The National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology (NanoEarth)’s Research Associate, Bipin Lade, Ph.D., recently presented at the “Contaminants of Concern: Chemistry, Toxicity and Treatment” virtual seminar. The seminar aims to inform professionals about environmental implications such as spills and runoff of chemicals through case studies and recent events. Lade spoke on topics such as nanomaterials, microplastics, and drinking water to 22 waterworks professionals during day three of the five day event. 

Lade discussed the presence of natural and human driven or “anthropogenic” nanoparticles in the environment in his first presentation, "Natural and Anthropogenic Nanoparticles in Environmental and Engineered Systems". This included breaking down the unique properties of nanomaterials and proper characterization to understand their environmental impact. He then spoke on the specific need to monitor silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) in wastewater treatment plants. A case study depicted metallic  Ag-NPs transforming into Ag-sulfide in wastewater treatment plants. This opens the possibility to new forms with drastically different reactivity and chemical behavior. 

Pepper's Ferry Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility (PFRWTF), Pulaski County, Virginia, United States
Photo from Bipin Lade's recent visit to the Pepper's Ferry Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility (PFRWTF), Pulaski County, Virginia, United States

The second presentation highlighted plastics in water in an "Introduction to Microplastics and Nanoplastics: Occurrences, Impacts, and Effectiveness of Selected Treatment Technologies". This stressed the importance of understanding plastics and polymers, as plastic pollution has harmful effects on the environment such as water quality, marine life, and human life. Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester fabrics, currently shed nano particles into the environment with every wash. The visible microplastics and invisible to the eye nanoplastics are both found in the water. Lade stressed the need for further nanoplastic removal research and covered how a Food Grade Hydrophobic Polymer (FGHP) can help remove microplastics and potentially nanoplastics from water. 

Slide: Plastic pollution can be found in virtually every environment on Earth
Slide: Why Characterization of nanomaterials is important

For more information on the “Contaminants of Concern: Chemistry, Toxicity and Treatment” virtual seminar, please contact Caleb Taylor (ctaylor@nrvwater.org) or Kintz Lucas (lkintz@vt.edu). For more information on microplastic and nanoplastic research, please contact Bipin Lade, Ph.D. (dlbipin@vt.edu). For more information about nanoparticles in the environment, see “Natural, incidental, and engineered nanomaterials and their impacts on the Earth system” by NanoEarth Founding Director Mike Hochella, Ph.D..