Biomedical subjects

Chongxuan Liu

Publications and source records attributed to Chongxuan Liu.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Kinetics of microbial reduction of Solid phase U(VI).

Sodium boltwoodite (NaUO2SiO3OH x 1.5 H2O) was used to assess the kinetics of microbial reduction of solid-phase U(VI) by a dissimilatory metal-reducing bacterium (DMRB), Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1. The bioreduction kinetics was studied with Na-boltwoodite in suspension or within alginate beads in a nongrowth medium with lactate as electron donor at pH 6.8 buffered with PIPES. Concentrations of U(VI)tot and cell number were varied to evaluate the coupling of U(VI) dissolution, diffusion, and microbial activity. Microscopic and spectroscopic analyses with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (LIFS) collectively indicated that solid-phase U(VI) was first dissolved and diffused out of grain interiors before it was reduced on bacterial surfaces and/or within the periplasm. The kinetics of solid-phase U(VI) bioreduction was well described by a coupled model of bicarbonate-promoted dissolution of Na-boltwoodite, intragrain uranyl diffusion, and Monod type bioreduction kinetics with respect to dissolved U(VI) concentration. The results demonstrated that microbial reduction of solid-phase U(VI) is controlled by coupled biological, chemical, and physical processes.

Hydrogen-Ion Concentration↗

PubMed2006

Reduction of uranyl in the interlayer region of low iron micas under anoxic and aerobic conditions.

The role of the interlayer region of three different FeII-poor micas (2.8, approximately 0.02, and 0.01 FeII atom %) in the reduction of UVI was investigated at pH approximately 4.3, low ionic strength, and 23 degrees C under both anoxic and aerated conditions in batch reactors for 1 to 10 days. U diffusion profiles were mapped with X-ray microscopy, and the oxidation state of U was tracked with XANES as a function of distance from the crystal edge. Peak U concentrations only reached about 0.006-0.0002 atom percent, where the full-width-at-half-maximums of the diffusion fronts were roughly 25-50 microm. Results for anoxic conditions indicated appreciable reduction of uranyl in all three micas with no measurable dependency on distance from the edge. Under aerobic (open to the atmosphere) conditions, U was still partially reduced, although to a lesser degree than for anoxic conditions, and UVI/Utot increased with time. Interestingly, reoxidation reached a plateau after about 3-10 days, leaving an appreciable proportion of U reduced. It is likely that measurable reduction occurred, despite low FeII, because U concentrations were even lower, where FeII/U ratios ranged from about 10(4)-10(2). A coupled diffusion-reduction model was developed that successfully simulated the proximal portion of the diffusion front. The results show that reduction of UVI in the interlayer of low FeII micas is, in principle, viable and that under aerobic conditions reduction is initially faster than reoxidation. This extends the range of possible environments where heterogeneous reduction of UVI by micas might occur.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

PubMed2005

Influence of calcite and dissolved calcium on uranium(VI) sorption to a hanford subsurface sediment.

The influence of calcite and dissolved calcium on U(VI) adsorption was investigated using a calcite-containing sandy silt/clay sediment from the U. S. Department of Energy Hanford site. U(VI) adsorption to sediment, treated sediment, and sediment size fractions was studied in solutions that both had and had not been preequilibrated with calcite, at initial [U(VI)] = 10(-7)-10(-5) mol/L and final pH = 6.0-10.0. Kinetic and reversibility studies (pH 8.4) showed rapid sorption (30 min), with reasonable reversibility in the 3-day reaction time. Sorption from solutions equilibrated with calcite showed maximum U(VI) adsorption at pH 8.4 +/- 0.1. In contrast, calcium-free systems showed the greatest adsorption at pH 6.0-7.2. At pH > 8.4, U(VI) adsorption was identical from calcium-free and calcium-containing solutions. For calcite-presaturated systems, both speciation calculations and laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopic analyses indicated that aqueous U(VI) was increasingly dominated by Ca2UO2(CO3)3(0)(aq) at pH < 8.4 and thatformation of Ca2UO2(CO3)3(0)(aq) is what suppresses U(VI) adsorption. Above pH 8.4, aqueous U(VI) speciation was dominated by UO2(CO3)3(4-) in all solutions. Finally, results also showed that U(VI) adsorption was additive in regard to size fraction but not in regard to mineral mass: Carbonate minerals may have blocked U(VI) access to surfaces of higher sorption affinity.

Adsorption↗

PubMed2005

Oxidative remobilization of biogenic uranium(IV) precipitates: effects of iron(II) and pH.

