Exploring the uptake, accumulation, and distribution of nitrate in Swiss chard and spinach and their impact on food safety and human health.

Greenhouse vegetable production is often associated with the excessive use of nitrogen fertilizers and a high rate of nitrate accumulation. We evaluated the uptake, translocation, and accumulation of nitrate in chard and spinach under greenhouse conditions with optimal fertilization. The results revealed low levels of nitrate in the leachates and substrates (chard ˃ spinach).

Cd Sorption Alterations in Ultisol Soils Triggered by Different Engineered Nanoparticles and Incubation Times.

The progressive influx of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) into the soil matrix catalyses a fundamental transformation in the equilibrium dynamics between the soil and the edaphic solution. This all-encompassing investigation is geared towards unravelling the implications of an array of ENP types, diverse dosages and varying incubation durations on the kinetics governing Cd sorption within Ultisol soils. These soils have been subjected to detailed characterizations probing their textural and physicochemical attributes in conjunction with an exhaustive exploration of ENP composition, structure and morphology.

Enhanced removal of mercury and lead by a novel and efficient surface-functionalized imogolite with nanoscale zero-valent iron material.

A novel hybrid nanomaterial, nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI)-grafted imogolite nanotubes (Imo), was synthesized via a fast and straightforward chemical procedure. The as-obtained nanomaterial (Imo-nZVI) was characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electrophoretic mobility (EM), and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). The prepared Imo-nZVI was superparamagnetic at room temperature and could be easily separated by an external magnetic field.

Efficient and selective removal of Se and As mixed contaminants from aqueous media by montmorillonite-nanoscale zero valent iron nanocomposite.

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) and NZVI supported onto montmorillonite (NZVI-Mt) were synthetized and used in this study to remove Se and As from water in mono- and binary-adsorbate systems. The adsorption kinetics and isotherm data for Se and As were adequately described by the pseudo-second-order (PSO) (r>0.94) and Freundlich (r>0.

Mechanistic insights into simultaneous removal of copper, cadmium and arsenic from water by iron oxide-functionalized magnetic imogolite nanocomposites.

Imogolite and magnetic imogolite-Fe oxide nanocomposites (Imo-Fe and Imo-Fe, at 50 and 25 % Fe loading (w/w), respectively) were synthesized and tested for the removal of aqueous copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd), and arsenic (As) pollutants. The materials were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, and specific surface area and isoelectric point measurements. The Fe-containing samples were additionally characterized by Mössbauer spectroscopy and vibrating-sample magnetometry.

Imogolite Synthetized in Presence of As(III) Induces Low Cell Toxicity and Hemolysis, in Vitro, Potential Stabilization of Arsenite Present in Aqueous Systems.

Imogolite is a nanotubular aluminosilicate that has low toxicity in biological systems and due to its morphological and surface properties has a growing interest in environmental applications and biomedical areas. Its synthesis is highly sensitive to the presence of other ions, being able to inhibit or retard the process of imogolite formation, which could change the cytotoxic response of this substrate, something scarcely reported in the literature. In this context, the presence of arsenite during the synthesis of imogolite caused significant changes in the dimensions and surface behavior of these nanotubes.

Synthesis and characterization of zeolite-based composites functionalized with nanoscale zero-valent iron for removing arsenic in the presence of selenium from water.

We studied the sorption of As(V) in single and multi-component (As(V)-Se(VI)) aqueous systems using nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) and nZVI-functionalized zeolite (Z-nZVI) adsorbents. Morphological and physico-chemical characterization of the adsorbents was conducted using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), surface area and electrophoretic mobility measurements. SEM and XRD analyses showed that Fe-nanoparticle size and crystallinity were better preserved in Z-nZVI than nZVI after As(V) sorption.

Distribution of contaminant trace metals inadvertently provided by phosphorus fertilisers: movement, chemical fractions and mass balances in contrasting acidic soils.

The frequent use of phosphorus (P) fertilisers accompanied by nitrogen and potassium sources may lead to a serious long-term environmental issue because of the presence of potentially hazardous trace metals (TM) in P fertilisers and unknown effects on the TM chemical fractions in agricultural soils. A 16-month-long column experiment was conducted to investigate the mobility and chemical forms of Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, and Zn introduced into a Mollisol and an Andisol through surface incorporation (0-2 cm) of triple superphosphate (TSP) fertiliser. The effects of urea and potassium chloride (KCl) applications were investigated as well.

Preparation of nanoscale iron (oxide, oxyhydroxides and zero-valent) particles derived from blueberries: Reactivity, characterization and removal mechanism of arsenate.

The application of iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) to the removal of various pollutants has received wide attention over the last few decades. A synthesis alternative to obtain these nanoparticles without using harmful chemical reagents, such as NaBH, is the use of extracts from different natural sources that allow a lesser degree of agglomeration, in a process known as green synthesis. In this study, FeNPs were synthesized by 'green' (hereafter, BB-Fe NPs) and 'chemical' (hereafter, nZVI) methods.