United States Environmental Protection Agency

About: United States Environmental Protection Agency is a government organization based out in Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Environmental exposure. The organization has 13873 authors who have published 26902 publications receiving 1191729 citations. The organization is also known as: EPA & Environmental Protection Agency.

Nano-magnetite (Fe3O4) as a support for recyclable catalysts in the development of sustainable methodologies

Abstract: Surface functionalization of nano-magnetic nanoparticles is a well-designed way to bridge the gap between heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis. The introduction of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) in a variety of solid matrices allows the combination of well-known procedures for catalyst heterogenization with techniques for magnetic separation. Magnetite is a well-known material, also known as ferrite (Fe3O4), and can be used as a versatile support for functionalization of metals, organocatalysts, N-heterocyclic carbenes, and chiral catalysts. It is used as a support for important homogeneous catalytically active metals such as Pd, Pt, Cu, Ni, Co, Ir, etc. to obtain stable and magnetically recyclable heterogeneous catalysts. Homogeneous organocatalysts can be successfully decorated with linkers/ligands on the surface of magnetite or alternatively the organocatalysts can be directly immobilized on the surface of magnetite. The functionalized magnetically retrievable catalysts or nanocatalysts that are increasingly being used in catalysis, green chemistry and pharmaceutically significant reactions are summarized in this review.

Ecological Thresholds: The Key to Successful Environmental Management or an Important Concept with No Practical Application?

Abstract: An ecological threshold is the point at which there is an abrupt change in an ecosystem quality, property or phenomenon, or where small changes in an environmental driver produce large responses in the ecosystem. Analysis of thresholds is complicated by nonlinear dynamics and by multiple factor controls that operate at diverse spatial and temporal scales. These complexities have challenged the use and utility of threshold concepts in environmental management despite great concern about preventing dramatic state changes in valued ecosystems, the need for determining critical pollutant loads and the ubiquity of other threshold-based environmental problems. In this paper we define the scope of the thresholds concept in ecological science and discuss methods for identifying and investigating thresholds using a variety of examples from terrestrial and aquatic environments, at ecosystem, landscape and regional scales. We end with a discussion of key research needs in this area.