Pub Date : 2025-05-19DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2438444
Luowen Lyu, Robert Fleck, Stephen Matheson, William L. King, Taryn L. Bauerle, Fraser R. Torpy, Peter J. Irga
The built indoor environment, including domestic housing and commercial offices, has significantly lower air quality relative to ambient outdoor air. Methods of air purification typically rely on traditional mechanical filtration methods such as heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, which are energetically intensive and require routine maintenance to ensure adequate filtration. To reduce energy demands and to improve urban sustainability, phytoremediation technologies have emerged as a promising method for the remediation of indoor air quality. Due to the need to identify and optimize sustainable methods to improve air quality, we present a comprehensive review on the mechanisms for plant-driven and microbial-driven removal of gaseous contaminants (i.e. volatile organic compounds) is warranted. The literature indicates that indoor air phytoremediation systems rely on complex of both the biological aspects (plant parts, substrate, microbial community, substrate moisture) and abiotic factors (airflow and moisture content), however it is evident that the method for optimal application of these factors within systems is currently significantly understudied, especially in relation to research done in-situ. The authors recommend future research directions should be targeted at plant biochemical analysis of phytoremediation systems exposed to real world pollutants like petroleum vapor, vehicle emissions, and mixed synthetic furnishings of-gassing, as well as the dynamics of the substrate microbial community within root systems. The assessment and developed understanding of these key areas are not only essential for the progression of the field of research but also for continued wide spread adoption for these phytoremediation systems.
{"title":"Phytoremediation of indoor air: Mechanisms of pollutant translocation and biodegradation","authors":"Luowen Lyu, Robert Fleck, Stephen Matheson, William L. King, Taryn L. Bauerle, Fraser R. Torpy, Peter J. Irga","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2438444","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2438444","url":null,"abstract":"The built indoor environment, including domestic housing and commercial offices, has significantly lower air quality relative to ambient outdoor air. Methods of air purification typically rely on traditional mechanical filtration methods such as heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, which are energetically intensive and require routine maintenance to ensure adequate filtration. To reduce energy demands and to improve urban sustainability, phytoremediation technologies have emerged as a promising method for the remediation of indoor air quality. Due to the need to identify and optimize sustainable methods to improve air quality, we present a comprehensive review on the mechanisms for plant-driven and microbial-driven removal of gaseous contaminants (i.e. volatile organic compounds) is warranted. The literature indicates that indoor air phytoremediation systems rely on complex of both the biological aspects (plant parts, substrate, microbial community, substrate moisture) and abiotic factors (airflow and moisture content), however it is evident that the method for optimal application of these factors within systems is currently significantly understudied, especially in relation to research done <i>in-situ</i>. The authors recommend future research directions should be targeted at plant biochemical analysis of phytoremediation systems exposed to real world pollutants like petroleum vapor, vehicle emissions, and mixed synthetic furnishings of-gassing, as well as the dynamics of the substrate microbial community within root systems. The assessment and developed understanding of these key areas are not only essential for the progression of the field of research but also for continued wide spread adoption for these phytoremediation systems.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"108 1","pages":"676-707"},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143827218","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-05-19DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2443284
Clement Matthew Chan, Serena Yim, Paul Lant, Steven Pratt, Bronwyn Laycock
Biodegradable plastics show promise in addressing traditional plastic waste issues. However, most commercially available biodegradable plastic products are blended/composite materials, combining biodegradable polymers with other polymers, fillers and additives. Non-reactive functional additives, such as plasticizers and stabilizers, raise concerns due to potential leaching as well as release on degradation. Thus, understanding how these additives affect biodegradation rates and processes is crucial, and a comprehensive overview is missing in the literature. This review highlights that the localized additive concentration levels adjacent to the plastic materials could, at least for a time, exceed the threshold concentrations for substantial impacts on microbial activities, especially in slow transport media such as soil and compost. Of the available literature, it is concerning that only a small fraction reported continuous quantitative biodegradation data with sampling frequency and duration adequate for comprehensive data synthesis. In those studies, the presence of additives resulted in an extended lag time for biodegradation compared to virgin polymer. Interestingly, additives also typically increased the biodegradation rate following this initial lag time. Overall, variation was observed in the half-life of biodegradable polymer/additive blends when considering both lag time and biodegradation rate. The likely key controlling factors dictating how additives impact biodegradable plastics biodegradation include the rate of additive leaching, alterations in polymer properties induced by additives and their leaching, and the intrinsic characteristics of the additives themselves. Future life cycle analysis and environmental impact assessments of new bioplastic products must consider the influence of additives.