The oxidative remobilization of uranium from biogenic U(IV) precipitates was investigated in bioreduced sediment suspensions in contact with atmospheric O2 with an emphasis on the influence of Fe(II) and pH on the rate and extent of U release from the solid to the aqueous phase. The sediment was collected from the U.S. Department of Energy Field Research Center (FRC) site at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Biogenic U(IV) precipitates and bioreduced sediment were generated through anaerobic incubation with a dissimilatory metal reducing bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32. The oxidative remobilization of freshly prepared and 1-yr aged biogenic U(IV) was conducted in 0.1 mol/L NaNO3 electrolyte with variable pH and Fe(II) concentrations. Biogenic U(IV)O2(s) was released into the aqueous phase with the highest rate and extent at pH 4 and 9, while the U remobilization was the lowest at circumneutral pH. Increasing Fe(II) significantly decreased U remobilization to the aqueous phase. From 70 to 100% of the U in the sediments used in all the tests was extractable at the experiment termination (41 d) with a bicarbonate solution (0.2 mol/L), indicating that biogenic U(IV) was oxidized regardless of Fe(II) concentration and pH. Sorption experiments and modeling calculations indicated that the inhibitive effect of Fe(II) on U(IV) oxidative remobilization was consistent with the Fe(III) oxide precipitation and U(VI) sorption to this secondary phase.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

PubMed2005

Influence of sediment bioreduction and reoxidation on uranium sorption.

The influence of sediment bioreduction and reoxidation on U(VI) sorption was studied using Fe(II) oxide-containing saprolite from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Oak Ridge site. Bioreduced sediments were generated by anoxic incubation with a metal-reducing bacterium, Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32, supplied with lactate as an electron donor. The reduced sediments were subsequently reoxidized by air contact. U(VI) sorption was studied in NaNO3-HCO3 electrolytes that were both closed and open to atmosphere and where pH, U(VI), and carbonate concentration were varied. Mössbauer spectroscopy and chemical analyses showed that 50% of the Fe(III)-oxides were reduced to Fe(II) that was sorbed to the sediment during incubation with CN32. However, this reduction and subsequent reoxidation of the sorbed Fe(II) had negligible influence on the rate and extent of U sorption or the extractability of sorbed U by 0.2 mol/L NaHCO3. Various results indicated that U(VI) surface complexation was the primary process responsible for uranyl sorption by the bioreduced and reoxidized sediments. A two-site, nonelectrostatic surface complexation model best described U(VI) adsorption under variable pH, carbonate, and U(VI) conditions. A ferrihydrite-based diffuse double layer model provided a better estimation of U(VI) adsorption without parameter adjustment than did a goethite-based model, even though a majority of the Fe(III)-oxides in the sediments were goethite. Our results highlight the complexity of the coupled U-Fe redox system and show that sorbed Fe(II) is not a universal reductant for U(VI) as commonly assumed.

Adsorption↗

PubMed2005

Kinetic desorption and sorption of U(VI) during reactive transport in a contaminated Hanford sediment.

Column experiments were conducted to investigate U(VI) desorption and sorption kinetics in a sand-textured, U(VI)-contaminated (22.7 micromol kg(-1)) capillary fringe sediment from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hanford site. Saturated column experiments were performed under mildly alkaline conditions representative of the Hanford site where uranyl-carbonate and calcium-uranyl-carbonate complexes dominate aqueous speciation. A U(VI)-free solution was used to study contaminant U(VI) desorption in columns where different flow rates were applied. Sorbed, contaminant U(VI) was partially labile (11.8%), and extended leaching times and water volumes were required for complete desorption of the labile fraction. Uranium-(VI) sorption was studied after the desorption of labile, contaminant U(VI) using different U(VI) concentrations in the leaching solution. Strong kinetic effects were observed for both U(VI) sorption and desorption, with half-life ranging from 8.5 to 48.5 h for sorption and from 39.3 to 150 h for desorption. Although U(VI) is semi-mobile in mildly alkaline, subsurface environments, we observed substantial U(VI) adsorption, significant retardation during transport, and atypical breakthrough curves with extended tailing. A distributed rate model was applied to describe the effluent data and to allow comparisons between the desorption rate of contaminant U(VI) with the rate of shortterm U(VI) sorption. Desorption was the slower process. We speculate that the kinetic behavior results from transport or chemical phenomena within the phyllosilicate-dominated fine fraction present in the sediment. Our results suggest that U(VI) release and transport in the vadose zone and aquifer system from which the sediment was obtained are kinetically controlled.

