Publications by authors named "J G Boily"
Heavy-Metal Ions Control on PFAS Adsorption on Goethite in Aquatic Systems.
Environ Sci Technol
November 2024
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants that often co-occur with heavy metals. Despite their prevalence, the mobility of PFAS in complex, multicomponent systems, particularly at the molecular scale, remains poorly understood. The vast diversity of PFAS and their low concentrations alongside anthropogenic and natural substances underscore the need for integrating mechanistic insights into the sorption models.
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- Understanding how contaminants move through unsaturated soils is complex due to various physical and chemical processes influenced by water levels.
- Experiments showed that the sand type and saturation levels affected how well birnessite (MnO) removed the antibiotic tetracycline (TTC), with moderate saturation in fine sand creating conditions that improved removal rates.
- The study's findings contribute to better predictions of how redox-active contaminants behave in unsaturated environments by using transport models that account for adsorption and changes in water saturation.
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- The study investigates how freezing temperatures enhance the formation of soluble manganese(III) complexes from manganese(II) and manganese(IV) oxides in natural waters, focusing on the reactions occurring at ice boundaries.
- It reveals that low salt conditions favor Mn(III) yields while high salt concentrations can affect the process differently by promoting complexation but ultimately reducing yield due to dehydration effects.
- Repeated freeze-thaw cycles significantly increase dissolved Mn(III) concentrations, achieving up to 80% conversion after seven cycles, highlighting the importance of these reactions in high-latitude environments affected by freeze-thaw conditions.
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- In a boreal acidic sulfate-rich subsoil with a pH of 3-4, layers called "macropore surfaces" have formed and are enriched in reactive iron compounds, which play a crucial role in nutrient storage.
- These reactive iron phases help trap organic matter and phosphorus, indicating some preservation of sedimentary organic matter without significant decomposition.
- The study suggests that these acidic subsoils may serve as important global sinks for organic matter and nutrients, especially in regions where similar soil systems exist, like coastal plains and thawing permafrost areas.
Nalidixic Acid and Fe(II)/Cu(II) Coadsorption at Goethite and Akaganéite Surfaces.
Environ Sci Technol
October 2023
Interactions between aqueous Fe(II) and solid Fe(III) oxy(hydr)oxide surfaces play determining roles in the fate of organic contaminants in nature. In this study, the adsorption of nalidixic acid (NA), a representative redox-inactive quinolone antibiotic, on synthetic goethite (α-FeOOH) and akaganéite (β-FeOOH) was examined under varying conditions of pH and cation type and concentration, by means of adsorption experiments, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, surface complexation modeling (SCM), and powder X-ray diffraction. Batch adsorption experiments showed that Fe(II) had marginal effects on NA adsorption onto akaganéite but enhanced NA adsorption on goethite.
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