Engineered nanoparticles in wastewater and wastewater sludge - Evidence and impacts

Journal Article · Mon Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Waste Management

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2009.10.012· OSTI ID:21357649

Verma, Mausam ^[1]; Tyagi, R D ^[2]; Surampalli, R Y ^[3]

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1. Department of Biological Engineering, Sexton Campus, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3J 2X4 (Canada)
2. INRS-ETE, Universite du Quebec, 490, Rue de la Couronne, Quebec, G1K 9A9 (Canada)
3. US Environmental Protection Agency, P.O. Box 17-2141, Kansas City, KS 66117 (United States)

Nanotechnology has widespread application in agricultural, environmental and industrial sectors ranging from fabrication of molecular assemblies to microbial array chips. Despite the booming application of nanotechnology, there have been serious implications which are coming into light in the recent years within different environmental compartments, namely air, water and soil and its likely impact on the human health. Health and environmental effects of common metals and materials are well-known, however, when the metals and materials take the form of nanoparticles - consequential hazards based on shape and size are yet to be explored. The nanoparticles released from different nanomaterials used in our household and industrial commodities find their way through waste disposal routes into the wastewater treatment facilities and end up in wastewater sludge. Further escape of these nanoparticles into the effluent will contaminate the aquatic and soil environment. Hence, an understanding of the presence, behavior and impact of these nanoparticles in wastewater and wastewater sludge is necessary and timely. Despite the lack of sufficient literature, the present review attempts to link various compartmentalization aspects of the nanoparticles, their physical properties and toxicity in wastewater and wastewater sludge through simile drawn from other environmental streams.

• OSTI ID: 21357649
• Journal Information: Waste Management, Journal Name: Waste Management Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 30; ISSN WAMAE2; ISSN 0956-053X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INDUSTRIAL WASTES
LIQUID WASTES
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
METALS
NANOSTRUCTURES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PUBLIC HEALTH
SLUDGES
TOXICITY
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE WATER
WASTES
WATER
WATER TREATMENT