the surface of PAC, the zeta potential of PAC increases to +40 mV. Oxyanions such as chromate, ferricyanide and arsenate bind on SM-PAC by electrostatic interaction, then the contaminants bound with SM-PAC can be separated by UF membrane. 0.3 mM of chromate and ferricyanide are removed completely with 4.0 g/L of SM-PAC. In case of arsenate, the removal efficiency was lower than chromate and ferricyanide. It is considered that the competition occurs among anionic pollutants on the limited binding sites of SM-PAC and lower valence of arsenate results in the lower removal efficiency. High permeate flux is maintained during filtration. The spent SM-PAC was regenerated by the concentrated Cl(-) solutions. NaCl solution whose molar Cl(-) concentration is 1.4 times higher than the contaminants bound on SM-PAC was optimal for the regeneration. Regenerated SM-PAC exhibited similar adsorption capacity to fresh SM-PAC. SM-PAC combined with UF can effectively remove anionic contaminants. Moreover, the simple and efficient regeneration process is proposed.

Emulsion-based remediation with biodegradable vegetable oils was investigated as an alternative technology for the treatment of subsurface DNAPLs (dense non-aqueous phase liquids) such as TCE (trichloroethylene) and PCE (perchloroethylene). Corn and olive oil emulsions obtained by homogenization at 8000rpm for 15min were used. The emulsion droplets prepared with corn and olive oil gave a similar size distribution (1-10microm) and almost all of initially injected oil, >90%, remained in a dispersed state. In batch experiments, 2% (v/v) oil emulsion could adsorb up to 11,000ppm of TCE or 18,000ppm of PCE without creating a free phase. Results of one-dimensional column flushing studies indicated that contaminants with high aqueous solubility could be efficiently removed by flushing with vegetable oil emulsions. Removal efficiencies exceeded 98% for TCE and PCE with both corn and olive oil emulsions. The results of this study show that flushing with biodegradable oil emulsion can be used for the remediation of groundwater contaminated by DNAPLs.

Removal of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) using surfactant-enhanced electrokinetic (EK) method was studied in a model system. Kaolinite and phenanthrene were selected as a model clay soil and a representative HOC, respectively. Three different types of surfactants: APG (alkyl polyglucoside), Brij30 (polyoxyethylene-4-lauryl ether), and SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate), were used to enhance the solubility of HOC. Characteristics of surfactants, such as surface tension, HOC solubility, and biodegradability were measured. In the case of Brij30 solution, phenanthrene solubility was higher than that of others. After 4 days, APG and Brij30 were degraded by 65% and 26% of the initial amount, respectively. However, degradation of SDS was hardly detected. Electroosmotic flow (EOF) of Brij30 solution was lower than others when the 0.1M NaCl was used as electrolyte. Addition of the acetate buffer solution increased the EOF of Brij30 solution and enhanced removal of phenanthrene. Among three different surfactants tested, APG showed the highest removal efficiency.

Immobilization of chlorinated solvents with hydropropyl and methyl cyclodextrins (CDs) was observed by head-space analysis to obtain the stability constants in single and multiple component systems. In each single component system, the highest stability constant was 0.299 mM(-1) for perchloroethylene (PCE) by methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (M-beta-CD), 0.136 mM(-1) for trichloroethylene (TCE) by M-beta-CD, 0.106 mM(-1) for cis-dichloroethylene (cis-DCE) by hydropropyl-alpha-cyclodextrin, and 0.090 mM(-1) for trans-dichloroethylene (trans-DCE) by M-beta-CD. When HP-beta-CD and M-beta-CD were used, the stability constants of PCE and TCE increased and those of DCEs decreased in a multiple component system. Differences in stability constants of single and multiple component systems thus should be important parameters when cyclodextrins are applied to solubilization of multiple chlorinated solvents.

Batch and column experiments were conducted to investigate the feasibility of flushing with silicone oil emulsion for the removal of chlorinated solvents, including trichloroethylene (TCE), perchloroethylene (PCE) and 1,2-dichlorobenzene (DCB). In the batch experiments, solubilization potentials of emulsion and effects of surfactants as additives were examined. The emulsion prepared with 2% (v/v) silicone oil could solubilize 90.7% of 10,000 ppm TCE, 97.3% of 4000 ppm PCE and 99.7% of 7,800 ppm DCB. Results of one-dimensional column studies indicated that aqueous solubility and sorption of contaminants determined the flushing efficiency. The addition of surfactants below their critical micelle concentration (CMC) did not affect the removal of chlorinated solvents in batch and column experiments. The results of this study show that flushing with oil-based emulsion can be applied to treat the chlorinated solvents.

Chitosan-based polymeric surfactants (CBPSs) were prepared by N-acylation of chitosans (chitosan 10 and 500) with several acid anhydrides such as hexanoic (C6), lauric (C12), and palmitic (C16) anhydrides. Among the CBPS samples, CBPSs having a good solubility at pH 4.0 were selected and observed for viscosity, surface tension, and adsorption of heavy metals (Cd2+, Co2+, Cr2O7(2-), and Pb2+) as well as the fatty acid (n-octanoic acid). The 1H NMR spectrum of chitosan 10 modified with C16 at the substitution ratio of 0.4 (CBPS10-C16,0.4) showed 85% of acylation in 1% DCl/D2O solutions. CBPS10 with the substitution ratio less than 0.4 showed a good solubility because of shorter repeating units and lesser amounts of hydrophobic substituents. The intrinsic viscosity of CBPS10 was slightly increased, while that of CBPS500 was decreased. As the substitution ratio and length of the carbon chain increased, the surface tension of CBPS10 tended to decrease. CBPS10-C16,0.2 had high adsorption ability for cationic metal ions such as Cd2+, Co2+, and Pb2+ comparable to chitosan. Interestingly, CBPS(10)-C(16,0.2) showed a unique pH optimum for the anionic metal ion such as Cr2O7(2-). In addition, CBPS10-C16,0.2 exhibited the highest adsorption ability for n-octanoic acid among the tested CBPS10 with different carbon chains.

