Next Article in Journal
Green Approach to Synthesis of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles from Shoots and Pomace Waste Extracts
Previous Article in Journal
Unveiling the Efficiency of Biodegradable Chitosan-Based Hydrogel Composites for Wastewater Treatment
 
 
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
Abstract

Evaluation of Environmental Hazards of Nanocomposite Use for Wastewater Treatment †

1
Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, 12618 Tallinn, Estonia
2
CNR-IMM, 95123 Catania, Italy
3
CNR-IPCB, 95126 Catania, Italy
4
Estonian Academy of Sciences, 10130 Tallinn, Estonia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Presented at the International Conference EcoBalt 2023 “Chemicals & Environment”, Tallinn, Estonia, 9–11 October 2023.
Proceedings 2023, 92(1), 71; https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023092071
Published: 5 December 2023
(This article belongs to the Proceedings of International Conference EcoBalt 2023 "Chemicals & Environment")
Antibiotics are not completely metabolized nor degraded in traditional wastewater treatment, leaving a large proportion of them in the wastewater. Consequently, water bodies become reservoirs of antibiotics, where antibiotic resistance can develop. Therefore, a new strategy for the efficient, selective, and cost-effective removal of antibiotics from wastewater is being developed within the ANTIBIO project [1] using imprinted magnetic nanomaterials. However, in order to apply the new materials on a large scale, their potential harm to the environment has to be evaluated. We used aquatic ecotoxicology tests according to OECD/ISO to evaluate the environmental hazard of the novel nanocomposites. We used bacteria Vibrio fischeri, water fleas Daphnia magna and algae Raphidocelis subcapitata to study the toxicity of the nanocomposites as well as their component materials, including organic polymers, TiO2, ZnO and magnetite (Fe3O4). The studied concentration range was 0.01–100 mg/L. Out of the tested samples, only ZnO was toxic to all organisms, with EC50 values (mg/L) 3.9 for V. fischeri, 3.3 for D. magna and 0.1 for R. subcapitata. When the inhibition was calculated based on mg Zn per liter, ZnO and ZnSO4 were equally toxic, indicating the shedding of Zn ions as a possible mechanism of ZnO toxicity. Magnetite was toxic to algae, with an EC50 value of 2.2 mg/L; however, the composite containing magnetite core was not harmful to algae. In contrast to our previous studies [2,3,4], TiO2 did not inhibit algal growth at 100 mg/L and the entrapment of algal cells within TiO2 aggregates was not witnessed. According to our results, the organic polymers as well as the TiO2 produced within this study are not environmentally harmful, while the toxicity of ZnO has to be considered when designing nanocomposites.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, A.K., G.I. and S.C.C.; methodology, V.A., M.S. and I.B.; writing—original draft preparation, V.A.; writing—review and editing, V.A. and M.S.; visualization V.A. and M.S.; project administration, funding acquisition, A.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This research was funded by ANTIBIO—Antibiotics Removal From Water By Imprinted Magnetic Nanomaterials project, ProgettidiRicerca@CNR call 2020 (CUP:B63C22000010005), Principal investigator Giuliana Impellizzeri.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

Data sharing is not applicable.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

  1. ANTIBIO. Availabe online: https://www.antibio.it/ (accessed on 5 October 2023).
  2. Aruoja, V.; Pokhrel, S.; Sihtmae, M.; Mortimer, M.; Madler, L.; Kahru, A. Toxicity of 12 metal-based nanoparticles to algae, bacteria and protozoa. Environ. Sci. Nano 2015, 2, 630–644. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  3. Bondarenko, O.M.; Heinlaan, M.; Sihtmäe, M.; Ivask, A.; Kurvet, I.; Joonas, E.; Jemec, A.; Mannerström, M.; Heinonen, T.; Rekulapelly, R.; et al. Multilaboratory evaluation of 15 bioassays for (eco)toxicity screening and hazard ranking of engineered nanomaterials: FP7 project NANOVALID. Nanotoxicology 2016, 10, 1229–1242. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  4. Aruoja, V.; Dubourguier, H.C.; Kasemets, K.; Kahru, A. Toxicity of nanoparticles of CuO, ZnO and TiO2 to microalgae Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata. Sci. Total Environ. 2009, 407, 1461–1468. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Aruoja, V.; Impellizzeri, G.; Carroccio, S.C.; Sihtmäe, M.; Blinova, I.; Kahru, A. Evaluation of Environmental Hazards of Nanocomposite Use for Wastewater Treatment. Proceedings 2023, 92, 71. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023092071

AMA Style

Aruoja V, Impellizzeri G, Carroccio SC, Sihtmäe M, Blinova I, Kahru A. Evaluation of Environmental Hazards of Nanocomposite Use for Wastewater Treatment. Proceedings. 2023; 92(1):71. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023092071

Chicago/Turabian Style

Aruoja, Villem, Giuliana Impellizzeri, Sabrina Carola Carroccio, Mariliis Sihtmäe, Irina Blinova, and Anne Kahru. 2023. "Evaluation of Environmental Hazards of Nanocomposite Use for Wastewater Treatment" Proceedings 92, no. 1: 71. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2023092071

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop