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In this study, soils spiked with copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) or Cu(NO3)2 and aged as long as 90 days were utilized to investigate effect of soil properties and aging on oral and inhalation bioaccessibility of CuO NPs. Results showed that oral bioaccessibility of CuO NPs in gastric phase (GP) ranged from 70% to 84%, it significantly decreased to 50%–70% in intestinal phase (IP). The inhalation bioaccessibility of CuO NPs in artificial lysosomal fluid (ALF) ranged from 66% to 85%, and much higher than that in Gamble’s solution (GS, 3.3%–23%). By comparing CuO NPs to Cu(NO3)2 bioaccessibility, insignificant difference was found. The aging time (D15 and D90) had limited effect on their oral and inhalation bioaccessibility. CEC and free Al were positively and clay content was negatively correlated with CuO NPs inhalation bioaccessibility, while Cu(NO3)2 inhalation bioaccessibility decreased with increasing soil clay content and pH. Our findings provide an essential basis to evaluate the human health risks of CuO NPs.

Swine farms are one of the important sources of antibiotics in the environment. In this study, 42 samples of compound feed and feces of swine collected at different growth stages from intensive farms were evaluated for the occurrence and concentrations of three tetracyclines (TCs, namely oxytetracycline, chlortetracycline, and doxycycline) and three sulfonamides (SAs, namely sulfadiazine, sulfadimidine, and sulfamethoxazole). To check for other additional sources of antibiotic administration, ratios (R) of the measured and the predicted levels of each antibiotic excreted via feces were also estimated. Our results showed that the maximum concentration of TCs was 376,210 μg kg−1 and 541,020 μg kg−1 in the feeds and feces, respectively, both for oxytetracycline. In contrast, the highest concentration of SAs were 16.98 μg kg−1 for sulfadimidine in the feeds and 14.70 μg kg−1 for sulfadiazine in the feces. The concentrations of ΣTCs (sum of the three tetracyclines) in swine feeds and feces were found to be 1–4 orders of magnitude higher than those of ΣSAs (sum of the three sulfonamides). Approximately 36% of the R values were found to be greater than one, indicating other sources of administration such as injection and/or oral administration (via drinking water) may also contribute to the presence of antibiotics in feces. Most of the higher R values were found in starter pigs, which were generally administrated with antibiotics by multiple routes to prevent disease and promote swine growth. Our study suggests that comprehensive measures may be undertaken to control antibiotic use in intensive swine farms.

Nano copper oxide (CuO NP) was added to eight soils to study the effect of aging time of copper on the concentration of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA)-extracted copper (DTPA-Cu), with bulk copper oxide (CuO BP) and copper nitrate [Cu(NO

After water-soluble nickel (Ni) is added to soils, its bioavailability/toxicity, isotopic exchangeability, and extractability decline over time. Two separate semi-mechanistic models (Sqrt-model and Ln-model), have been developed to predict short- and long-term aging of Ni added to soils. To continuously predict Ni aging in one model, a semi-mechanistic model (Erfc-model) was developed in the present study where the description of the diffusion process was based on a complementary error function. The Erfc-model for whole course aging predicted short- and long-term Ni aging continuously with regression coefficients (R2) of 0.87 and 0.94, which were comparable with the Sqrt-model (0.91) and Ln-model (0.89). Based on the Erfc-model, soil pH and aging time were two important factors influencing the Ni aging processes. An additional 45 soils covering short and long terms of aging were applied to validate the model. A strong correlation (R2 = 0.85) was found between the measured and the predicted lability of Ni in soils with root-mean-square-error (RMSE) of 8.97%, illustrating that the Erfc-model could continuously predict short- and long-term aging processes of Ni added to soils. The model could be used as an alternative to normalize ecotoxicological data for driving soil environmental quality standards.

Dissolution is the primary process affecting the bioavailability and toxicity of nanoscale copper oxide (nano-CuO) to plants and soil organisms. In this study, particle morphology, organic acid, and soil properties were considered to understand the dissolution characteristics of nano-CuO in soil solutions. The results showed that the copper ions (Cu2+) released from spherical nano-CuO (CuO NPs), tubular nano-CuO (CuO NTs), and spherical microsized CuO (CuO MPs) in the ten soil solutions were 26.6–4194.0 μg/L, 4.90–217.1 μg/L, and 10.8–326.0 μg/L, respectively. The concentration of Cu2+ was negatively correlated with the pH of the soil solution and positively correlated with the contents of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), aluminum, and manganese. Multivariate stepwise regression analysis indicated that the dissolution of CuO NPs could be well predicted by pH and DOC contents of the soil solutions. In the GD soil solution (acidic), 4- and 8-fold of the DOC content amendments significantly promoted the dissolution of the three sizes of CuOs, resulting in an increase of Cu2+ 4.55–11.3 and 5.67–16.2 times, respectively. In the CQ soil solution (neutral), 8-fold DOC amendments increase the release of Cu2+ 2.13–16.6 times. While in the SD soil solution (alkaline), promoting effect on the dissolution was only observed for nano-CuOs, with Cu2+ elevated by factors of 1.56–4.64 and 1.38–4.48. The amendments of Al3+ and Mn2+ in soil solution increased the amounts of Cu2+ 1.13–4.80 and 1.02–1.46 times in the GD soil solution. In comparison, no significant promoting effects were observed in CQ and SD soil solutions due to their stronger buffering capacities. These findings offer insight into the dissolution behavior of nano-CuOs in soils and be helpful to evaluate their environmental risks.

The human pathogenic bacteria (HPB) in animal feces may disseminate to agricultural soils with their land application as organic fertilizer. However, the knowledge about the impacts of different sources and rates of animal manures on the temporal changes of soil HPB remains limited, which hamper our ability to estimate the potential risks of their land application. Here, we constructed an HPB database including 565 bacterial strains. By blasting the 16 S rRNA gene sequences against the database we explored the occurrence and fate of HPB in soil microcosms treated with two rates of swine, poultry or cattle manures. A total of 30 HPB were detected in all of manure and soil samples. Poultry manure at the high level obviously improved the abundance of soil HPB. The application of swine manure could introduce concomitant HPB into the soils. Of which, Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae B728a and Escherichia coli APEC O78 may deserve more attention because of their survival for a few days in manured soils and being possible hosts of diverse antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) as revealed by co-occurrence pattern. Bayesian source tracking analysis showed that the HPB derived from swine manure had a higher contribution to soil pathogenic communities than those from poultry or cattle manures in early days of incubation. Mantel test together with variation partitioning analysis suggested that bacterial community and soil physicochemical properties were the dominant factors determining the profile of HPB and contributed 64.7% of the total variations. Overall, our results provided experimental evidence that application of animal manures could facilitate the potential dissemination of HPB in soil environment, which should arouse sufficient attention in agriculture practice and management to avoid the threat to human health.

To understand how Cd in different fractions contributes to Cd bioaccessibility by in vitro assays, Cd bioaccessibility in 12 contaminated soils was determined by four assays (UBM, SBRC, IVG, and PBET) and correlated with different Cd fractions based on a sequential extraction scheme. The Cd bioaccessibility in the gastric phase (GP) was high (35–107%, averaging at 77%), implicating high risk to human health, while it decreased to 19–88% averaging at 47% in the intestinal phased (IP). From the GP to IP, the reduction of extractable Cd (0.45–48 mg kg−1) and Fe (118–3884 mg kg−1) showed significant correlation (R = 0.54–0.74) via UBM, SBRC, and IVG, suggesting co-precipitation with Fe and/or sorption onto Fe oxides maybe responsible for decrease in Cd bioaccessibility. Although Cd bioaccessibility varied among assays, their results show some consistency based on their correlation in the GP (R = 0.56–0.90) and IP (0.34–0.73, excluding UBM-IP and PBET-IP). Sequential extraction data show that Cd was primarily associated with the exchangeable fraction (E1; 7.05–72.9%, averaging 39.4%). The carbonate (C2; 6.86–44.8%, 21.9%) and Fe/Mn oxides fraction (F3; 12.5–53.6%, 28.2%) were similar, while organic (O4; 0.62–25.0%, 7.91%) and residual fraction (R5; 0.22–8.54%, 2.62%) were the lowest. Significant correlation (R = 0.59–0.88) between the first two fractions (E1+C2) and bioaccessible Cd suggest they were the main sources of bioaccessible Cd in those contaminated soils.

Copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) in soil have received considerable attention because of their potential impact on the environment. In the present study, the stability of CuO NPs (50 nm and 80 nm) in eight soil solutions as well as the major influencing factors was investigated. The results showed that hetero-aggregation between natural colloids and NPs dominated the first stage of aggregation, afterwards the two different sized CuO NPs exhibited different aggregation behaviors. The aggregation of 80 nm CuO was inconspicuous except for notable aggregation observed in JX soil solution where the zeta potential of CuO NPs is close to zero. While for 50 nm CuO NPs, the aggregate size sharply decreased and the aggregates gradually reached a stable state. Further, the sedimentation rate and residual concentration of 50 nm CuO were found to be greater than those of 80 nm CuO. The residual amount of 80 nm CuO in the JX soil solution was lower than those in other soil solutions owing to the lowest zeta potential of the NPs. The pH of the soil solution has a significant effect on the stability of CuO NPs because of the shifting of the zeta potential of the NPs. In addition, dissolved organic carbon showed a statistically significant positive correlation with the residual concentration of CuO NPs. These findings imply the properties of CuO NPs as well as environmental factors including pH and DOC play key role in determining the fate, transport, and bioavailability of CuO NPs in soils.

