Detection of microplastics in soil samples from the area of traffic route

<p>At the end of the 1940s, mass production of plastics began. Since then, due to the very wide range of applications, a steady increase in their production has been observed. Anthropogenic activities have a significant impact on the natural environment. In this case, despite the knowledge of the problem, as early as the early 1970s, the harmful consequences continued to increase, and even if stopped immediately, their effects would last for centuries. In 2018, global production of plastics reached almost 360 million tonnes. The diverse use of plastics and low production costs mean that there are no other environmentally friendly alternatives that could replace them on a large scale. Therefore, it can be assumed that their production will continue to grow dynamically. The main hazard posed by the production of plastics is microplastic. These are plastic particles smaller than 5 mm. Research on microplastics in the environment is based mainly on diagnosing the problem in sea waters. Its concentration in soils is underestimated. The microparticles of plastics contained in the soil influence not only its structure or the ability to retain water, but also the organisms living in it. In the experiment, soil samples from the vicinity of a busy road in the city of Krakow, Poland, were examined. First, the samples were separated by density, and then the organic material was digested. The separated microplastics were analyzed both in terms of quantity and quality. Tests were carried out under the FTIR microscope, using the sensitive DRIFT method, and in the case of larger fragments, using ATR-FTIR. The results indicated the presence of a large fraction of microplastics, most often from tire abrasion.</p>

Molecular Dialog between Root and Shoot via Regulatory Peptides and Its Role in Systemic Control of Plant Development

Plant developmental processes are very flexible and highly depend on environmental factors. This is largely due to the existence of regulatory mechanisms that systemically control development on the whole plant level. In plants, regulatory peptides produced in the roots have been identified that are activated in response to different factors influencing root system, such as variation in the level of macronutrients (first of all, nitrogen and phosphorus) in the soil, influence of symbiotic microorganisms (soil rhizobial bacteria and arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi), and water deficiency. Among the systemically acting peptides, the most thoroughly investigated are CLE (CLAVATA3/EMBRYO SURROUNDING REGION-related) and CEP (C-TERMINALLY ENCODED PEPTIDES) peptides that are capable of travelling through the xylem from the roots to the shoot and triggering responses via binding to specific receptors operating in the phloem of the leaf. This review focuses on the role of these two groups of peptides in molecular dialog between the root and shoot.

Chemical Properties of Soil Influence by Sewage Water Irrigation of Different District of Haryana

The present study deals with the difference of chemical properties between sewage and tube well water irrigated soils. Samples were collected from sewage and tube well water irrigated soil of various site like Kaithal, Narwana and Jind district of Haryana state where these waters are directly used for irrigating the crops. Soil samples (0-15 and 15-30 cm) were also collected from fields irrigated with these waters and from nearby fields irrigated with non-sewage waters to determine the changes in soil chemical properties due to sewage irrigation. Total Zn, Cu, Mn, Fe, Cd, Pb, Co, and Cr along with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were estimated form the samples. The mean value of N (200.50 kg ha-1) was found highest in the soils irrigated with sewage water of Kaithal. The mean value of P (35.85 kg ha-1) and K (236.40 kg ha-1) was found highest in the soils irrigated with sewage water of Jind. The mean value of K (236.40 kg ha-1) was found highest in the soils irrigated with sewage water of Jind. The mean value of Zn (4.43 mg kg-1), Cu (3.33 mg kg-1) and Fe (19.43 mg kg-1) was found highest in the soils irrigated with sewage water of Jind. The mean value of Mn (15.13 mg kg-1) was found highest in the soils irrigated with sewage water of Kaithal. The DTPA extractable heavy metals like Cd, Pb and Co were found higher in the soils irrigated with sewage water as compared to soils irrigated with non-sewage water. The value of Cr content was found nil all the soils samples collected from different cities from sewage and non-sewage water irrigated sites.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF IMPACT OF PERCUSSIVE PULSE FORM ON SINKING PROCESS OF HOLLOW ROD ELEMENTS INTO SOILS

The work has experimental nature and it is aimed to development of vibro-percussion method of pipe-cover sinking during trenchless constructions of underground utilities. The maid idea of the research is the determination of regularities of filling inner tube hollow by soil at different forms of percussive pulse. Theoretical dependences of impact of percussion energy structure (form of percussion pulse) on efficiency of hollow rod element advance in the solid at different stages of insertion. Dimensionless parameter – filling coefficient is used for quantitative evaluation of filling rate by soil. Influence of pipe diameter on incrementation of length of soil core-sample for different percussive machines with the same percussive energy is shown. Stand and method of field test operation at various soil condition and interpretation of obtained data and its comparison with previous results obtained by the authors of the work and foreign researchers are represented.