TY - JOUR
T1 - Silver nanoparticle (Ag-NP) retention and release in partially saturated soil
T2 - column experiments and modelling
AU - Yecheskel, Yinon
AU - Dror, Ishai
AU - Berkowitz, Brian
N1 - This research was supported by a grant from the Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources (Grant No. 215-17-016) in cooperation with the H2020 program “Water Joint Programming Initiative” through “WaterWorks2014” ERA-NET. B. B. holds the Sam Zuckerberg Professorial Chair in Hydrology. Generous support from the Rieger Foundation Program for Environmental Studies is gratefully acknowledged (Y. Y.). Electron microscopy studies were supported in part by the Irving and Cherna Moskowitz Center for Nano and Bio-Nano Imaging at the Weizmann Institute of Science. We thank Dr. Ifat Kaplan-Ashiri for her assistance with SEM imaging.
PY - 2018/2
Y1 - 2018/2
N2 - The need for better understanding of the environmental fate and transport of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) is now a scientific consensus. However, the partially saturated zone, a critical region that links the earth's surface to aquifers, has to date received only minor attention in the context of ENP mobility. We investigate the transport and fate of a representative ENP, silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs), in partially saturated soil Here we present a set of column experiments and modelling simulations to examine breakthrough curves (BTCs), retention profiles, and mass balances that characterize Ag-NP transport, and gain insights into retardation mechanisms. Unlike Ag-NP transport in sand columns, where the BTC pattern often resembles that of a conservative tracer, Ag-NP transport in soil columns shows moderate mobility and more complex BTC patterns; these results also emphasize the importance of employing realistic porous media in environmental studies. Overall, Ag-NP mobility decreases in the presence of Ca(NO3)(2), and increases when the solution contains humic acid, at higher water saturation levels, or at higher input concentrations of Ag-NPs. In addition, a different pattern was observed for Ag-NP aggregates, indicating nanospecific behaviour. Modelling analysis of Ag-NP transport in partially saturated soil suggests that a two-site kinetic model with a time-dependent retention function quantifies the transport behaviour of Ag-NPs.
AB - The need for better understanding of the environmental fate and transport of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) is now a scientific consensus. However, the partially saturated zone, a critical region that links the earth's surface to aquifers, has to date received only minor attention in the context of ENP mobility. We investigate the transport and fate of a representative ENP, silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs), in partially saturated soil Here we present a set of column experiments and modelling simulations to examine breakthrough curves (BTCs), retention profiles, and mass balances that characterize Ag-NP transport, and gain insights into retardation mechanisms. Unlike Ag-NP transport in sand columns, where the BTC pattern often resembles that of a conservative tracer, Ag-NP transport in soil columns shows moderate mobility and more complex BTC patterns; these results also emphasize the importance of employing realistic porous media in environmental studies. Overall, Ag-NP mobility decreases in the presence of Ca(NO3)(2), and increases when the solution contains humic acid, at higher water saturation levels, or at higher input concentrations of Ag-NPs. In addition, a different pattern was observed for Ag-NP aggregates, indicating nanospecific behaviour. Modelling analysis of Ag-NP transport in partially saturated soil suggests that a two-site kinetic model with a time-dependent retention function quantifies the transport behaviour of Ag-NPs.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85042216986&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c7en00990a
DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c7en00990a
M3 - مقالة
SN - 2051-8153
VL - 5
SP - 422
EP - 435
JO - Environmental Science: Nano
JF - Environmental Science: Nano
IS - 2
ER -