Field experiments were conducted to explore the uptake and translocation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by wheat plants following sewage sludge application. Two types of application methods (single or annual application) and four application rates (5, 10, 20, and 40 t/ha/year) were investigated. The contents of 16 PAHs in soils, wheat roots and straws increased as the rate of sewage sludge application increased and were in the range of 20.7 to 241, 166 to 700, and 110 to 260 ng/g dry weight (dw), respectively. Meanwhile, for the PAH contents in grains (81.2–95.2 ng/g dw), no statistically significant differences were observed among different treatments. A single application of a large quantity of sewage sludge would likely increase the accumulation of PAHs in soil as well as their subsequent uptake and translocation by wheat. Profile analysis indicated that the transfer and accumulation of lower weight PAHs in wheat plants were greater. Regarding PAHs, sewage sludge application at 40 t/ha/year for 6 years did not significantly increase the risks of intake by wheat grain grown on sludge-amended soils.

Dissolved organic matters (DOMs) extracted from wheat straw (SDOM) and cow manure (MDOM) were used to investigate their effects on the suspension stability and aggregation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). Two types of DOM can effectively disperse and stabilize the MWCNTs. At initial MWCNT concentration of 500 mg/L, suspended MWCNT concentration ranged from 8.0 to 17.9 mg/L as DOM were varied from 50 to 200 mg/L dissolved organic carbon (DOC). The critical coagulation concentration (CCC) values were estimated to be 41.4 mM NaCl and 5.3 mM CaCl2 in the absence of DOM. The presence of SDOM and MDOM significantly retarded the aggregation rate of MWCNTs. The CCC values increased to 120 mM NaCl and 14.8 mM CaCl2 at SDOM concentration of 20 mg/L DOC. Due to its higher aromaticity and molecular weight, MDOM showed higher ability to stabilize MWCNTs, with CCC values of 201 mM and 15.8 mM at 20 mg/L DOC. These findings revealed that DOMs originated from agricultural wastes will have great impact on the dispersion and stabilization of MWCNTs, thus their fate in the aquatic environment.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) extracted from wheat straw (SDOM) and cow manure (MDOM) were used to investigate their effects on the solubilization, uptake, and translocation of 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47). Partition coefficients (KDOC) of BDE 47 between water and the two types of DOM were measured by the solubility enhancement method. The uptake and translocation of BDE 47 by wheat plants were explored by hydroponic exposure experiments. In the range of 0 to 100 mg/L of DOM, the solubility of BDE 47 increased with increasing concentrations of DOM. The log [KDOC] values of BDE 47 in SDOM and MDOM solutions were 5.77 and 5.31, respectively. The log [KDOC] values of BDE 47 in SDOM solutions were higher than those in MDOM solutions, which might be ascribed to the higher content of aliphatic carbon and lower molecular weight of SDOM. The addition of DOM (50 mg/L) significantly increased the accumulation of BDE 47 in the shoots of wheat plants. Wheat straw DOM had greater effect than MDOM in enhancing the accumulation of BDE 47. This study demonstrated the potential risk of BDE 47 to plants resulting from DOM-facilitated transport or the changes in metabolic properties.

Although the agricultural use of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) has been banned for decades in many countries around the world, the detection of DDT and its metabolites in soils is very common due to their persistence. DDTs (sum of DDT and its metabolites) in farmland soils can be absorbed by crops at different levels and accumulate in the edible parts of agricultural products, posing threats to the health of human being. However, no information on the species sensitivity distribution (SSD) of crops with regard to DDTs has been reported due to the lack of enough bioavailability data and models to normalize the bioavailability data from different sources. Based on the bioconcentration factors of 17 crop species in Chinese soils obtained from previous studies, the criteria of DDTs in soils was derived according to the quality standard of agricultural products using the SSD method. Corrections for water content and aging time were conducted to normalize the data from different sources. The risk values of agricultural products at different concentration levels of DDTs in soils were also evaluated. It was found that oil crops are able to take up more DDTs than non-oil crops, so the soil criteria were calculated separately for oil crops and non-oil crops, which were 0.083 mg/kg and 0.29 mg/kg, respectively. With the residual concentrations of DDTs in soils at the range of 0.01–0.5 mg/kg, 0–8% of the agricultural products exceeded the permissible limits for DDTs which were set in the National Food Safety Standard of China. The results also demonstrated the feasibility for applying SSDs to derive the soil criteria of DDTs in order to ensure the safety of agricultural products. This work will provide information for the risk assessment and the establishment of soil environmental quality standards to ensure safe agricultural production.

