Tracing engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) in the environment

Tracing engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) in the environment using stable isotope labelling approach coupled with detection by mass spectrometry - studying the fate of CuO NPs in natural soils. Nanotechnology, a science of controlling matter at the nanoscale (typically in the range 1- 100nm, i.e. 5000x smaller than the diameter of a human hair), with its growing applications in many industry sectors, is believed to revolutionise everyday life. There is, however, increasing evidence that the unique properties, which make nanoparticles more efficient in industrial applications, may also render them more harmful to the environment. Certain nanoparticles do not remain inert when released into the environment, but can cause toxicity when they come into contact with human cells or when absorbed by organisms. With an ever-increasing number of nanoparticles being employed in widely used commercial products (e.g. sunblocks, cosmetics, fabric coatings, antimicrobial agents), it is likely that these novel materials will find their way into the environment, either through discharge at manufacturing stage, accidental spillage or through release from the final products once disposed of. There is limited knowledge on the potential impact of nanoparticles on the natural environment, in particular on their behaviour in natural soils. Soils are the second largest compartment for deposition of manufactured nanoparticles and are also a very complex environment with a rich variety of natural nanosized particles which may interfere with detection of manufactured nanoparticles. In order to properly assess the potential environmental impact of nanoparticle release into soils, the major challenges are: 1) to find a way to track where these extremely small particles may end up in soil environment and 2) to detect the nanoparticles at environmentally realistic i.e. low exposure concentrations and against a high background of other nanosized matter in soils. In this project we address these challenges using unique tracers (stable isotopes) coupled with innovative analytical approach for detection of manufactured NPs in soils. First, nanoparticles will be produced with the unique tracer incorporated to make them distinctive. The nanoparticles will be then mixed with different types of natural soils and tests will be conducted to 1) study the nanoparticles interactions with soil components, 2) trace how the nanoparticles move through the soil profile, 3) test whether nanoparticles remain intact in the soil environment or dissolve to deliver toxic metal ions and 4) if and how the fate of nanoparticles in soils may be affected by nanoparticle and soil properties. In all tests, tracer specific detection method will be used allowing for highly sensitive analysis. The findings from this project, along with other on-going research on the environmental impact of nanoparticles, will help us predict how nanoparticles really behave in the environment. This knowledge will be essential to understanding whether, and, if so, how the use of such novel materials should be regulated in order to prevent damage to the environment.