{"title":"The impact of functional additives on biodegradable plastic biodegradation in natural terrestrial and composting environments","authors":"Clement Matthew Chan, Serena Yim, Paul Lant, Steven Pratt, Bronwyn Laycock","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2443284","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2443284","url":null,"abstract":"Biodegradable plastics show promise in addressing traditional plastic waste issues. However, most commercially available biodegradable plastic products are blended/composite materials, combining biodegradable polymers with other polymers, fillers and additives. Non-reactive functional additives, such as plasticizers and stabilizers, raise concerns due to potential leaching as well as release on degradation. Thus, understanding how these additives affect biodegradation rates and processes is crucial, and a comprehensive overview is missing in the literature. This review highlights that the localized additive concentration levels adjacent to the plastic materials could, at least for a time, exceed the threshold concentrations for substantial impacts on microbial activities, especially in slow transport media such as soil and compost. Of the available literature, it is concerning that only a small fraction reported continuous quantitative biodegradation data with sampling frequency and duration adequate for comprehensive data synthesis. In those studies, the presence of additives resulted in an extended lag time for biodegradation compared to virgin polymer. Interestingly, additives also typically increased the biodegradation rate following this initial lag time. Overall, variation was observed in the half-life of biodegradable polymer/additive blends when considering both lag time and biodegradation rate. The likely key controlling factors dictating how additives impact biodegradable plastics biodegradation include the rate of additive leaching, alterations in polymer properties induced by additives and their leaching, and the intrinsic characteristics of the additives themselves. Future life cycle analysis and environmental impact assessments of new bioplastic products must consider the influence of additives.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"183 1","pages":"708-731"},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143827261","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-05-19DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2436161
Hao Zhang, Zhangjie Yu, Jinlong Wang, Zheng Ke, Le Tong, Xiaobin Tang, Langming Bai, Han Zhang, Guibai Li, Heng Liang
Nanofiltration and reverse osmosis have become prevalent methods for treating inland wastewater because of superior separation efficiency and operational simplicity, yet they produce highly polluting membrane concentrates (e.g., from municipal potable water and municipal and industrial wastewater) containing biological, organic, and salt pollutants. Managing membrane concentrates poses significant challenges, often resulting in underutilization of their valuable components. This paper discusses strategies for reducing, rendering harmless, and utilizing resources from membrane concentrates, along with their future development trends. Methods for reducing membrane concentrate formation, such as optimizing operational modes and membrane modification, are examined. Generally, the preprocessing methods can be used as an oxidation pretreatment to improve the removal of macromolecular pollutants in the membrane concentrates, and provide conditions for the targeted removal of non-biodegradability emerging contaminants by free radicals in the oxidation process. The biological treatment further treats biodegradable pollutants. Finally, biosafety and water quality can be guaranteed through the membrane process, so as to achieve near-zero emissions. Resource recovery options include the production of salt crystals (e.g., potassium and magnesium phosphate, hydroxyapatite), microalgae resources, and others. Additionally, non-chemical pretreatment before membrane processing is proposed to simplify the treatment of membrane concentrates. A new analytic hierarchy process aids in selecting appropriate treatment and resource utilization processes for membrane concentrates. Furthermore, there is a call for the establishment and reinforcement of water quality legislation to address emerging contaminants in membrane concentrates, as well as regulations governing the purity of resources such as salts recovered from membrane concentrates.
