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Non-persistent chemicals in polymer and non-polymer products can cause persistent environmental contamination: evidence with DEHP in Europe
No full textInternational audienceBis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is a plasticizer that has been massively used since the second part of the twentieth century by the plastic industry to provide softness properties to PVC. This chemical is considered as toxic to reproduction and endocrine disrupting, and a wide range of uses are now forbidden by the EU. Despite these regulations, DEHP is still found to be a widespread contaminant in watersheds in the EU. In this study, we calculate retrospective and prospective scenarios of past and future emissions of DEHP in the environment (water, soil, air) in the EU 28, taking into account the entire lifecycle of the substance, from its production and its inclusion in polymer (mainly PVC) and non-polymer products (adhesive and sealant, ceramic and printing ink) to the recycling and end of life of these products. We develop a stock and flow model based on dynamically estimating the stocks of DEHP present in products on the market. Our results show that the introduction of recent regulations to limit the use of DEHP (that bring a 70% reduction of DEHP contained in products placed on the market in 2020 and 75% in 2040) will not reduce significantly future emissions. This persistence of emissions is explained by the high stocks built in the economy and the long-term presence of soft PVC waste in landfills. Our results suggest that DEHP will remain a cause of environmental contamination many decades after uses have declined and even ceased, and it appears to be too late for market regulation at the market stage to offset the effect of past stock buildup and landfilling. It is likely that several chemicals that are not considered as persistent and therefore not the focus of international regulations could exhibit the same characteristics. Regulations should avoid possible use patterns that make hazardous chemicals persistent in products, because they have the potential to create long-term and almost irreversible environmental pollution and impacts
An end-to-end pipeline based on open source deep learning tools for reliable analysis of complex 3D images of ovaries
No full textInternational audienceComputational analysis of bio-images by deep learning (DL) algorithms has made exceptional progress in recent years and has become much more accessible to non-specialists with the development of ready-to-use tools. Study of oogenesis mechanisms and female reproductive success has also recently benefited from the development of efficient protocols for three-dimensional (3D) imaging of ovaries. Such datasets have a great potential for generating new quantitative data but are, however, complex to analyze due to the lack of efficient workflows for 3D image analysis. Here, we integrated two existing open-source DL tools, Noise2Void and Cellpose, into an analysis pipeline dedicated to 3D follicular content analysis and available on Fiji. Our pipeline was developed on larvae and adult medaka ovaries but was also successfully applied to different types of ovaries (trout, zebrafish and mouse). Image enhancement, Cellpose segmentation and label post-processing enabled automatic and accurate quantification of these 3D images exhibiting irregular fluorescent staining, low autofluorescence signal or heterogeneous follicles sizes. In the future, this pipeline will be useful for extensive cellular phenotyping in fish or mammals for developmental or toxicology studies
Dose- and Time-Dependent Effects of Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Field on Adipose Tissue: Implications of Thermoregulation and Mitochondrial Signaling
No full textInternational audienceRecent studies have shed light on the effects of low-intensity radiofrequency (RF) fields on thermoregulation and adipose tissue metabolism. The present study aims to further explore these effects by analyzing the expression of thermoregulatory genes and investigating the involvement of mitochondria in adipose tissue metabolism. Male mice (n = 36 C57BL/6J) were assigned to either exposed or control groups. The exposed groups were subjected to RF fields at 900 MHz, with specific absorption rates (SAR) of 0.1 W/kg or 0.4 W/kg, either for three or seven consecutive days. The findings indicate that RF exposure leads to changes in adipose tissue markers, with some effects being dose-dependent and time-dependent. In brown adipose tissue (BAT), after 3 days of RF exposure, thermogenesis is reduced, mitochondrial activity in BAT decreases, and an increase in gene expression, responsible for balancing the regulatory and damaging effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS), was observed. This effect was partially compensated after 7 days of exposure. In white adipose tissue (WAT), RF exposure results in reduced fatty acid oxidation, impaired energy production, and hindered adipocyte differentiation. Notably, no effects of RF on mitochondrial biogenesis in WAT were observed. These findings contribute to understanding the effects of RF exposure on adipose tissue metabolism and thermoregulation, highlighting dose-dependent and time-dependent responses
Blowdown of CO2 vessels at low and medium pressure conditions: Experiments and simulations
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A simple and fast method to downscale chemistry transport model output fields from the regional to the urban/district scale
No full textInternational audienceFor policy applications, the need to improve the resolution of environmental variables is crucial. Air pollution assessment indeed requires the use of air pollutant concentration fields at a high resolution, to better evaluate the exposure of citizens. In this paper, we propose a fast proxy-based downscaling strategy, to downscale air quality modelling results using the fraction of the pollutant concentration influenced by precursor emissions in a given cell. The approach combines in an additive way (i) a classically interpolated background pollutant fraction, with (ii) a proxy-based concentration derived from the emissions. The proxy-based pollutant fraction is spread over the high resolution mesh into the surrounding cells with a Gaussian approach to account for diffusion effects. The evaluation of our approach against observations shows its relevance to create reliable air pollution concentration fields at a higher resolution, starting from a coarse resolution modelling results
