Mercury (Hg) is one of the heavy metal pollutants in the environment. Even a very small amount of mercury can cause serious harm to human beings. Herein, we reported a new carbonothioate‐based fluorescent probe for the detection of Hg²⁺ without interference from other metal ions. This probe possessed a very large Stokes shift (192 nm), which could improve the detection sensitivity by minimizing the interferences resulted from self‐absorption or auto‐fluorescence. With the addition of Hg²⁺ to the probe solution, considerable fluorescence enhancement was observed. Additionally, the Hg²⁺ concentration of 0–16 μM and fluorescence intensity showed a good linear relationship (y = 22106× + 53108, R² = 0.9955). Finally, the proposed probe was used to detect Hg²⁺ in real water samples, and its result was satisfactory. Therefore, our proposed probe would provide a promising method for the determination of Hg²⁺ in the environment.

The adsorption properties of synthetic zeolite from coal bottom ash (CBA) were investigated for Cd and Ni removal from simulated acidic wastewater. The results showed that alkaline fusion synthetic zeolite significantly increased the specific surface area, pore volume, and cation exchange capacity (CEC) compared with CBA. The effects of various experimental parameters such as coexisting ion competition, pH, contact time, and temperature on the adsorption capacity and adsorption mechanism were investigated. Compared with single-metal ion adsorption, the adsorption capacity for Cd or Ni decreased in multiple-metal ions adsorption due to the competition effect of coexisting ion. Adsorption efficiency increased with increasing pH and the equilibrium was achieved at around 5.5 (>pH_pzc 4.5). The adsorption equilibrium was achieved within 4 h and followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The result concluded that ion exchange was the primary adsorption mechanism. Moreover, zeolite exhibited strong neutralizing capacity, which could be attractive for acidic wastewater treatment.

The ecological restoration projects in the Loess Plateau (LP) has significantly altered the underlying surface conditions, coupled with a warming–wetting climate, which has profoundly affected the regional water cycle. Evaluating the response of runoff to external environmental change and quantitatively identifying the contribution of anthropogenic interference and climate change are prerequisites for efficient utilization of water resources in arid/semi-arid regions. Daily recorded data of hydrological and meteorological elements between 1969 and 2019 and the elasticity coefficient method based on Budyko hypothesis were used for attribution analysis of runoff change in the Yanhe River basin. The results show the following: (1) the measured runoff decreased significantly (p < 0.05, –0.2845 mm year⁻¹), and suggested substantial difference before and after 2000; (2) the area of woodland and grassland had a sharp increase from 2000, while the elasticity of runoff to precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (ET₀), and vegetation all decreased; (3) the improvement of underlying surface conditions has become the leading factor of runoff reduction with a contribution of 96.78%; (4) the impact of vegetation restoration on runoff reduction is effective within a certain threshold. We consider that more attention should be paid to the afforestation scale and its possible negative eco-hydrological effects in future ecological restoration.