{"title":"A review of inland nanofiltration and reverse osmosis membrane concentrates management: Treatment, resource recovery and future development","authors":"Hao Zhang, Zhangjie Yu, Jinlong Wang, Zheng Ke, Le Tong, Xiaobin Tang, Langming Bai, Han Zhang, Guibai Li, Heng Liang","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2436161","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2436161","url":null,"abstract":"Nanofiltration and reverse osmosis have become prevalent methods for treating inland wastewater because of superior separation efficiency and operational simplicity, yet they produce highly polluting membrane concentrates (e.g., from municipal potable water and municipal and industrial wastewater) containing biological, organic, and salt pollutants. Managing membrane concentrates poses significant challenges, often resulting in underutilization of their valuable components. This paper discusses strategies for reducing, rendering harmless, and utilizing resources from membrane concentrates, along with their future development trends. Methods for reducing membrane concentrate formation, such as optimizing operational modes and membrane modification, are examined. Generally, the preprocessing methods can be used as an oxidation pretreatment to improve the removal of macromolecular pollutants in the membrane concentrates, and provide conditions for the targeted removal of non-biodegradability emerging contaminants by free radicals in the oxidation process. The biological treatment further treats biodegradable pollutants. Finally, biosafety and water quality can be guaranteed through the membrane process, so as to achieve near-zero emissions. Resource recovery options include the production of salt crystals (e.g., potassium and magnesium phosphate, hydroxyapatite), microalgae resources, and others. Additionally, non-chemical pretreatment before membrane processing is proposed to simplify the treatment of membrane concentrates. A new analytic hierarchy process aids in selecting appropriate treatment and resource utilization processes for membrane concentrates. Furthermore, there is a call for the establishment and reinforcement of water quality legislation to address emerging contaminants in membrane concentrates, as well as regulations governing the purity of resources such as salts recovered from membrane concentrates.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"24 1","pages":"1-27"},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143827264","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Managing farmlands’ heavy metal (HM) pollution is crucial for improving plant growth and ensuring agricultural product safety. While low to medium doses of HM exposure may not directly result in crop reduction, they can lead to HM accumulation in plants and potential food-chain risks, as well as trigger the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Excessive ROS can cause oxidative stress and irreversible damage to plant cells. Nanozymes, cost-effective and stable artificial nanoparticles with enzyme-like activity, have been widely used in multiple fields. Over the past decade, research has confirmed certain nanozymes’ effectiveness in plant systemic immunity during HM remediation. The activities of nanozymes hinge on their physicochemical properties, while the biological effects also depend on application methods, size, charge, coating, crop varieties, and growth stages. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the nanozyme-plant interactions and resistance mechanisms to HMs. This paper comprehensively reviews nanozyme-mediated ROS scavenging mechanisms across enzymology, metabolomics, proteomics, and transcriptomics. It also introduces the application pathways and effects, influencing factors, possible risks, and prospects. This review may provide a theoretical framework for nanozyme-mediated mitigation of HM stress along with other abiotic stresses in agriculture for sustainable “precision fertilization” with nanozymes.
{"title":"Nanozymes: An innovative approach to regulating heavy metal accumulation in plants and alleviating toxicity-A comprehensive review","authors":"Yaoyao Wang, Xueyuan Gu, Lijuan Zhao, Dongmei Zhou","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2448048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2448048","url":null,"abstract":"Managing farmlands’ heavy metal (HM) pollution is crucial for improving plant growth and ensuring agricultural product safety. While low to medium doses of HM exposure may not directly result in crop reduction, they can lead to HM accumulation in plants and potential food-chain risks, as well as trigger the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Excessive ROS can cause oxidative stress and irreversible damage to plant cells. Nanozymes, cost-effective and stable artificial nanoparticles with enzyme-like activity, have been widely used in multiple fields. Over the past decade, research has confirmed certain nanozymes’ effectiveness in plant systemic immunity during HM remediation. The activities of nanozymes hinge on their physicochemical properties, while the biological effects also depend on application methods, size, charge, coating, crop varieties, and growth stages. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the nanozyme-plant interactions and resistance mechanisms to HMs. This paper comprehensively reviews nanozyme-mediated ROS scavenging mechanisms across enzymology, metabolomics, proteomics, and transcriptomics. It also introduces the application pathways and effects, influencing factors, possible risks, and prospects. This review may provide a theoretical framework for nanozyme-mediated mitigation of HM stress along with other abiotic stresses in agriculture for sustainable “precision fertilization” with nanozymes.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"39 1","pages":"732-756"},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143827322","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-19DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2413202
Mathew P. Johansen, Justin P. Gwynn, Julia G. Carpenter, Sabine Charmasson, Paul Mc Ginnity, Airi Mori, Blake Orr, Marie Simon-Cornu, Iolanda Osvath
Seafood is an important source for meeting future global nutrient demands. However, it also contributes disproportionately to the radiological ingestion dose of more than five billion world consumers– up to ∼70%–80% of the total-foods dose in some countries. Although numerous studies report seafood doses in specific populations, there is still no comprehensive evaluation answering basic questions such as “what is the ingestion dose to the average global seafood consumer?” Analysis of 238 worldwide seafood dose estimates suggests that typical adult consumers receive from 0.13 to 0.21 mSv, with a likely best estimate of 0.15 mSv per annual seafood intake. Those consuming large amounts of seafood, particularly bivalves, may experience ingestion doses exceeding 1 mSv per annual intake, surpassing other routine background dose sources. The published studies suggest that doses of 3 mSv or greater are surpassed in about 150 million adult seafood consumers worldwide. Almost all this dose comes from the natural radionuclides that are prevalent in marine systems–especially 210Po. While trace levels of anthropogenic radionuclides are ubiquitous in seafoods (e.g.,137Cs and 239Pu), the added dose from these is typically orders of magnitude lower. Even following the large-scale releases from the Fukushima accident, with food safety controls in place, the additional dose to consumers in Japan was small relative to routine dose from natural background radionuclides. However, the worldwide seafood dose estimates span seven orders of magnitude, indicating a need for an assessment that integrates global seafood radionuclide data as well as incorporating changes in seafood consumption and production patterns.
