A study of nanomaterial transportation in the soil by finite difference approximations

Although there has been an increase in the production and use of nanomaterials; few studies have analysed their contact with the environment and the consequent effects on an ecosystem's health, ranging from the impact on the growth of organisms to the contamination of water reservoirs. This work proposes a tool to study the transportation of nanomaterials in the soil by the finite difference method, modelling the dispersion of nanomaterials into the soil layers to estimate the environmental impact. The model validation was conducted through numerical simulations of manganese and zinc in contact with a compacted latosol. The results show that the nanoparticle pollutants move slowly through the layers and the highest concentration is found close to the source. Also, the Mn nanoparticles are in higher concentration than Zinc nanoparticles as a function of depth in the soil layers. The method generates more accurate simulated results in less time and provides a low-cost prediction of the environmental impact. Furthermore, the estimated environmental impacts can be used as a first approximation for the mitigation of the degraded area.