Environmental risk assessment of alumina based nanomaterials. Ecotoxicity and biodegradability study

SOLEDAD PEREZ CATÁN; GABRIELA SVARTZ; MARIANA PAPA; SOLDATI A; PAULA SAMTER; MARIANELA JORDÁN; PETER GAUNA R; TROIANI H; GURAYA M; CRISTINA S. PEREZ-COLL

Barcelona

Congreso; Setac Europe 25th annual meeting; 2015

Setac Europa

During last years there has been an upward trend in the use of manufactured Nanomaterials(NMs) in a variety of products, promoted by the increasing technology developments. The fate of the NMs released in the environment and the subsequent impact on the ecosystems, have become, however, a matter of concern due to the potential toxicity of these materials. The environments are stochastic dynamic systems where engineered NMs could suffer biological interaction, physical and chemical changes, and eventually become an ecological risk. All these processes are very difficult to follow and predict due to the great deal of variables involved. Alumina nanoparticles are widely applied in sanitary sectors and many industrial processes and devices, as nanofiltration and nanoelectrodes,respectively. Some alumina based NPs have proved toxic in in vitro cell assays by oxidative stress signs, inflammatory response, and DNA damage among other cell injuries observed. NMs are best candidates for interdisciplinary research because their study involves very different areas in order to characterize their structure and understand their physicochemical behavior, toxicology, and potential environmental impact. We present the first results of a nano-ecotoxicological evaluation of alumina-based materials prepared in our laboratory, as Al-NMs and NiAl-NMs with NiO particles. NPs were characterizedregarding structure by XRD, SEM, TEM, and surface area. Biochemicaloxygen demand (BOD5) and toxicity standardized assays were alsoconducted. Bioassays with and without organic matter were previouslycarried on for Zeta potential and particle size determination. Surfaceareas of all materials were about 250 m2/g and Ni particles of 20-30 nmin size were determined for NiAl-NMs. BOD5 values decreased up to40% with respect to those of control samples. The bioassay withluminous bacteria (Vibrio fischeri) MICROTOX test gave LC50= (39.39± 10.63) % for Al-NPs and LC50= (26.73 ± 5.32) % for Ni Al-NPs at 30min exposure. Tests at 80 min exposure showed a decrease of thosevalues of about 25 %. The lethal and sublethal effects of NMs onamphibian Rhinella arenarum larvae(Stage 25) assayed by means of thestandardized AMPHITOX tests, showed LC50 = 0.8 mg/L and NOEC= 0.08 mg / L.