{"title":"Radiological dose from seafood ingestion; a global summary from 40 years of study","authors":"Mathew P. Johansen, Justin P. Gwynn, Julia G. Carpenter, Sabine Charmasson, Paul Mc Ginnity, Airi Mori, Blake Orr, Marie Simon-Cornu, Iolanda Osvath","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2413202","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2413202","url":null,"abstract":"Seafood is an important source for meeting future global nutrient demands. However, it also contributes disproportionately to the radiological ingestion dose of more than five billion world consumers– up to ∼70%–80% of the total-foods dose in some countries. Although numerous studies report seafood doses in specific populations, there is still no comprehensive evaluation answering basic questions such as “what is the ingestion dose to the average global seafood consumer?” Analysis of 238 worldwide seafood dose estimates suggests that typical adult consumers receive from 0.13 to 0.21 mSv, with a likely best estimate of 0.15 mSv per annual seafood intake. Those consuming large amounts of seafood, particularly bivalves, may experience ingestion doses exceeding 1 mSv per annual intake, surpassing other routine background dose sources. The published studies suggest that doses of 3 mSv or greater are surpassed in about 150 million adult seafood consumers worldwide. Almost all this dose comes from the natural radionuclides that are prevalent in marine systems–especially <sup>210</sup>Po. While trace levels of anthropogenic radionuclides are ubiquitous in seafoods (e.g.,<sup>137</sup>Cs and <sup>239</sup>Pu), the added dose from these is typically orders of magnitude lower. Even following the large-scale releases from the Fukushima accident, with food safety controls in place, the additional dose to consumers in Japan was small relative to routine dose from natural background radionuclides. However, the worldwide seafood dose estimates span seven orders of magnitude, indicating a need for an assessment that integrates global seafood radionuclide data as well as incorporating changes in seafood consumption and production patterns.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"109 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143031014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-11DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2025.2478037
Yang Zhou, Shouying Li, Wenli Tang, Huan Zhong
Mercury (Hg) is a global pollutant that has attracted widespread attention due to its potent toxicity to humans. The transformations of Hg are critical to its global cycling and human exposure risk, considering that different Hg forms possess various mobility and toxicity. It is, therefore, essential to explore the mechanisms of Hg transformations. Both biotic and abiotic factors mediate Hg transformations in the environments, while the latter has not been sufficiently recognized, among which reactive oxygen species (ROS) are ubiquitous yet potentially overlooked drivers. This insufficient recognition of ROS-mediated Hg transformations impeded our understanding of Hg biogeochemistry. Herein, we summarized the generation mechanisms of ROS in the atmosphere, natural water, and soil, and elucidated ROS involvement in Hg transformations, including MeHg degradation, Hg0 oxidation, and Hg(II) reduction. Then, approaches for exploring the role of ROS in Hg transformations were introduced, including ROS detection, quenching, generation, and DFT calculations. By summarizing the implications of ROS-mediated Hg transformations for Hg biogeochemical cycling and proposing potential challenges in further studies, we highlight the importance and necessity of studying this driving force in Hg biogeochemistry.
