0000000000607082
AUTHOR
Juho Rajala
Behaviour of sediment-associated silver nanoparticles and their toxicity to Lumbriculus variegatus
The increasing use of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in industry and consumer products results in the increasing environmental concentrations of AgNPs. In the aquatic environment, sediment is the major sink for the AgNPs. The behaviour and toxicity of AgNPs in sediments is largely unknown, and therefore the potential risk to the benthic ecosystems is difficult to predict. The aim of this thesis was to study the toxicity and uptake of uncoated AgNPs (uc-AgNPs) and polyvinylpyrrolidone-coated AgNPs (PVP-AgNPs) to Lumbriculus variegatus in sediment exposures. Also, the association of AgNP-originated dissolved Ag with sediment components was studied using a sequential extraction method. Studies w…
Partitioning of nanoparticle-originated dissolved silver in natural and artificial sediments
Sediments are believed to be a major sink for silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in the aquatic environment, but there is a lack of knowledge about the environmental effects and behavior of AgNPs in sediments. The release of highly toxic Ag+ through dissolution of AgNPs is one mechanism leading to toxic effects in sediments. We applied an ultrasound-assisted sequential extraction method to evaluate the dissolution of AgNPs and to study the partitioning of dissolved Ag in sediments. Silver was spiked into artificial and 2 natural sediments (Lake Höytiäinen sediment and Lake Kuorinka sediment) as silver nitrate (AgNO3), uncoated AgNPs, or polyvinylpyrrolidone-coated AgNPs (PVP-AgNPs). In addition, …
Toxicity of silver nanoparticles to Lumbriculus variegatus is a function of dissolved silver and promoted by low sediment pH
Toxicity of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to benthic organisms is a major concern. The use of AgNPs in industry and consumer products leads to increasing release of AgNPs into the aquatic environment—sediments being the major sink. Effects of sediment pH on the toxicity of AgNPs to benthic oligochaeta Lumbriculus variegatus were studied in a 23‐d toxicity test. Artificially prepared sediments (pH 5 and 7) were spiked with varying concentrations of uncoated AgNP, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)‐coated AgNP, and silver nitrate (AgNO3) as dissolved Ag reference. Number of individuals and biomass change were used as endpoints for the toxicity. The toxic effects were related to the bioaccessible conce…