It is well known that the membrane separation process combined with surfactant micelle (micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration) or polyelectrolyte (polyelectrolyte-enhanced ultrafiltration) can remove heavy metal ions or radionuclides effectively. However, the complexing agent, surfactant or polyelectrolyte remained in effluent is a serious disadvantage of these methods. In this study, humic substances (HS) were used as complexing agents instead of synthetic chemicals. The HS are sorts of natural organic matters and their functional groups such as carboxyl and phenyl groups can bind with the cation and form complexes. The effects of HS concentration and pH on the removal of cobalt were investigated. At the HS concentration of 3g/L and pH of 6, over 95% of cobalt was removed by regenerated cellulose membrane with molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of 3000. As the HS concentration increased, the removal of cobalt was also enhanced because of the increase in binding sites (functional groups). The removal of cobalt increased from 72.5% to 97.5% as pH increased from 4 to 8 at the HS concentration of 3g/L. It resulted from the more deprotonation of functional groups in humic acid at higher pH.

Ex situ electrokinetic (EK) bioremediation of a laboratory-prepared pentadecane-contaminated kaolinite was carried out. Extraneous bacteria and ionic nutrients were continuously supplied to the soil specimen by a new electrolyte circulation method, which controlled electrical pH change of electrolyte solution to keep bacterial activity. During the EK bioremediation the anode region showed the highest colony forming unit (CFU) due to electrical attraction between anode and bacteria. Simultaneous increases of CFU and uniform pentadecane removal in most soil regions demonstrated that electro-osmosis as well as electrophoresis affected the bacterial transport in soil. At 3.13 mA/cm2, increase in soil temperature to above 45 degrees C inhibited bacterial activity, which caused the decrease of removal efficiency. The removal amount of pentadecane increased with initial pentadecane concentration at the same current densities (0.63 and 1.88 mA/cm2) because of the increased amount of weakly bound pentadecane onto the soil surface. The highest removal efficiency (77.6%) was obtained at 0.63 mA/cm2 for 1000 mg/kg pentadecane after 14 days. Consequently, the present methods of EK bioremediation demonstrated superiority over the conventional bioremediation, which had inherent demerits of slow degradation and low removal efficiency.

Feasibility of cross-flow micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration was investigated to remove chromate and nitrate from water system using a cationic surfactant, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC). Removal of chromate with -2 as valence was higher than that of nitrate with -1 as valence in the conditions of co-existence of chromate and nitrate. Removal of nitrate was significantly inhibited by co-existence of chromate because of competitive binding to CPC micelles between chromate and nitrate, while that of chromate was only slightly inhibited by nitrate.

The immobilization behavior of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) by various cyclodextrins (CDs) was studied. Although it has a low hydrophobic character and high polarity compared to other organics, MTBE was effectively immobilized by CDs. The immobilization isotherm was a type of Freundlich isotherm. The immobilization capacity of beta-CDs was the largest of the natural CDs. The initial apparent association constant for MTBE-CD complex follows the order: gamma = beta > methyl-beta > hydroxypropyl beta > alpha. The difference in these constants is related to the size of MTBE and CDs. The size of beta- and gamma-CD is large enough to encapsulate MTBE molecule into the cavity, which that of alpha-CD is too small to encapsulate MTBE.

Surfactant-based separation of Fe(CN)(6)(3-) and CrO(4)(2-) using regenerated cellulose membrane was studied in order to assess the potential of micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration for the remediation of wastewater or groundwater polluted with ferriccyanide and chromate. In the ferriccyanide/octadecylamine acetate (ODA) and chromate/ODA systems, removal of ferriccyanide increased from 73 to 92% and to 98%, and that of chromate from 64 to 97% and to >99.9% as the molar ratio of ODA to ferriccyanide and to chromate increased from 1 to 2 and to 3, respectively. In the ferriccyanide/chromate/ODA system, while the removal of ferriccyanide increased from 62 to 72% and to 93%, the removal of chromate from 20 to 38% and to 68% as the molar ratio of ferriccyanide:chromate:ODA increased from 1:1:1 to 1:1:2 and to 1:1:4, respectively. With the molar ratio of 1:1:6, the removal was >99.9 and 98% for chromate and ferriccyanide, respectively. Ferriccyanide ions were more easily bound to ODA micelles because the binding power of ferriccyanide was greater than that of chromate.

A headspace analysis for groundwater contaminated with BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes) was employed to investigate the feasibility and limitations of Carboxen-PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) fiber during SPME (solid-phase microextraction). Although the response of the Carboxen-PDMS fiber was much higher than that of conventional PDMS fiber, a reduction of the extracted amount was also observed under multi-component conditions due to competitive replacement. The general affinity of analytes to the fiber was high in the order xylene>ethylbenzene>toluene> benzene. The behavior of the Carboxen-PDMS fiber was examined more precisely at constant compositional ratio, because the analysis of contaminants using Carboxen-PDMS fiber was reported to be possible at known composition. The relative affinity of each component was shown to differ according to the total amount of analytes. Furthermore, the extracted amounts of benzene and toluene did not show a consistent tendency as the concentration of each component increased. These results indicate that caution should be exercised if Carboxen-PDMS fibers are used for the analysis of BTEX in groundwater samples.