Carbonates↗

PubMed2004

Cryogenic laser induced fluorescence characterization of U(VI) in Hanford Vadose Zone pore waters.

Ambient and liquid helium temperature laser-induced time-resolved uranyl fluorescence spectroscopy was applied to study the speciation of aqueous uranyl solutions containing carbonate and phosphate and two porewater samples obtained by ultracentrifugation of U(VI)-contaminated sediments. The significantly enhanced fluorescence signal intensity and spectral resolution found at liquid helium temperature allowed, for the first time, direct fluorescence spectroscopic observation of the higher aqueous uranyl complexes with carbonate: UO2(CO3)2(2-), UO2(CO3)3(4-), and (UO2)2(OH)3CO3-. The porewater samples were nonfluorescent at room temperature. However, at liquid helium temperature, both porewater samples displayed strong, well-resolved fluorescence spectra. Comparisons of the spectroscopic characteristics of the porewaters with those of the standard uranyl-carbonate complexes confirmed that U(VI) in the porewaters existed primarily as UO2(CO3)3(4-) along with a small amount of other minor components, such as dicalcium-urano-tricarbonate complex, Ca2UO2(CO3)3, consistent with thermodynamic calculation. The U(VI)-carbonate complex is apparently the mobile species responsible for the subsurface migration of U(VI), even though the majority of the in-ground U(VI) inventory at the site from which the samples were obtained exists as intragrain U(VI)-silicate precipitates.

Carbonates↗

PubMed2004

An electrodynamics-based model for ion diffusion in microbial polysaccharides.

An electrodynamics-based model was formulated for simulation of ion diffusion in microbial polysaccharides. The fixed charges and electrostatic double layers that may associate with microbial polysaccharides and their effects on ion diffusion were explicitly built into the model. The model extends a common multicomponent ion diffusion formulation that is based on irreversible thermodynamics under a zero ionic charge flux condition, which is only applicable to the regions without fixed charges and electrostatic double layers. An efficient numerical procedure was presented to solve the differential equations in the model. The model well described key features of experimental observations of ion diffusion in negatively charged microbial polysaccharides including accelerated diffusive transport of cations, exclusion of anions, and increased rate of cation transport with increasing negative charge density. The simulated diffusive fluxes of cations and anions were consistent with a cation exchange diffusion concept in negatively charged polysaccharides at the interface of plant roots and soils; and the developed model allows to mathematically study such diffusion phenomena. An illustrative example was also provided to simulate dynamic behavior of ionic current during ion diffusion within a charged bacterial cell wall polysaccharide and the effects of the ionic current on the compression or expansion of the bacterial electrostatic double layer at the interface of the cell wall and bulk solution.

Cell Wall↗

PubMed2004

A cation exchange model to describe Cs+ sorption at high ionic strength in subsurface sediments at Hanford site, USA.

A theoretical and experimental study of cation exchange in high ionic strength electrolytes was performed using pristine subsurface sediments from the U.S. Department of Energy Hanford site. These sediments are representative of the site contaminated sediments impacted by release of high level waste (HLW) solutions containing 137Cs+ in NaNO3 brine. The binary exchange behavior of Cs+-Na+, Cs+-K+, and Na+-K+ was measured over a range in electrolyte concentration. Vanselow selectivity coefficients (Kv) that were calculated from the experimental data using Pitzer model ion activity corrections for aqueous species showed monotonic increases with increasing electrolyte concentrations. The influence of electrolyte concentration was greater on the exchange of Na+-Cs+ than K+-Cs+, an observation consistent with the differences in ion hydration energy of the exchanging cations. A previously developed two-site ion exchange model [Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 66 (2002) 193] was modified to include solvent (water) activity changes in the exchanger phase through application of the Gibbs-Duhem equation. This water activity-corrected model well described the ionic strength effect on binary Cs+ exchange, and was extended to the ternary exchange system of Cs+-Na+-K+ on the pristine sediment. The model was also used to predict 137Cs+ distribution between sediment and aqueous phase (Kd) beneath a leaked HLW tank in Hanfordd's S-SX tank using the analytical aqueous data from the field and the binary ion exchange coefficients for the pristine sediment. The Kd predictions closely followed the trend in the field data and were improved by consideration of water activity effects that were considerable in certain regions of the vadose zone plume.

Cations↗

PubMed2003

Effect of temperature on Cs+ sorption and desorption in subsurface sediments at the Hanford Site, U.S.A.

