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Testing of Nanoparticle Release from a Composite Containing Nanomaterial Using a Chamber System
Published on: November 22, 2016
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Considering the forms of released engineered nanomaterials in probabilistic material flow analysis
Véronique Adam1, Alejandro Caballero-Guzman1, Bernd Nowack1
1EMPA, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, Technology and Society Laboratory, Lerchenfeldstrasse 5, CH-9014, St. Gallen, Switzerland.
Environmental Pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
|September 1, 2018
Summary
This study introduces a new method to track engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) like nano-silver and nano-titanium dioxide through their life cycles. It reveals ENMs often transform, impacting environmental release assessments.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
Background:
- Existing models often assume engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) maintain their original form throughout their lifecycle.
- ENMs can become embedded in matrices or transform physically/chemically during manufacturing, use, and disposal.
- Accurate assessment of ENM release forms is crucial for environmental risk evaluation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and present a systematic method for assessing the various forms of nano-silver (nano-Ag) and nano-titanium dioxide (nano-TiO2) released into the environment.
- To quantify the proportions of ENMs in different forms (pristine, transformed, embedded, dissolved) across their lifecycle stages and release pathways.
- To improve the data inputs for environmental fate and risk assessment models by considering the actual forms of released ENMs.
Main Methods:
- Utilized peer-reviewed literature to establish probability distributions for ENM forms.
- Employed a probabilistic material flow analysis model to track ENMs from production to release points (air, soil, surface water).
- Quantified ENM forms at a European scale, considering technical and environmental compartments.
Main Results:
- Nano-Ag releases to surface water and soil were predominantly in transformed forms (mean 53% and 82%, respectively).
- Nano-Ag releases to air were mainly in pristine and matrix-embedded forms (mean 42% and 40%, respectively).
- Nano-TiO2 releases to air, soil, and water were overwhelmingly in pristine form (mean 80%, 91%, and 97%, respectively).
Conclusions:
- The developed method provides a more realistic assessment of ENM forms released into the environment.
- Considering transformed and embedded ENM forms is essential for accurate environmental fate and risk assessments.
- This approach enhances the representativeness of input data for nanomaterial environmental safety evaluations.
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