Triton X-100 (TX100) and Brij 35 (B35) were used to investigate the elevated critical micelle concentration (CMC) induced by surfactant sorption and its influence on PAH removal in soil washing systems. The surface tension technique was applied to determine the CMC and the apparent CMC (CMCsoil) in soil–water systems. Surfactant sorption experiments were conducted by the batch equilibration technique. Surfactants sorbed on the soil at concentrations below the CMCsoil were quantified with data from the surface tension experiments for both an aqueous system and a soil–water system. Due to sorption, the CMCsoil values of the two surfactants are 2.75 and 6.31 times their corresponding CMC values in aqueous solutions, respectively. At concentrations below CMCsoil, the loss of B35 (92–99.7 %) was greater than that of TX100 (63–92 %). The PAH removal efficiencies are greatly dependent on the CMCsoil value. At surfactant concentrations below CMCsoil, the PAH removal is very low and remains almost invariable. Whereas, at concentrations above CMCsoil, the PAH removal increases greatly. B35 inhibited PAH desorption at concentrations below its CMCsoil. For TX100, some degree of PAH desorption enhancement was observed at concentrations below its CMCsoil. CMCsoil is a key parameter while selecting a surfactant for a specific soil washing system, only surfactant concentrations above their CMCsoil should be evaluated.

Glass-etched micromodel and visualization technology were used to research the removal mechanisms of residual light non-aqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) droplets at pore scale. In this research, n-hexadecane was selected as the LNAPL model substance. During the injection of de-ionized water into the pore channel, residual n-hexadecane droplet was removed quickly at first, then gradually became slow and finally remained nearly invariable; the droplet size after a definite time depends on its initial value. The relationship between total volume of residual n-hexadecane and time can be described by a logarithmic equation: V = V 0 − 0.0152lnt + 0.0360 (0

The concentrations of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in US EPA priority list were analyzed in the bulk and six particle size fractions of soil samples from a coke oven plant. The relationships of PAHs concentrations with total organic carbon (TOC), black carbon (BC) and other forms of organic carbon (OC) contents have been investigated. Total PAH concentrations ranged from 6.27 to 40.18 mg kg(-1) dry weight. The highest total PAH concentration occurred in the 250-500 microm size fraction. The maximum individual PAH concentration was in the 250-500 microm or 500-2000 microm size fraction. The size fractions of 125-500 microm and50 microm have higher percentages and contributed 24.62% and 23.33% of the total PAH mass, respectively. The relative abundance of individual PAH compounds and PAH molecular indices present typical characteristic pyrogenic origin. The maximal TOC and BC contents were found in the 125-250 microm size fraction. Strong positive linear relationship between total PAH concentration and TOC or BC has been demonstrated, with a linear regression coefficient value of 0.7277 and 0.9245, respectively. The linear relationship between total PAH concentration versus OC (OC = TOC - BC) is weaker than that versus TOC or BC, with a correlation coefficient of 0.4117. It indicates that partitioned in organic matter, especially in black carbon is the dominant form of PAHs in the soil.

Field experiments were conducted to explore the effects of different sewage sludge amendment strategies on the accumulation and translocation of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in soil-wheat systems. Two types of application methods (single or annual application) and four annual application rates (5, 10, 20, and 40 t ha(-1) year(-1)) were investigated. BDE 209 was detected in all of the sewage sludge amended soils and different parts of wheat plants collected from the contaminated soils. However, the other seven PBDE congeners (BDE 28, BDE 47, BDE 99, BDE 100, BDE 153, BDE 154, and BDE 183) were not detected or were only observed at very low levels. A single application of sewage sludge in large quantities would likely increase accumulation of BDE 209 in soil and its subsequent uptake and translocation by wheat. The concentrations of BDE 209 in soils, wheat roots and straws increased with the increasing sewage sludge application rate. There is a negative correlation between the root accumulation factors (the ratios of concentrations in wheat roots to those in soils) and soil total organic carbon (R(2)=0.84,P0.05), demonstrating that the bioavailability of BDE 209 was controlled by the soil total organic carbon. BDE 209 concentrations in the grains from the sewage sludge amended soils were not significantly different from those of the control soils, suggesting that atmospheric deposition was the main source of BDE 209 detected in the grains.