Journal of hazardous materials letters最新文献

Polyquaternium polymers are widely used in various applications, such as personal care products and wastewater treatment plants, and eventually end up in the aquatic environment. While polymers have been perceived of low toxicological concern due to their size, several studies have pointed towards water-soluble cationic polymers being toxic towards aquatic organisms – and that the toxicity largely is determined by the polymer charge density. The present study investigated the polyquaternium toxicological mechanism of action throughout lipidomic analysis and changes in immune-gene expression (qPCR) of zebrafish larvae exposed continuously to two water-soluble polymers; a high charge density polyquaternium-6 and a low charge density polyquaternium-10, for 5 and 12 days upon fertilization. The results showed that the investigated polyquaterniums cause both inflammatory responses and significant alterations of the zebrafish larvae lipidome. Depending on polyquaternium polymer and larvae development stage, the gene expression showed an inflammatory response (e.g. significant up-regulation of il8, il1β and tnfα) in the exposed zebrafish. Alterations of the lipidome were additionally observed, with severe depletion of lipids (e.g. lyso-glycerophosphocholines and ceramides) in the 12 days old larvae exposed to high charge density polymer. The findings furthermore support a hypothetical mechanism of action to be non-specific and lethality potentially to be narcosis-like driven.

Water borne emerging pollutants represents a significant challenge confronting the modern society. As a result of excessive use of dyes and pigments by the textile and other industries, substantial amount of these toxic and recalcitrant substances are widely dispersed into the aquatic sources that may raise serious health issues to all life forms besides causing potential disruption to the ecosystem. Treatments of these hazardous and non-biodegradable organic contaminants in wastewater effluents have become a focal point for researchers dedicated to environmental remediation. Notably, Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and their composites have been reported to be promising materials for tackling such challenges. This review is dedicated to provide a concise overview by consolidating the diverse beneficial attributes of Cu-BTC MOF rendering it as a versatile material with applications spanning diverse domains, focusing on the reactivity, the role of the metal ion and its recent potential for addressing the elimination of toxic textile dye wastes from the wastewater effluent. Furthermore, it also documents the underlying mechanistic pathway governing the degradation mechanism and the superior electron transport property of Cu ̶ BTC, besides painting in detail the existing limitations that hinder their applicability at an industrial platform. Moreover, a set of future research outlooks serving as a roadmap for exploring the potentiality of Cu ̶ BTC MOFs have also been presented.

Arsenic is a trace element and a metalloid which is prominently known as an environmental hazard. At present, rising health apprehensions are linked to emanating from a wide array of industrial, chemical, residential, agricultural, and technological sources, leading to extensive pollution of water, soil, and air ecosystems including flora, fauna and humans. It poses significant harm to biological organisms upon acute and chronic exposure. In this review, we delve into the reported experimental data that elaborates on arsenic as a toxicant, with particular emphasis on its occurrence, metabolism and diverse molecular mechanisms involved. It also includes the major molecular mechanisms leading to systemic toxicity with special emphasis on shedding light on the intricate ways it disrupts the nervous system.

The paper presents the results of the application of raw phosphogypsum as an adsorbent for the preliminary treatment of coke-chemical wastewater with an initial concentration of phenol 395 mg/L. Studies in batch mode have proved that phenol removal is promoted by increasing the adsorbent dose and effluent temperature, the optimal phosphogypsum dose was found to be 5 g/L. The adsorption kinetics follows a pseudo-first-order model, the maximum adsorption capacity of phosphogypsum reaches 85 mg/g, which provides purification from phenol at the level of 85–90%. The process is spontaneous and endothermic. In column mode, at an effluent flow rate of 3 mL/min and the height of the fixed bed of 15 mm adsorbent dynamic capacity reached 124 mg/g. The obtained data indicate that raw phosphogypsum, available in huge quantities in the dumps of phosphoric acid plants, can be effectively used for the pretreatment of phenolic wastewater before biological treatment.