{"title":"Mercury transformations by reactive oxygen species: Occurrence, detection, evidence, and challenges","authors":"Yang Zhou, Shouying Li, Wenli Tang, Huan Zhong","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2025.2478037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2025.2478037","url":null,"abstract":"Mercury (Hg) is a global pollutant that has attracted widespread attention due to its potent toxicity to humans. The transformations of Hg are critical to its global cycling and human exposure risk, considering that different Hg forms possess various mobility and toxicity. It is, therefore, essential to explore the mechanisms of Hg transformations. Both biotic and abiotic factors mediate Hg transformations in the environments, while the latter has not been sufficiently recognized, among which reactive oxygen species (ROS) are ubiquitous yet potentially overlooked drivers. This insufficient recognition of ROS-mediated Hg transformations impeded our understanding of Hg biogeochemistry. Herein, we summarized the generation mechanisms of ROS in the atmosphere, natural water, and soil, and elucidated ROS involvement in Hg transformations, including MeHg degradation, Hg<sup>0</sup> oxidation, and Hg(II) reduction. Then, approaches for exploring the role of ROS in Hg transformations were introduced, including ROS detection, quenching, generation, and DFT calculations. By summarizing the implications of ROS-mediated Hg transformations for Hg biogeochemical cycling and proposing potential challenges in further studies, we highlight the importance and necessity of studying this driving force in Hg biogeochemistry.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"18 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143619040","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-04DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2406992
Marion Revel, Chantal K. E. van Drimmelen, Lennart Weltje, Andrew Hursthouse, Susanne Heise
Rare earth elements (REE) are recognized as emerging pollutants due to their widespread use in modern society (e.g., in the production of electronics, renewable energy technologies, and advanced medical devices) which leads to anthropogenically elevated concentrations in the environment with potential consequences for ecosystem health. This article critically reviews the current scientific knowledge on aquatic bioavailability and toxicity of REE and focuses on pitfalls that could influence the outcome of ecotoxicity tests. After passing our quality criteria, we reviewed 38 papers on the ecotoxicity of REE in depth. Most studies focused on freshwater environments, indicating a need for more research on marine ecosystems, particularly on marine vertebrates. The results showed that heavy REE tend to be more toxic than light REE to aquatic organisms. Critical aspects for biotesting REE include complexation with ions such as phosphates (nutrient in algae tests) and carbonates. Carbonate complexation decreases potentially bioavailable aqueous REE species and may lower toxicity at increasing water hardness, although this may also be caused by competition of REE3+ and Ca2+ for the same binding sites in organisms. REE have a high tendency to adsorb to glass and it is recommended to use vessels made of polyethylene terephthalate or polycarbonate instead. More research is needed on chemical speciation and the interaction of REE with various organisms, also in multi-species mesocosm studies. A robust aquatic risk assessment on REE requires information on nominal and measured concentrations in both acute and chronic ecotoxicological bioassays as well as a thorough characterization of exposure.
{"title":"Effects of rare earth elements in the aquatic environment: Implications for ecotoxicological testing","authors":"Marion Revel, Chantal K. E. van Drimmelen, Lennart Weltje, Andrew Hursthouse, Susanne Heise","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2406992","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2406992","url":null,"abstract":"Rare earth elements (REE) are recognized as emerging pollutants due to their widespread use in modern society (e.g., in the production of electronics, renewable energy technologies, and advanced medical devices) which leads to anthropogenically elevated concentrations in the environment with potential consequences for ecosystem health. This article critically reviews the current scientific knowledge on aquatic bioavailability and toxicity of REE and focuses on pitfalls that could influence the outcome of ecotoxicity tests. After passing our quality criteria, we reviewed 38 papers on the ecotoxicity of REE in depth. Most studies focused on freshwater environments, indicating a need for more research on marine ecosystems, particularly on marine vertebrates. The results showed that heavy REE tend to be more toxic than light REE to aquatic organisms. Critical aspects for biotesting REE include complexation with ions such as phosphates (nutrient in algae tests) and carbonates. Carbonate complexation decreases potentially bioavailable aqueous REE species and may lower toxicity at increasing water hardness, although this may also be caused by competition of REE<sup>3+</sup> and Ca<sup>2+</sup> for the same binding sites in organisms. REE have a high tendency to adsorb to glass and it is recommended to use vessels made of polyethylene terephthalate or polycarbonate instead. More research is needed on chemical speciation and the interaction of REE with various organisms, also in multi-species mesocosm studies. A robust aquatic risk assessment on REE requires information on nominal and measured concentrations in both acute and chronic ecotoxicological bioassays as well as a thorough characterization of exposure.