Superfund basic research program: a model for contemporary research programs.

A method for estimating in situ transformation rates of sorbing solutes in groundwater is presented. The method utilizes a novel data processing technique called "forced mass balance" (FMB) to remove the effects of transport processes from reactant and product concentrations measured during single-well, "push-pull" tests. The effectiveness of the FMB technique was evaluated by quantifying errors in derived rates obtained by applying FMB to simulated push-pull test data generated by a numerical model. Results from simulated tests indicated that errors in derived rates increase as the test duration, groundwater velocity, and ratio of reactant to product retardation factors increase. In addition, errors in derived rates increase as the reaction rate constant and aquifer dispersivity decrease. As a demonstration, the FMB technique was used to derive an in situ reductive dechlorination rate for trichlorofluoroethene (TCFE) using data from a field push-pull test. Error analyses indicated that the in situ TCFE transformation rate was underestimated by a factor of 1.1-2. Thus, the FMB technique makes it possible to estimate in situ transformation rates of sorbing solutes and when FMB is coupled with computer modeling to estimate errors in derived in situ rates.

Environmental Pollution↗

PubMed2003

Green chemistry approach to the synthesis of N-substituted piperidones.

An efficient green chemistry approach to the synthesis of N-substituted piperidones and piperidines was developed and applied to the synthesis of 1-(2-pyridinylmethyl)-piperidin-4-one, 1, a key starting material for the synthesis of LY317615, an antiangiogenic agent currently under development at Eli Lilly and Company (Chart 1).(1) The general utility of this methodology, which presents significant advantages over the classical Dieckman approach to this class of compounds, was also demonstrated by the direct synthesis of a series of substituted piperidones and piperidines, including potential dopamine D4 receptor antagonists 2 and 3, that have been evaluated in the clinic as antipsychotic agents (Chart 2).(2)

Environmental Pollution↗

PubMed2003

Composition and structure of agents responsible for development of water repellency in soils following oil contamination.

Soil from the Ellerslie site of experimental oil contamination in Alberta developed water repellency some years after initial remediation. The water-repellent soils were compared to clean soils and contaminated but wettable soils by solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The effects of extraction with CH2Cl2 (for petroleum hydrocarbons), NaOH (for natural organic matter), and 2-propanol/ammonia (IPA/NH3) on wettability were evaluated by the molarity of the ethanol droplet (MED) test. Soil extracts and whole soils, after extraction, were examined using NMR and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). On the basis of the structure--MED correlations, a model of a thin-layer natural organic matter--petroleum products complex formed under strong drying conditions is proposed to account for the development of water repellency. Studies of two similar soils from accidental oil spills are supportive.

Environmental Pollution↗