社会经济代谢研究:内涵、发现和展望

社会经济代谢是指由于人类活动导致的物质和能量在社会经济系统内部和边界上的迁移和转换。社会经济代谢研究已经成为产业生态学的核心领域。本文结合典型案例介绍了社会经济代谢研究的内涵和基本步骤,总结了社会经济代谢研究的主要发现:提供了追踪物质在社会经济系统的来源、去向和流动路径的方法与模型;揭示了物质材料及其社会经济代谢过程对现代化生产和生活方式的支撑作用;阐明了人类活动驱动与物质代谢相关的生态环境问题的机制;提供了评估资源利用效率、资源供需趋势和城市矿产开发潜力的模型与基础数据。最后指出了社会经济代谢研究的发展方向:增加研究对象并深化对每种对象的研究精度;拓展或细化研究系统的时空边界;引入并融合新的数据来源和研究方法;将社会经济代谢中的物质流对接到与其相关的生态环境影响;建立可共享、可拓展、可累积的数据平台。     

我国工业生物技术和产业的现状、差距与任务

工业生物技术是利用生化反应和生物体机能进行物质合成加工与能量转化利用的集成技术,正在支撑建立以可发酵糖、秸秆、二氧化碳等可再生资源为原料的化学品绿色高效制造新路线,有望实现工业制造方式的根本转变,是支撑经济社会可持续发展的重大战略技术,已成为世界各国科技和产业竞争的焦点。本文从工业生物技术深度融入和支撑生物经济发展的态势出发,系统分析了我国工业生物技术和生物产业发展的现状、短板问题,提出了未来建议重点发展的主要方向。     

Optimization of extracellular endoxylanase, endoglucanase and peroxidase production by Streptomyces sp. F2621 isolated in Turkey

AIMS: To determine the effect of environmental conditions on the production of extracellular lignocellulose-degrading enzymes by Streptomyces sp. F2621 and to assess the potential use of these enzymes in the hydrolysis of lignocellulose material. METHODS AND RESULTS: The production of extracellular lignocellulose-degrading enzymes, endoxylanase, endoglucanase and peroxidase during the growth of Streptomyces sp. F2621 in basal salts-yeast extract medium containing different carbon sources and the effect of a number of environmental parameters (e.g. carbon sources and concentrations, pH and temperature) were investigated. The highest endoxylanase (22.41 U ml(-1)) and peroxidase (0.58 U ml(-1)) activities were obtained after 2-4 days of incubation at 30 degrees C in a basal salts medium containing 0.4% (w/v) oat spelt xylan and 0.6% (w/v) yeast extract, corresponding to C : N ratio of 6 : 1. Cell-free extracellular enzyme preparations from the strain were capable of releasing both sugar and aromatic compounds during incubation with eucalyptus paper pulp, straw and xylan. Overall, 9.3% hydrolysis of xylan occurred after 24-h incubation. However the rates of hydrolysis of paper pulp and straw were approximately twofold less than xylan hydrolysis, although the total percentage hydrolysis of available substrate (24.5% and 16.3%, respectively) was greater than xylan hydrolysis. CONCLUSIONS: The high levels of enzyme production achieved under batch cultivation conditions, coupled with no significant production of endoglucanase during the growth phase of organism and the release of both sugar and aromatic compounds from paper pulp and straw signify the suitability for these enzymes for industrial applications such as pulp and paper production. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: The results highlight the environmental conditions for the production of extracellular lignocellulose-degrading enzymes by Streptomyces sp. F2621 and suggest the use of streptomycetes and/or their enzymes in industrial processes.     

Assessing overmedication: biology,philosophy and common sense

Overmedication is nowadays a serious problem in health care due to influences from the pharmaceutical industry and agencies responsible for regulation. The situation has indeed become appalling in psychiatry, where both theories and treatments have deteriorated under the impact of the industry. The overmedication problem is associated with biased biology in medicine. Adequate biological approaches would indicate that drug therapies must yield to diet therapies, particularly treatments involving omega-3 fatty acids, in many cases. To the extent that philosophy of science adapts to mainstream medicine in analyses of the current situation, it may reinforce the existing bias. To redress imbalances in health care, we ultimately have to rely on common sense.     

Empirical evaluation of cellulase on enzymatic hydrolysis of waste office paper

Enzymatic hydrolysis of waste office paper was evaluated using three commercial cellulases, Acremonium cellulase, Meicelase, and Cellulosin T2. Varying the enzyme loading from 1 to 10% (w/w) conversion of waste office paper to reducing sugar was investigated. The conversion increased with the increase in the enzyme loading: in the case of enzyme loading of 10% (w/w), Acremonium cellulase yielded 79% conversion of waste office paper, which was 17% higher compared to Meicelase, 13% higher than that of Cellulosin T2. Empirical model for the conversion (%) of waste office paper to reducing sugar (x) was derived from experimental results as follow,x=kE ^m t ^(aE+b) wherek, m, a, and d denote empirical constants.E indicates initial enzyme concentration.     