The effects of temperature on Cs+ sorption and desorption were investigated in subsurface sediments from the U.S. Department of Energy Hanford Site. The site has been contaminated at several locations by the accidental leakage of high-level nuclear waste (HLW) containing 137Cs+. The high temperature of the self-boiling, leaked HLW fluid and the continuous decay of various radionuclides carried by the waste supernatant have resulted in elevated vadose temperatures (currently up to 72 degrees C) below the Hanford S-SX tank farm that have dissipated slowly from the time of leakage (1970). The effect of temperature on Cs+ sorption was evaluated through batch binary Cs(+)-Na+ exchange experiments on pristine sediments, while Cs+ desorption was studied in column experiments using 137Cs(+)-contaminated sediments. Cs+ adsorption generally decreased with increasing temperature, with a more apparent decrease at low aqueous Cs+ concentration (10(-10)-10(-6) mol/L). Cs+ desorption from the contaminated sediments increased with increasing temperature. The results indicated that the free energy of Na(+)-Cs+ exchange on the Hanford sediment had a significant enthalpy component that was estimated to be -17.87 (+/- 2.01) and -4.82 (+/- 0.44) kJ/mol (at 298 degrees C) for the high- and low-affinity exchange sites, respectively. Both Cs+ adsorption and desorption at elevated temperature could be well simulated by a two-site ion exchange model, with the conditional exchange constants corrected by the exchange enthalpy effect. The effect of temperature on Cs+ desorption kinetics was also evaluated using a stop-flow technique. The kinetics of desorption of the exchangeable pool (which was less than the total adsorbed concentration) were found to be rapid under the conditions studied.

Adsorption↗

PubMed2003

Influence of electron donor/acceptor concentrations on hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) bioreduction.

Dissimilatory metal-reducing bacteria (DMRB) facilitate the reduction of Fe and Mn oxides in anoxic soils and sediments and play an important role in the cycling of these metals and other elements such as carbon in aqueous environments. Previous studies investigating the reduction of Fe(III) oxides by DMRB focused on reactions under constant initial electron donor (lactate) and electron acceptor (Fe oxide) concentrations. Because the concentrations of these reactants can vary greatly in the environment and would be expected to influence the rate and extent of oxide reduction, the influence of variable electron acceptor and donor concentrations on hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) bioreduction was investigated. Batch experiments were conducted in pH 7 HCO3 buffered media using Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32. In general, the rate of Fe(III) reduction decreased with increasing HFO:lactate ratios, resulting in a relatively greater proportion of crystalline Fe(III) oxides of relatively low availability for DMRB. HFO was transformed to a variety of crystalline minerals including goethite, lepidocrocite, and siderite but was almost completely dissolved at high lactate to HFO ratios. These results indicate that electron donor and acceptor concentrations can greatly impact the bioreduction of HFO and the suite of Fe minerals formed as a result of reduction. The respiration driven rate of Fe(II) formation from HFO is believed to be a primary factor governing the array of ferrous and ferric iron phases formed during reduction.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

PubMed2002

Reduction kinetics of Fe(III), Co(III), U(VI), Cr(VI), and Tc(VII) in cultures of dissimilatory metal-reducing bacteria.

The reduction kinetics of Fe(III)citrate, Fe(III)NTA, Co(III)EDTA-, U(VI)O(2) (2+), Cr(VI)O(4) (2-), and Tc(VII)O(4) (-) were studied in cultures of dissimilatory metal reducing bacteria (DMRB): Shewanella alga strain BrY, Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32, Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1, and Geobacter metallireducens strain GS-15. Reduction rates were metal specific with the following rate trend: Fe(III)citrate > or = Fe(III)NTA > Co(III)EDTA- >> UO(2)(2+) > CrO(4)(2-) > TcO(4)(-), except for CrO(4) (2-) when H(2) was used as electron donor. The metal reduction rates were also electron donor dependent with faster rates observed for H(2) than lactate- for all Shewanella species despite higher initial lactate (10 mM) than H2 (0.48 mM). The bioreduction of CrO(4) (2-) was anomalously slower compared to the other metals with H(2) as an electron donor relative to lactate and reduction ceased before all the CrO(4)(2-) had been reduced. Transmission electron microscopic (TEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopic (EDS) analyses performed on selected solids at experiment termination found precipitates of reduced U and Tc in association with the outer cell membrane and in the periplasm of the bacteria. The kinetic rates of metal reduction were correlated with the precipitation of reduced metal phases and their causal relationship discussed. The experimental rate data were well described by a Monod kinetic expression with respect to the electron acceptor for all metals except CrO(4)(2-), for which the Monod model had to be modified to account for incomplete reduction. However, the Monod models became statistically over-parameterized, resulting in large uncertainties of their parameters. A first-order approximation to the Monod model also effectively described the experimental results, but the rate coefficients exhibited far less uncertainty. The more precise rate coefficients of the first-order model provided a better means than the Monod parameters, to quantitatively compare the reduction rates between metals, electron donors, and DMRB species.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

PubMed2002

Modeling the inhibition of the bacteral reduction of U(VI) by beta-MnO2(s).