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142967877","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Organophosphate esters (OPEs), a group of synthetic chemicals widely used as flame retardants and plasticizers, have garnered significant international attention due to their adverse effects on the environment and human health. Traditionally, environmental OPEs are thought to originate via direct emissions. Recent evidence suggests that OPEs also have an important indirect source: The transformation of organophosphite antioxidants (another group of mass-produced commercial chemicals) to OPEs via atmospheric chemical reactions. This indirect source can lead to the formation of secondary OPEs (SOPEs) such as tris(2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl) phosphate (TDtBPP), which are widely distributed in the global environment and have distinct physiochemical and toxic properties compared with the well-studied primary OPEs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to obtain a strong fundamental knowledge of SOPEs. This review summarizes the current understanding of the sources, environmental occurrence, human exposure pathways, and environmental hazards of SOPEs. They have been detected in various environmental matrices such as air, soil, and indoor dust, as well as in consumer products such as face masks and foodstuffs. Notably, the reported SOPE concentrations are higher than most primary OPEs. Human exposure pathways related to SOPEs include dietary intake, dust ingestion, hand-to-mouth contact, dermal absorption, and air inhalation. Additionally, risk evaluation indicates that SOPEs are more persistent in the environment and in organisms, and may pose a higher risk than the primary OPEs. Finally, by summarizing the current advances and remaining challenges for the investigation of SOPEs, we propose future research directions regarding their environmental monitoring needs, transformation chemistry, environmental impact, and health effect.
{"title":"Secondary organophosphate esters: A review of environmental source, occurrence, and human exposure","authors":"Xinkai Wang, Yuan Xue, Xianming Zhang, Jinlong Wang, Kaihui Xia, Wei Liu, Zhouqing Xie, Runzeng Liu, Qifan Liu","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2399968","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2399968","url":null,"abstract":"Organophosphate esters (OPEs), a group of synthetic chemicals widely used as flame retardants and plasticizers, have garnered significant international attention due to their adverse effects on the environment and human health. Traditionally, environmental OPEs are thought to originate <i>via</i> direct emissions. Recent evidence suggests that OPEs also have an important indirect source: The transformation of organophosphite antioxidants (another group of mass-produced commercial chemicals) to OPEs <i>via</i> atmospheric chemical reactions. This indirect source can lead to the formation of secondary OPEs (SOPEs) such as tris(2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl) phosphate (TDtBPP), which are widely distributed in the global environment and have distinct physiochemical and toxic properties compared with the well-studied primary OPEs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to obtain a strong fundamental knowledge of SOPEs. This review summarizes the current understanding of the sources, environmental occurrence, human exposure pathways, and environmental hazards of SOPEs. They have been detected in various environmental matrices such as air, soil, and indoor dust, as well as in consumer products such as face masks and foodstuffs. Notably, the reported SOPE concentrations are higher than most primary OPEs. Human exposure pathways related to SOPEs include dietary intake, dust ingestion, hand-to-mouth contact, dermal absorption, and air inhalation. Additionally, risk evaluation indicates that SOPEs are more persistent in the environment and in organisms, and may pose a higher risk than the primary OPEs. Finally, by summarizing the current advances and remaining challenges for the investigation of SOPEs, we propose future research directions regarding their environmental monitoring needs, transformation chemistry, environmental impact, and health effect.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-02-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142889260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-02-16DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2401215
Yong-Gang Zhao, Li-Hui Chen, Ming-Li Ye, Wei-Si Su, Chao Lei, Xin-Jie Jin, Yin Lu
The vigorous development of nuclear power is one of the main strategies to solve the energy crisis and environmental pollution due to clean and high energy density of nuclear energy. As the main nuclear fuel, uranium is not only the shortage of terrestrial resource but also pose potential threat to the environment. To figure out these dilemma, various polymers have been widely developed to remove U(VI) from wastewater or extract U(VI) from seawater due to abundant reactive sites, high adsorption efficiency, large surface areas and controlled porous structure. Herein, the recent advances concerning U(VI) removal from seawater or wastewater on various polymer-bearing adsorbents (i.e., metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent-organic frameworks (COFs) and the other polymers) were summarized at large. The effect of different modification methods, influencing factors and interaction mechanism of U(VI) on these polymers were reviewed in details. Finally, the current problems as well as future direction of various polymer adsorbents toward U(VI) removal was provided. The review hopefully provides high-efficiency polymer adsorbents for the removal of uranium from aqueous solution or natural seawater.
