Absorption
- The process in which chemicals become associated
with solid phase with a three dimensional surface. (Strumm and
Morgan).
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- Adsorption
- The process in which chemicals become associated
with solid phase with a two dimensional surface. (Strumm and Morgan).
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- Aerosol
- 1. Small droplets or particles suspended in the
atmosphere, typically containing sulfur. They are usually emitted
naturally (e.g., in volcanic eruptions) and as the result of anthropogenic
(human) activities such as burning fossil fuels. 2. The pressurized
gas used to propel substances out of a container.
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- Aerosols
- Aerosols are solid or liquid particles, suspended
in the liquid state, that have stability to gravitational separation
over a period of observation. Slow coagulation is implied.
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- Airborne particulates
- Total suspended particulate matter found in the
atmosphere as solid particles or liquid droplets. Chemical composition
of particulates varies widely, depending on location and time
of year. Sources of airborne particulates include: dust,
- emissions from industrial processes, combustion
products from the burning of wood and coal, combustion products
associated with motor vehicle or non-road engine exhausts, and
reactions to gases in the atmosphere.
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- Algae
- Microscopic plants which contain chlorophyll and
live floating or suspended in water. They also may be attached
to structures, rocks or other submerged surfaces. They are food
for fish and small aquatic animals. Excess algal growths can impart
tastes and odors to potable water. Algae produce oxygen during
sunlight hours and use oxygen during the night hours. Their biological
activities appreciably affect the pH and dissolved oxygen of the
water.
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- Benthic organism or benthos
- A form of aquatic plant or animal life that is
found near the bottom of a stream, lake, or ocean. Benthic populations
are often indicative of sediment quality. The benthos comprise:
1.Sessile animals, such as sponges, some worms and many attached
algae 2.Creeping forms, such as snails and flatworms 3.Burrowing
forms, which include most clams, worms, mayflies and midges.
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- Bioaccumulation
- The accumulation of pollutants in living organisms
by direct adsorption or through food chains.2) Accumulation by
an organism of materials that are not an essential component or
nutrient of that organism. Usually it refers to the accumulation
of metals, but it can apply to bioaccumulation of persistent synthetic
substances such as organochlorine compounds. Many organisms, such
as plants, fungi and bacteria, will accumulate metals when grown
in solutions
- containing them. The process can be employed usefully
as a purification process to remove toxic heavy metals from waste
water and contaminated land.(Source: WRIGHT).
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- Bioconcentration
- The accumulation of a chemical in tissues of an
organism (such as fish) to levels that are greater than the level
in the medium (such as water) in which the organism resides.
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- Bioconcentration factor
- The quotient of the concentration of a chemical
in aquatic organisms at a specific time or during a discrete time
period of exposure, divided by the concentration in the surrounding
water at the same time or during the same period.(Source: KOREN).
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- Biomagnification
- The increased accumulation and concentration of
a contaminant at higher levels of the food chain; organisms higher
on the food chain will have larger amounts of contaminants than
those lower on the food chain, because the contaminants are
not eliminated or broken down into other chemicals within the
organisms.
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- Bloom
- A proliferation of algae and/or higher aquatic
plants in a body of water; often related to pollution, especially
when pollutants accelerate growth.
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- Byproduct
- Material, other than the principal product, that
is generated as a consequence of an industrial process. A chemical
substance produced without a separate commercial intent during
the manufacture, processing, use, or disposal of another chemical
substance(s) or mixture(s).
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- Chlorophyll
- A green pigment, present in algae and higher plants,
that absorbs light energy and thus plays a vital role in photosynthesis.
Except in Cyanophyta (blue-green algae), chlorophyll is confined
to chloroplasts. There are several types of chlorophyll, but all
contain magnesium and iron. Some plants (e.g., brown algae, red
algae, copper beech trees) contain additional pigments that masks
the green of their chlorophyll.(Source: ALL).
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- Chlororganic
- Organic compounds combined with chlorine. These
compounds generally originate from, or are associated with, life
processes such as those of algae in water.
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- Congener
- Any one particular member of a class of chemical
substances. A specific congener is denoted by unique chemical
structure, for example 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran.
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- Eutrophication
- The normally slow aging process by which a lake
evolves into a bog or marsh and ultimately assumes a completely
terrestrial state and disappears. During eutrophication the lake
becomes so rich in nutritive compounds, especially nitrogen
and phosphorus, that algae and other microscopic plant life become
super abundant, thereby "choking" the lake, and
causing it eventually to dry up. Eutrophication may be accelerated
by many human activities.
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- Fungicides Pesticides
toxic for fungi.
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- Herbicides Pesticides
toxic for herbs.
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- Insecticides Pesticides
toxic for insects.
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- Microorganism
- A microscopic organism, including bacteria, protozoans,
yeast, viruses, and algae.(Source: MGH).
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- Organochlorine compounds
- Synthetic compounds of elemental chlorine and hydrocarbons
derived from petroleum. The carbon - chlorine bond is characteristically
difficult to break, and the presence of chlorine also lessens
the reactivity of other bonds in organic molecules. This characteristic
is a distinct advantage in many applications. However, this same
property means that, once entered, in the environment organochlorines
degrade slowly and instead tend to accumulate.
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- Persistent pesticides
- Pesticides that do not break down chemically or
break down very slowly and remain in the environment after a growing
season.
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- Pesticide
- An agent used to control pests. This includes insecticides
for use against harmful insects; herbicides for weed control;
fungicides for control of plant diseases; rodenticides for killing
rats, mice, etc.; and germicides used in disinfectant products,
algaecides, slimicides, etc. Some pesticides can contaminate water,
air or soil and accumulate in man, animals and the environment,
particularly if they are misused. Certain of these chemicals have
been shown to interfere with the reproductive
processes of predatory birds and possibly other animals.
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- Pesticide
- Substances able to directly kill or control an
unwanted organism. All the common pesticides share the property
of blocking a vital metabolic process of the organism to which
they are toxic.
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- Phytoplankton
- Small, usually microscopic plants (such as algae),
found in lakes, reservoirs, and other bodies of water.
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- Vapor pressure
- The partial pressure exerted by the vapor (gas)
of a liquid or solid substance under equilibrium conditions. A
relative measure of chemical volatility, vapor pressure is used
to calculate air-water partition coefficients (i.e., Henry's Law
constants) and volatilization rate constants.
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- Volatilization
- The transfer of a chemical from the liquid to the
gas phase. Solubility, molecular weight, vapor pressure of the
liquid, and the nature of the air-liquid interface affect the
rate of volatilization.
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