Impacts and physico-chemical behavior of inorganic nanoparticles in the environment

Abstract

The specific properties of engineered nanoparticles have been used in many fields (e.g., medicine, cosmetic, electronics, catalysis, and environment). Their increased production and use come along with questions about their environmental and human health impacts. Rather than doing case-by-case studies, our vision is to extract general principles from environmental pertinent examples that determine nanoparticles behavior and biological effects. In this chapter, we will discuss the case of TiO2 (used as additive in sunscreen) in terms of environmental degradation of nanoTiO2-based formulations, reactive oxygen species generation, colloidal stability in the water column, transport in porous media, and also ecotoxicological impacts.