Pyrolusite (beta-MnO2(s)) was used to assess the influence of a competitive electron acceptor on the kinetics of reduction of aqueous uranyl carbonate by a dissimilatory metal-reducing bacterium (DMRB), Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32. The enzymatic reduction of U(VI) and beta-MnO2(s) and the abiotic redox reaction between beta-MnO2(s) and biogenic uraninite (UO2(s)) were independently investigated to allow for interpretation of studies of U(VI) bioreduction in the presence of beta-MnO2(s). Uranyl bioreduction to UO2(s) by CN32 with H2 as the electron donor followed Monod kinetics, with a maximum specific reduction rate of 110 M/h/10(8) cells/mL and a half-saturation constant of 370 microM. The bioreduction rate of beta-MnO2(s) by CN32 was described by a pseudo-first-order model with respect to beta-MnO2(s) surface sites, with a rate constant of 7.92 x 10(-2) h(-1)/10(8) cells/mL. Uraninite that precipitated as a result of microbial U(VI) reduction was abiotically reoxidized to U(VI) by beta-MnO2(s), with concomitant reduction to Mn(II). The oxidation of biogenic UO2(s) coupled with beta-MnO2(s) reduction was well-described by an electrochemical model. However, a simple model that coupled the bacterial reduction of U(VI) and beta-MnO2(s) with an abiotic redox reaction between UO2(s) and beta-MnO2(s) failed to describe the mass loss of U(VI) in the presence of beta-MnO2(s). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) revealed that the particle size and spatial distribution of the biogenic UO2(s) changed dynamically in systems with, as compared to without, beta-MnO2(s)). These observations suggested that the surface properties and localization of UO2(s) in relation to the cell and beta-MnO2(s) surfaces was an important factor controlling the abiotic oxidation of UO2(s) and, thus, the overall rate and extent of U(VI) bioreduction. The coupled model that was modified to account for the "effective" contact surface area between UO2(s) and beta-MnO2(s) significantly improved the simulation of microbial reduction of U(VI) in the presence of beta-MnO2(s).

Chemical Precipitation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Back diffusion of chlorinated solvent contaminants from a natural aquitard to a remediated aquifer under well-controlled field conditions: predictions and measurements.

Vertical profiles of tetrachloroethene (or perchloroethylene, PCE) and trichloroethene (TCE) were used to validate a diffusion process in a natural aquitard at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. PCE and TCE distributions in the aquitard underlying an unconfined aquifer were sampled from core tubes obtained at four times over the course of a 35-month field investigation within "test cells" that were isolated from the surrounding ground water by means of grout-sealed steel sheetpile barriers (Mackay et al. 2000). For the final 23 months of this period, boundary conditions at the aquifer/aquitard interface were such that a "back diffusion" of contaminants from the aquitard was induced. Modeling predictions of concentration changes were made on the basis of the earliest coring results and an assumption of sorption-retarded diffusion and using laboratory information about sorption and diffusion characteristics of the media. The predictive modeling was complicated by the fact that "initial" and "final" PCE and TCE distributions in the aquitard were measured at different (albeit proximate) coring locations, such that results reflect spatial variations in aquitard characteristics. This problem was solved by means of an inverse interpretation that involved spatial "translation" of observed profiles on the basis of the laboratory characterizations and assuming a common aquifer-side contaminant history. Predictions indicated substantial change in PCE and TCE concentrations within the upper aquitard (near the aquifer/aquitard interface) and the development of a back-diffusion profile up into the aquifer. Modeling also predicted comparatively minor profile changes in the deeper aquitard, and especially in the deep layer where sorption was strongest. All of these predicted effects were observed in the coring results. Although not exact, the agreement between predictions and observations was sufficiently good to justify the basic tenets of the diffusion model and to support a conclusion that major processes of advection and/or transformation were unimportant within the 35-month time scale of this work.

Diffusion↗