Modelling and applications of dissolution of rocks in geoengineering
No full textInternational audienceThe subsoil contains many evaporites such as limestone, gypsum, and salt. Such rocks are very sensitive to water. The deposit of evaporites raises questions because of their dissolution with time and the mechanical-geotechnical impact on the neighboring zone. Depending on the configuration of the site and the location of the rocks, the dissolution can lead to surface subsidence and, for instance, the formation of sinkholes and landslides. In this study, we present an approach that describes the dissolution process and its coupling with geotechnical engineering. In the first part we set the physico-mathematical framework, the hypothesis, and the limitations in which the dissolution process is stated. The physical interface between the fluid and the rock (porous) is represented by a diffuse interface of finite thickness. We briefly describe, in the framework of porous media, the steps needed to upscale the microscopic-scale (pore-scale) model to the macroscopic scale (Darcy scale). Although the constructed method has a large range of application, we will restrict it to saline and gypsum rocks. The second part is mainly devoted to the geotechnical consequences of the dissolution of gypsum material. We then analyze the effect of dissolution in the vicinity of a soil dam or slope and the partial dissolution of a gypsum pillar by a thin layer of water. These theoretical examples show the relevance and the potential of the approach in the general framework of geoengineering problems
Evolution des référentiels sur les teneurs en polluants dans les plantes potagères : bases de données BAPPET et BAPPOP et exemples d’utilisation
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Des usines, des matières et des hommes: De la sécurité industrielle dans la chimie
No full textInternational audienceL’ouvrage Des usines, des matières et des hommes propose une immersion inédite dans le secteur de la chimie afin de mieux comprendre comment se fabrique la prévention des risques industriels majeurs. Résultat d’une longue collaboration entre Michèle Dupré, sociologue du travail et Jean-Christophe Le Coze, spécialiste des systèmes à risques. Leurs analyses se construisent sur des enquêtes ethnographiques réalisées dans 5 entreprises de la chimie de spécialité : de longues périodes d’observations au sein de différents services et des entretiens avec les acteurs-clés de la prévention des risques. Sur le terrain, les chercheur·ses accompagnent leur prises de notes de dessins de ce qu’il et elle voient, pour contourner les normes sécuritaires de ces espaces qui interdisentla prise de photographie. Ces dessins, qu’ils soient techniques ou socio-techniques, constituent des données scientifiques pour leurs enquêtes
Hazardous properties of mineral and organo-mineral plastic additives and management of hazardous plastics
No full textInternational audienceMany plastic additives are mineral or organo-mineral substances having functions as pigments, heat stabilizers, flame retardants, process adjuvants and the like. Are additivated plastics hazardous when they become waste? Data from the Plastic Additives Initiative, a joint industry and EU effort, was used, along with substance hazard statements from the ECHA website and hazard properties from the waste classification. 20 elements of 91 substances, namely Al, B, Ba, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, F, I, Li, Mn, Ni, Pb, Pr, Sb, Sn, Ti, V and Zn were selected, and their additives used in 11 polymers, considered. Of the 91 substances selected, 57 are non-hazardous or are hazardous but used at too low concentration to render the plastic hazardous when it becomes waste. 34 substances (= 37% of 91) are hazardous and make plastics hazardous as waste. These are mainly heat stabilizers (for PVC), or pigments and flame retardants (for all polymers). The sorting of these plastics by the mineral concentration of their additives with online XRF is theoretically achievable. With data from previous papers, 63 additives (= 27% of 233) make plastic hazardous. The brominated flame retardants are the less documented. Only essential use should be encouraged for pigments. Waste management today should focus on turning waste into non-waste, not waste leakage. With occupational safety and health regulations during processing, and with product regulations during its second life, the material should be managed as another hazardous or non-hazardous (virgin) raw material, and given end-of-waste status when it enters the loop
A framework for assessing hazards related to pit lakes: application on European case studies
No full textInternational audienceThe number of abandoned mines is continuously increasing in the world. The sustainable exploitation of these abandoned mines is a top priority globally. Pit lakes created in abandoned mining sites provide benefits and present risks for the mining region. This paper presents a methodology to assess the mining and natural hazards related to pit lakes. The proposed methodology framework is based on well-established and internationally accepted risk management standards and allows the assessment of the long-term stability of pit lakes. Potential ground movements, water pollution, fire hazards are presented, and their impact evaluated based on feedback and international experience. The methodology was applied for 13 European pit lakes created in former European coal and lignite mines. A risk assessment of the Most lake was carried out, using qualitative and a weighted probabilistic approach that considers the overall and the individual effect of identified mining and natural hazards. Results showed that the main potential hazards are the ground movements, slope stability, and flooding