{"title":"U(VI) removal on polymer adsorbents: Recent development and future challenges","authors":"Yong-Gang Zhao, Li-Hui Chen, Ming-Li Ye, Wei-Si Su, Chao Lei, Xin-Jie Jin, Yin Lu","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2401215","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2401215","url":null,"abstract":"The vigorous development of nuclear power is one of the main strategies to solve the energy crisis and environmental pollution due to clean and high energy density of nuclear energy. As the main nuclear fuel, uranium is not only the shortage of terrestrial resource but also pose potential threat to the environment. To figure out these dilemma, various polymers have been widely developed to remove U(VI) from wastewater or extract U(VI) from seawater due to abundant reactive sites, high adsorption efficiency, large surface areas and controlled porous structure. Herein, the recent advances concerning U(VI) removal from seawater or wastewater on various polymer-bearing adsorbents (<i>i.e.,</i> metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent-organic frameworks (COFs) and the other polymers) were summarized at large. The effect of different modification methods, influencing factors and interaction mechanism of U(VI) on these polymers were reviewed in details. Finally, the current problems as well as future direction of various polymer adsorbents toward U(VI) removal was provided. The review hopefully provides high-efficiency polymer adsorbents for the removal of uranium from aqueous solution or natural seawater.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-02-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142889298","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-03DOI: 10.1080/10643389.2024.2449328
Xiaodi Zhao, Luyao Li, Saiwei Zhang, Xiaohua Fu, Li Xie, Lei Wang
Biological carbon fixation is essential to the Earth’s carbon cycle and serves as an effective means of converting CO2 and managing carbon emissions. Chemoautotrophic microorganisms, known for their unique metabolic strategies and environmental adaptability, play a significant role in this process. They can convert CO2 into valuable organic products, addressing the otherwise limited use of CO2. However, the potential of chemoautotrophic microorganisms for biological carbon fixation in controlled environments has not been fully explored. This review aims to evaluate the current state of research on the carbon fixation capabilities of chemoautotrophic microorganisms in artificially controlled system. It examines the factors affecting bacterial growth and expounds optimization strategies one by one to enhance biological carbon fixation efficiency. Furthermore, the review details the applications of chemoautotrophs cultivated in controlled systems, which include increasing biological productivity in natural habitats, reducing carbon emissions in specific scenarios, and producing high-value byproducts. The discussion highlights both the advantages and challenges of these applications, providing critical insights into the regulation and practical use of chemoautotrophic carbon fixation technology.
{"title":"Efficient chemoautotrophic carbon fixation in controlled systems: Influencing factors, regulatory strategies and application prospects","authors":"Xiaodi Zhao, Luyao Li, Saiwei Zhang, Xiaohua Fu, Li Xie, Lei Wang","doi":"10.1080/10643389.2024.2449328","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2024.2449328","url":null,"abstract":"Biological carbon fixation is essential to the Earth’s carbon cycle and serves as an effective means of converting CO<sub>2</sub> and managing carbon emissions. Chemoautotrophic microorganisms, known for their unique metabolic strategies and environmental adaptability, play a significant role in this process. They can convert CO<sub>2</sub> into valuable organic products, addressing the otherwise limited use of CO<sub>2</sub>. However, the potential of chemoautotrophic microorganisms for biological carbon fixation in controlled environments has not been fully explored. This review aims to evaluate the current state of research on the carbon fixation capabilities of chemoautotrophic microorganisms in artificially controlled system. It examines the factors affecting bacterial growth and expounds optimization strategies one by one to enhance biological carbon fixation efficiency. Furthermore, the review details the applications of chemoautotrophs cultivated in controlled systems, which include increasing biological productivity in natural habitats, reducing carbon emissions in specific scenarios, and producing high-value byproducts. The discussion highlights both the advantages and challenges of these applications, providing critical insights into the regulation and practical use of chemoautotrophic carbon fixation technology.","PeriodicalId":10823,"journal":{"name":"Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology","volume":"80 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.6,"publicationDate":"2025-01-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142935378","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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