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A novel pickling procedure for aluminium is elaborated for successful removal of corrosion products on aluminium embedded and exposed in concrete, allowing subsequent mass loss evaluation. The current recommended standard procedures for mass loss evaluation of aluminium are not sufficiently effective, either leaving significant amounts of concrete and corrosion products on the aluminium surfaces after pickling, or containing hazardous chemicals. Removal of both concrete and corrosion products from the aluminium surfaces require a stepwise combination of an aqueous glycine solution, nitric acid at elevated temperature and careful manual removal of adherent concrete., QC 20180828

Corrosion and metal release mechanisms of the biomedical stainless steel grade Type 316L are at human-relevant biological conditions not fully understood. This study focuses on its corrosion properties and release of iron (Fe), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), and nickel (Ni) into simulated physiological solutions at pH 7.4 in the presence of proteins. Parallel studies were performed on stainless steel Type 303 containing a substantial amount of MnS inclusions. Metal release studies were performed in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) for 4 h and 24 h at 37 degrees C with or without different concentrations of bovine serum albumin (BSA), fibrinogen from bovine plasma (Fbn), or mixtures of the same. Studies were in addition performed after 1, 4, 6, and 24 h in solutions that were partially replenished after 5 h in order to investigate whether any Vroman effect (exchange of adsorbed proteins by proteins of higher binding affinity) could influence the extent of released metals in solution. This was performed at physiological concentrations of BSA (40 g/L) and Fbn (2.67 g/L) in PBS, and for reference solutions of PBS, PBS with 40 g/L BSA, and PBS with 2.67 g/L Fbn. Changes in open-circuit potential and linear polarization resistance were investigated for the same conditions. After exposure, the exposed surfaces were rinsed and investigated ex situ by means of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy. Metal-protein complexation-induced metal release mechanisms were found to be most pronounced for Type 316L and the release of Fe, Cr, and Ni. Fibrinogen adsorbed differently onto Type 303 (thicker conformation of adsorbed proteins) as compared with Type 316L and occasionally induced corrosion events for Type 303. Mn was mostly released from inclusions present in the Type 303 alloy, most probably via non-electrochemical mechanisms. A Vroman effect was observed for both grades. A significant extent of precipitation of metal-rich protein aggr, QC 20171121

Most metal nanoparticles (NPs), except noble metal NPs, rapidly form a thin surface oxide in ambient conditions. The protective properties of these oxides improve or worsen depending on the environment, e.g., the human lung. Several properties, including the chemical/electrochemical stability and defect density, determine the capacity of these surface oxides to hinder the bulk metal from further oxidation (corrosion). The aim of this study was to investigate whether electrochemical surface oxide characterization of non-functionalized base metal NPs of different characteristics (Al, Mn and Cu) can assist in understanding their bioaccessibility (metal release) in cell media (DMEM+) and their cytotoxic properties following exposure in lung epithelial (A549) cells. The composition and valence states of surface oxides of metal NPs and their electrochemical activity were investigated using an electrochemical technique based on a graphite paste electrode to perform cyclic voltammetry in buffer solutions and open circuit potential measurements in DMEM+. The electrochemical surface oxide characterization was complemented and verified by Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The open circuit potential trends in DMEM+ correlated well with metal release results in the same solution, and provided information on the kinetics of oxide dissolution in the case of Cu NPs. Extensive particle agglomeration in cell medium (DMEM+) was observed by means of photon-cross correlation spectroscopy for all metal NPs, with sedimentation taking place very quickly. As a consequence, measurements of the real dose of added non-functionalized metal NPs to cell cultures for cytotoxicity testing from a sonicated stock solution were shown necessary. The cytotoxic response was found to be strongly correlated to changes in physico-chemical and electrochemical properties of the surface oxides of the metal NPs, the most potent being Cu NPs, followed by Mn NPs. No cyto, QC 20160930

From an increased use of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) as an antibacterial in consumer products follows a need to assess the environmental interaction and fate of their possible dispersion and release of silver. This study aims to elucidate an exposure scenario of the Ag NPs potentially released from, for example, impregnated clothing by assessing the release of silver and changes in particle properties in sequential contact with synthetic sweat, laundry detergent solutions, and freshwater, simulating a possible transport path through different aquatic media. The release of ionic silver is addressed from a water chemical perspective, compared with important particle and surface characteristics. Released amounts of silver in the sequential exposures were significantly lower, approximately a factor of 2, than the sum of each separate exposure. Particle characteristics such as speciation (both of Ag ionic species and at the Ag NP surface) influenced the release of soluble silver species present on the surface, thereby increasing the total silver release in the separate exposures compared with sequential immersions. The particle stability had no drastic impact on the silver release as most of the Ag NPs were unstable in solution. The silver release was also influenced by a lower pH (increased release of silver), and cotransported zeolites (reduced silver in solution)., QC 20140811