Increasing concern and research on the subject of plastic pollution has engaged the community of scientists working on the environmental health and safety of nanomaterials. While many of the methods ...developed in nano environment, health and safety work have general applicability to the study of particulate plastics, the nanometric size range has important consequences for both the analytical challenges of studying nanoscale plastics and the environmental implications of these incidental nanomaterials. Related to their size, nanoplastics are distinguished from microplastics with respect to their transport properties, interactions with light and natural colloids, a high fraction of particle molecules on the surface, bioavailability and diffusion times for the release of plastic additives. Moreover, they are distinguished from engineered nanomaterials because of their high particle heterogeneity and their potential for rapid further fragmentation in the environment. These characteristics impact environmental fate, potential effects on biota and human health, sampling and analysis. Like microplastics, incidentally produced nanoplastics exhibit a diversity of compositions and morphologies and a heterogeneity that is typically absent from engineered nanomaterials. Therefore, nanoscale plastics must be considered as distinct from both microplastics and engineered nanomaterials.
Limited natural resources and a continuous increase in the demand for modern technological products, is creating a demand and supply gap for rare earth elements (REEs) and Sc. There is therefore a ...need to adopt the sustainable approach of the circular economy system (CE). In this review, we defined six steps required to close the loop and recover REEs, using a holistic approach. Recent statistics on REEs and Sc demand and the number of waste generations are reported and studies on more environmentally friendly, economic, and/or efficient recovery processes are summarized. Pilot-scale recovery facilities are described for several types of secondary sources. Finally, we identify obstacles to closing the REE loop in a circular economy and the reasons why secondary sources are not preferred over primary sources. Briefly, recovery from secondary sources should be environmentally and economically friendly and of an acceptable standard concerning final product quality. However, current technologies for recovery from for secondary sources are limiting and technology needs will vary depending on the source type. The quality/purity of the recovered metals should be proven so that they do not result in any adverse effects on the product quality, when they are being used as secondary raw material. In addition, for industrial-scale facilities, process improvements are required that consider environmental conditions.
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•A holistic approach toward REE recovery.•Recent statistics about REE containing secondary sources.•Mutual targets of REE and Sc recovery.•Pilot-scale REE recovery.
► Rose Bengal and naphthalene were used as hydrophobic probe molecules. ► Contact angle was measured on a thin film of nanoparticles prepared by filtering. ► Octanol–water affinity coefficients of ...nanoparticles were measured. ► Aqu-C60 was the most hydrophobic, followed by THF-C60, nano-Ag, nano-Au, fullerol.
The surface chemistry of nanoparticles, including their hydrophobicity, is a key determinant of their fate, transport and toxicity. Engineered NPs often have surface coatings that control the surface chemistry of NPs and may dominate the effects of the nanoparticle core. Suitable characterization methods for surface hydrophobicity at the nano-scale are needed. Three types of methods, surface adsorption, affinity coefficient and contact angle, were investigated in this study with seven carbon and metal based NPs with and without coatings. The adsorption of hydrophobic molecules, Rose Bengal dye and naphthalene, on NPs was used as one measure of hydrophobicity and was compared with the relative affinity of NPs for octanol or water phases, analogous to the determination of octanol–water partition coefficients for organic molecules. The sessile drop method was adapted for measuring contact angle of a thin film of NPs. Results for these three methods were qualitatively in agreement. Aqueous-nC60 and tetrahydrofuran-nC60 were observed to be more hydrophobic than nano-Ag coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone or gum arabic, followed by nano-Ag or nano-Au with citrate-functionalized surfaces. Fullerol was shown to be the least hydrophobic of seven NPs tested. The advantages and limitations of each method were also discussed.
Transport of negatively charged nanoparticles in porous media is largely affected by cations. To date, little is known about how cations of the same valence may affect nanoparticle transport ...differently. We observed that the effects of cations on the transport of graphene oxide (GO) and sulfide-reduced GO (RGO) in saturated quartz sand obeyed the Hofmeister series; that is, transport-inhibition effects of alkali metal ions followed the order of Na+ < K+ < Cs+, and those of alkaline earth metal ions followed the order of Mg2+ < Ca2+ < Ba2+. With batch adsorption experiments and microscopic data, we verified that cations having large ionic radii (and thus being weakly hydrated) interacted with quartz sand and GO and RGO more strongly than did cations of small ionic radii. In particular, the monovalent Cs+ and divalent Ca2+ and Ba2+, which can form inner-sphere complexes, resulted in very significant deposition of GO and RGO via cation bridging between quartz sand and GO and RGO, and possibly via enhanced straining, due to the enhanced aggregation of GO and RGO from cation bridging. The existence of the Hofmeister effects was further corroborated with the interesting observation that cation bridging was more significant for RGO, which contained greater amounts of carboxyl and phenolic groups (i.e., metal-complexing moieties) than did GO. The findings further demonstrate that transport of nanoparticles is controlled by the complex interplay between nanoparticle surface functionalities and solution chemistry constituents.
Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) carboxylated to varying weight percentages were added to polysulfone membranes. The degree to which the CNTs were retained within the membrane during membrane ...production, operation and cleaning was examined as a function of the extent of CNT carboxylation. The effects of CNTs on polymeric membranes – increases in tensile strength, changes in surface hydrophilicity, and changes in membrane permeability – were evaluated as a function of CNT carboxylation, which was found to be coupled to CNT retention within the membrane. It was found that CNTs functionalized to a higher degree form more homogeneous polymer solutions, which lead to greater improvements in the aforementioned membrane characteristics. However, CNTs functionalized to a higher degree were also found to more-readily leave the membrane during immersion precipitation and membrane cleaning. Therefore, a balance was discovered between the benefits associated with increased dispersibility and hydrophilicity, and the disadvantages associated with decreased retention, increased leaching, and decreased strength of CNTs with greater carboxylation.
•CNT-COOHs formed homogeneous polymer solutions which improved Young's Modulus.•CNT-COOHs formed more hydrophilic membrane surfaces.•Increased CNT carboxylation caused decreased stability within polymer membranes.•CNT-COOHs leached from membranes during membrane gelation and membrane cleaning.•Optimal carboxylation degree was found for greatest membrane property improvements.
Column experiments were conducted to investigate the transport of aqueous C60 (aqu-nC60), fullerol, silver nanoparticles (NPs) coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone (Ag-PVP) and stabilized by citrate ...(Ag-CIT) in biofilm-laden porous media. Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) and Gram-positive Bacillus cereus (BC) biofilm-laden glass beads were selected to represent the bacterial interfaces NPs might encounter in the natural aquatic environment. The biomass distribution, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) components, electrokinetic property, and hydrophobicity of these interfaces were characterized, and the hydrophobicity was found to correlate with the quantity of proteins in EPS. The retention of NPs on glass beads coated with bovine serum albumin (BSA) and alginate were also studied. Except for Ag-PVP, the affinity of NPs for porous medium, indicated by attachment efficiency α, increased in the presence of biofilms, BSA and alginate. For hydrophobic aqu-nC60, the larger the proteins/polysaccharides ratio, the larger the α, suggesting the hydrophobic interaction determines the attachment of aqu-nC60 to the collector surface. Uncharged PVP stabilized Ag-PVP by steric repulsion, and the attachment to glass beads was not enhanced by biofilm. The presence of divalent ion Ca2+ significantly hydrophobized biofilm, BSA, and alginate-coated glass beads and further retarded the mobility of aqu-nC60, fullerol, and Ag-CIT; while Ag-PVP was again sterically stabilized.
Cellulose nanomaterials are naturally occurring with unique structural, mechanical and optical properties. While the paper and packaging, automotive, personal care, construction, and textiles ...industries have recognized cellulose nanomaterials’ potential, we suggest cellulose nanomaterials have great untapped potential in water treatment technologies. In this review, we gather evidence of cellulose nanomaterials’ beneficial role in environmental remediation and membranes for water filtration, including their high surface area-to-volume ratio, low environmental impact, high strength, functionalizability, and sustainability. We make direct comparison between cellulose nanomaterials and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in terms of physical and chemical properties, production costs, use and disposal in order to show the potential of cellulose nanomaterials as a sustainable replacement for CNTs in water treatment technologies. Finally, we comment on the need for improved communication and collaboration across the myriad industries invested in cellulose nanomaterials production and development to achieve an efficient means to commercialization.
The magnitude of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) being produced and potentially released to the environment is a crucial and thus far unknown input to exposure assessment. This work estimates upper ...and lower bound annual United States production quantities for 5 classes of ENMs. A variety of sources were culled to identify companies producing source ENM products and determine production volumes. Using refining assumptions to attribute production levels from companies with more reliable estimates to companies with little to no data, ranges of U.S. production quantities were projected for each of the 5 ENMs. The quality of data is also analyzed; the percentage of companies for which data were available (via Web sites, patents, or direct communication) or unavailable (and thus extrapolated from other companies’ data) is presented.
Abstract
Studies designed to investigate the environmental or biological interactions of nanoscale materials frequently rely on the use of ultrasound (sonication) to prepare test suspensions. ...However, the inconsistent application of ultrasonic treatment across laboratories, and the lack of process standardization can lead to significant variability in suspension characteristics. At present, there is widespread recognition that sonication must be applied judiciously and reported in a consistent manner that is quantifiable and reproducible; current reporting practices generally lack these attributes. The objectives of the present work were to: (i) Survey potential sonication effects that can alter the physicochemical or biological properties of dispersed nanomaterials (within the context of toxicity testing) and discuss methods to mitigate these effects, (ii) propose a method for standardizing the measurement of sonication power, and (iii) offer a set of reporting guidelines to facilitate the reproducibility of studies involving engineered nanoparticle suspensions obtained via sonication.
The growing interest in nanoparticles (NP) is inevitably translating into an increase of their emissions in the environment. On the other hand, the necessary knowledge about the fate and transport of ...these NPs in the environment remains limited. In particular it is critically important to understand how the interactions of NPs with the particles already present in environmental matrices affect their fate, transport, and eventually persistence in the environment. In this study we present a computer model that expands upon the existing simple homogeneous aggregation models to account for heterogeneous aggregation between NPs and the distribution of natural particles already present in environmental waters. The model follows the concentrations of purely nanoparticle aggregates, purely background particles aggregates, and mixed aggregates, as well as the composition of mixed aggregates. After analytical evaluation, we ran simulations to illustrate the complexity of heterogeneous aggregation and its impact on the fate of NPs. The model predicts that the impact of NP size on their persistence in the environment is accentuated for low affinity between NPs and background particles, and for low background particle concentration.
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