The synergetic and interactive effects of microplastics (MPs) as potential carriers of pollutants and pathogens have a manifold impact on human health and aquatic biota. The present study delineates the role of MPs in transporting heavy metals to the black clam, Villorita cyrpinoides of Vembanad Lake in South India. MPs in water (3.41 ± 1.87 items/L), sediment (154.6 ± 45.4 items/kg) and within clams (0.87 ± 0.34 items/g tissue) showed considerable variation based on their physical and chemical characteristics, which in turn reflected its differential potential to carry heavy metals. Though the levels of heavy metals (Al, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cr, Pb) within the clam and those carried by MPs were less than the hazardous limits, the concentration of Cd within the clam and MP was found to have a positive correlation. Though the present levels of heavy metal pollution in the lake do not pose a direct threat to humans, anthropogenic interventions and reduced water flow have turned the lower reaches of the lake into a sink of heavy metals. Hence with MP concentration increasing it is worth investigating how their future interactions with heavy metals and other pollutants would pose a risk to living organisms.

The biogeochemical cycling of iron is crucial to plenty of environmental processes, and is often influenced by black carbon with high electrical conductivity and abundant functional groups. This study for the first time revealed that diesel particulate matter (DPM), a typical black carbon material which often caused serious environmental effects, could significantly promote dissimilatory reduction of both abiogenic and biogenic goethite (CGt and BGt) by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1. In 7 days, Fe(II) production in CGt systems containing 0.5, 5, 10, 25, and 50 mg/L of DPM were 1.2, 1.3, 1.8, 1.9, and 2.7 folds higher than that in the system without DPM (0.12 mM), respectively. During the bioreduction of BGt, Fe(II) concentrations were 2.4–3.4 folds higher than those in the CGt systems, and were increased by 4.8%− 41.7% with the addition of 0.5–50 mg/L DPM. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis demonstrated that goethite was the sole mineralized product during the bioreduction of CGt, while vivianite appeared gradually during the microbial transformation of BGt. DPM enhanced electron transfer between cells and goethite via serving as electron shuttles. The results of this study would improve our understanding of interactions among microbes, natural minerals, and black carbon in the natural environments.

Electronic cigarettes (ECs), considered a healthier alternative to traditional cigarettes (TCs), vaporize e-liquid, which may produce harmful by-products due to thermal decomposition and metal transfer. These by-products' deposition in the respiratory tract is largely determined by particle size distribution (PSD). We employ the Multiple-Path Particle Dosimetry (MPPD) model to assess particle deposition within the human and mouse respiratory tracts. Leveraging the known connection between TC smoke inhalation and atherosclerosis, we used human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) and ApoE^-/- mice to explore the potential effects of EC aerosol inhalation on atherosclerosis. Our findings reveal that TCs exhibit a highly variable PSD, with mean diameters of approximately 300 nm for mainstream (MS) smoke and 120 nm for side stream (SS) smoke. Conversely, ECs demonstrate a more stable PSD. Combined with MPPD, the deposition fraction in the human respiratory system and mice is mainly deposited in the pulmonary region and head airway. For the Apoe^-/- mice exposure experiment, preliminary findings suggest a potential impact on atherosclerosis, although not statistically significant, likely due to the limited sample size and exposure duration. This study highlights the importance of considering PSD, exposure dosage, and species-specific differences in risk assessments of EC aerosols.

The possibility of combined adsorption-degradation processes in wastewater treatment using nanomaterials based on indium sulfide (In₂S₃) is examined in this review paper. Regarding the synergistic adsorption and degradation of pollutants, In₂S₃ performs exceptionally well, making it a suitable choice for wastewater remediation. Insights have been given to the pollutant removal mechanism through this integrated technique. The synergistic removal process is affected by several operational factors, including pH, catalyst dose, pollutant concentration, and contact duration. This analysis highlights the significance of optimizing these parameters for optimal contaminant removal efficiency. The influence of co-existing species, including cations, anions, and organic compounds, on the integrated elimination process is further highlighted by a discussion of their role. Future research directions are suggested, including a better comprehension of underlying processes, investigation of hybrid nanocomposites, and evaluation of long-term stability and recyclability to enhance the applicability of In₂S₃-based nanomaterials. This study aids in the creation of effective and long-lasting wastewater treatment methods by using the potential of In₂S₃-based nanomaterials.