The Impact of Biofilms and Dissolved Organic Matter on the Transport of Nanoparticles in Field-Scale Streams

Authors

Junyeol Kim, University of Notre Dame
Kevin R. Roche, Boise State UniversityFollow
Diogo Bolster, University of Notre Dame
Kyle Doudrick, University of Notre Dame

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2022

Abstract

The fate and transport of nanoparticles (NPs) in streams is critical for understanding their overall environmental impact. Using a unique field-scale stream at the Notre Dame-Linked Experimental Ecosystem Facility, we investigated the impact of biofilms and the presence of dissolved organic matter (DOM) on the transport of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) NPs. Experimental breakthrough curves were analyzed using temporal moments and fit using a mobile-immobile model. The presence of biofilms in the stream severely reduced the transport of the TiO₂ NPs, but this was mitigated by the presence of DOM. Under minimal biofilm conditions, the presence of DOM increased the mass recovery of TiO₂ from 4.2% to 32% for samples taken 50 m downstream. For thriving biofilm conditions only 0.5% of the TiO₂ mass was recovered (50 m), but the presence of DOM improved the mass recovery TiO₂ to 36%. The model was suitable for predicting early, peak, tail, and truncation time portions of the breakthrough curves, which attests to its ability to capture a range of processes in the mobile and immobile domains of the stream. The model outcomes supported the hypothesis that DOM changed the interaction of NP-biofilm from an irreversible to a reversible process. Collectively, these outcomes stress the importance of considering biogeological complexity when predicting the transport of NPs in streams.

Copyright Statement

This is an author-produced, peer-reviewed version of this article. © 2022, Elsevier. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International license. The final, definitive version of this document can be found online at Water Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2022.119206

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Publication Information

Kim, Junyeol; Roche, Kevin R.; Bolster, Diogo; and Doudrick, Kyle. (2022). "The Impact of Biofilms and Dissolved Organic Matter on the Transport of Nanoparticles in Field-Scale Streams". Water Research, 226, 119206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2022.119206