Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2010
Abstract
The exponential increase in the use of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in a variety of commercially available products has raised concerns about their release into environmental compartments. Soils in particular have been pointed out as a major environmental sink for ENMs, e.g. through the application of sewage sludge to soil. However, data are scarce on the fate of ENMs in soils and on their bioavailability to organisms once ENMs interact with the soil matrix. The main reason for this knowledge gap has been the methodological challenges to trace and quantify ENMs in complex matrices like soils due to the presence of abundant natural nanoparticles (e.g. clays, iron oxides, organic matter). Methods able to overcome this hurdle will be introduced, as well as their limitations. The aim of this lecture is to present the current state of knowledge on the fate, behavior and toxicity of some of the most commercialized ENMs (carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, metal and metal oxides) in terrestrial ecosystems. We will see the potential modifications ENMs may undergo in soils, namely agglomeration, adsorption to soil constituents, dissolution of particles, effects of pH and organic matter on their speciation, and how these parameters can influence their transport in soil and their bioavailability to organisms. Ecotoxicity will also be addressed, through studies on bacteria, nematodes and earthworms.
Authors
Emmanuel Lapied Claire Coutris Elara Moudilou Jean-Marie Exbrayat Deborah H. Oughton Erik JonerAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Adam ParuchAbstract
This work discusses the potential routes of transport, possible occurrence and predicted fate of parasite eggs corresponding to human pathogens in on-site wastewater treatment systems with Light Weight Aggregates (LWA) media. The discussion is mainly based on scientific evidences supported by practical outcomes derived from a survey of helminth eggs in the specific LWA materials-typical filter media of constructed wetlands (CWs) treating domestic wastewater in Norway. The scientific evidences showed that the greatest reduction in the egg concentrations occurs in septic tanks. The eggs that could pass through the tank trap can be accumulated and effectively eliminated in the filter media of CWs. The practical outcomes did not show any accumulation and the consequent contamination of the LWA media with helminth eggs. Because the outcomes characterised a survey that was carried out for the first time ever on the above-specified filter media and was not replicated, the absence of parasite eggs in the CW filters cannot be definitely stated. However, it could be theoretically assumed that the possibility of finding human parasite eggs originated from domestic wastewater in the LWA filters should be negligible.
Authors
Adam ParuchAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Adam ParuchAbstract
No abstract has been registered
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No abstract has been registered
Authors
Amy Marie Patrin Oen Magnus Sparrevik David Nicholas Barton Sekhar Udaya Nagothu Gerald Jan Ellen Gijs D. Breedveld Jens Skei Adriaan SlobAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Plant responses to elevated CO2 are governed by temperature, and at low temperatures the beneficial effects of CO2 may be lost. To document the responses of winter cereals grown under cold conditions at northern latitudes, autumn growth of winter wheat exposed to ambient and elevated levels of temperature (+2.5°C), CO2 (+150 µmol mol-1), and shade (-30%) was studied in open-top chambers under low light and at low temperatures. Throughout the experiment, temperature dominated plant responses, while the effects of CO2 were marginal, except for a positive effect on root biomass. Increased temperature resulted in increased leaf area, total biomass, total root biomass, total stem biomass, and number of tillers, but also a lower content of total sugars and a weaker tolerance to frost. The loss of frost tolerance was related to the larger size of plants grown at elevated temperature. The 30% light reduction under shading did not affect the growth, sugar content, or frost tolerance of winter wheat. At the low temperatures found at high latitudes during autumn, the atmospheric CO2 increase is unlikely to enhance autumn growth of winter wheat to any significant extent, while a temperature increase may have important and major effects on its development and growth.
Abstract
Semi-natural grasslands and their species and populations are declining rapidly throughout Europe, bringing about a need for successful vegetation recreation methods. To maintain biodiversity and ecological services of semi-natural grasslands, we need more knowledge on the relative performance of different recreation methods. In a replicated experiment in western Norway, we evaluated two hay transfer methods (hard or light raking of local hay), sowing of local seeds and natural regeneration for recreating semi-natural grassland in a road verge. We compared treated trial plots with their respective donor plots (where hay and seeds were harvested) for three successive years by evaluating vegetation cover, species richness and species transfer rates, and vegetation dynamics analysed by Bray-Curtis compositional dissimilarity (BC) and GNMDS (Global Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling) ordination. Vegetation cover at the trial site exceeded that of donor sites in three years. Transfer rates of common species were high for seed sowing and both hay transfer procedures. Species composition in trial plots for all three treatments became significantly more similar to donor plots, but was still relatively dissimilar after three years. Natural regeneration showed a different temporal pattern and also had a higher successional rate. The species composition of the other treatments followed the same trajectory toward the donor sites as revealed by GNMDS. We found relatively small differences between the two hay transfer methods and seed sowing. Transfer of local hay therefore appears to be a successful method of establishing local species when recreating semi-natural grasslands, and is generally cheaper than using commercial local seed mixtures.