Detection of bacterial contamination in starch and resin-based papermaking chemicals using fluorescence techniques

Rapid fluorescence techniques were evaluated for the detection of bacterial contaminants in papermaking chemicals including starch and the resin-based sizes and starch slurries used in the paper industry. Viable and non-viable bacterial cells were visualised by fluorescent probes and detected by epifluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry. The best discrimination ability was obtained with the fluorescent probes LIVE/DEAD and SYBR Green, based on the staining of cellular nucleic acid, and ChemChrome V3, which demonstrated cellular enzymatic activity. The process samples had to be diluted and filtered before fluorescence staining and analysis because they were viscous and contained solid particles. Fluorescence microscopic counts of bacteria in highly contaminated process samples were similar to plate counts, but flow cytometric enumeration of bacterial cells in process samples yielded 2- to 10-fold lower counts compared with plate counts, depending on the consistency of the sample. The detection limits in flow cytometric analysis and in epifluorescence microscopy were 10³–10⁶ cells ml⁻¹ and 10⁵–10⁶ cells ml⁻¹, respectively. Intrinsic bacterial contamination was detectable with fluorescence techniques and highly contaminated process samples could be analysed with fluorescence methods. Electronic Publication     

Occupational magnetic field exposures of garment workers: results of personal and survey measurements

To explore the feasibility of performing an epidemiologic study of female breast cancer and magnetic field (MF) exposures, we chose to study garment workers, who reportedly have some of the highest MF exposures. We collected personal exposure (PE, n = 48) and survey measurements (n = 77) near commercial sewing machines at three garment facilities and conducted a pilot interview among 25 garment workers asking about exposure duration, activities, and machine characteristics. MF levels were higher for older machines with alternating current (AC) than newer machines with direct current (DC) motors. MF levels were comparable for both idling and sewing activities. Most interviewed workers could describe duration of exposure and machine type (automatic/manual), but not other machine characteristics. Measurements were lower than previously reported for garment workers but were higher than exposures to most women. A historical exposure assessment can be conducted by linking duration of exposure with reconstructed exposure measurements but may be limited by the accuracy of work history data.     

Using LCA to examine greenhouse gas abatement policy

The site-generic approach currently adopted by the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology introduces uncertainties into the impact assessment phase of an LCA study. These uncertainties are greatest for localised and short-lived problems but are less significant for long lasting, cumulative environmental effects. Indeed, the reliability of LCA results is high for problems that manifest at a global scale. Nevertheless, even though these results are considered accurate, it is still often unclear as to their relevance in terms of policy development and decision-making. Therefore, this paper demonstrates how LCA can be used to determine the efficacy of policies aimed at reducing a product system’s contribution to global environmental problems. We accomplish this aim by presenting a case study that evaluates the greenhouse gas contributions of each stage in the life cycle of containerboard packaging and the potential impact on emissions of various policy options available to decision makers. Our analysis showed that in general the most useful strategy was to recycle the used packaging. However, our analysis also indicated that when measures are taken to eliminate sources of methane emissions and encourage the use of plantation timber then recycling is no longer beneficial from a greenhouse perspective. This is because the process energy required in the form of gas and electricity is substantially greater for containerboard manufactured from recycled material than it is for virgin fibre.     

生态效率视角下旅游业生态福利及驱动因素——以常州市为例

经济效益最大化与环境影响最小化是绿色旅游与可持续发展的内在诉求。本文立足于生态效率模型,创新性地提出旅游业生态福利指数,据此分析1995—2017年常州市旅游业生态福利变化趋势及驱动效应,旨在为评价旅游产业绿色可持续发展能力提供新视角。研究发现:(1)1995年来常州市生态足迹呈现先增长后下降趋势,但旅游业各部门生态足迹均不断增长,游客人均资源消耗约为本地居民人均资源消耗的2.81—9.37倍,面临艰巨的节能减排压力。(2)1995年来常州市本底生态效率与旅游生态效率逐年提升,分别增加了37033元/hm~2和44226元/hm~2;同等资源消耗下,旅游业平均每单位产出高14409元/hm~2,但游客年均消耗的自然资源却为本地居民的5.78倍。(3)1995—2007年间常州市旅游生态福利升降波动频繁,2007年来呈以直线式地骤降,受规模效益影响,旅游业的绿色生态福利和高效性不断弱化,为全市的资源节约量下降了10.7倍。(4)迪氏对数指标分解法(Logarithmic Mean Disivia Index, LMDI)揭示规模效应、经济效应对旅游福利水平变化起到显著地负向驱动效应,效率效应、技术效应起到正向拉动作用。未来,常州市旅游业应以绿色发展为导向,走出"无烟产业"误区,转变经济增长模式,大力倡导节能减排工作,走资源利用精细化、可持续发展道路,最大限度提升旅游业福利效应。     

3D Si/C Fiber Paper Electrodes Fabricated Using a Combined Electrospray/Electrospinning Technique for Li‐Ion Batteries

Although the theoretical capacity of silicon is ten times higher than that of graphite, the overall electrode capacity of Si anodes is still low due to the low Si loading and heavy metal current collector. Here, a novel flexible 3D Si/C fiber paper electrode synthesized by simultaneously electrospraying nano‐Si‐PAN (polyacrylonitrile) clusters and electrospinning PAN fibers followed by carbonization is reported. The combined technology allows uniform incorporation of Si nanoparticles into a carbon textile matrix to form a nano‐Si/carbon composite fiber paper. The flexible 3D Si/C fiber paper electrode demonstrate a very high overall capacity of ≈1600 mAh g^‐1 with capacity loss less than 0.079% per cycle for 600 cycles and excellent rate capability. The exceptional performance is attributed to the unique architecture of the flexible 3D Si/C fiber paper, i.e., the resilient and conductive carbon fiber network matrix, carbon‐coated Si nanoparticle clusters, strong adhesion between carbon fibers and Si nanoparticle clusters, and uniform distribution of Si/C clusters in the carbon fiber frame. The scalable and facile synthesis method, good mechanical properties, and excellent electrochemical performance at a high Si loading make the flexible 3D Si/C fiber paper batteries extremely attractive for plug‐in electric vehicles, flexible electronics, space exploration, and military applications.