The role and influence of hydrogeochemistry in the behaviour and fate of silver nanoparticles in freshwater systems

Abstract

This paper reports on the occurrence, fate and influence of selected hydrogeochemical parameters in the distribution profile of Ag NPs in freshwater from selected dams in South Africa. Single particle-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SP-ICPMS) was used to characterize, detect, and quantify Ag NPs in aqueous samples. The same technique was applied to determine particle size, particle number concentration and dissolved concentration of Ag NPs in water samples collected from the selected dams. The mean particle number concentration ranged from 6.92 × 103 parts/mL to 1.04 × 105 parts/mL. The mean dissolved Ag ranged from concentration of 0.18 µg/L to 0.27 µg/L, while the size of Ag ranged from 12.52 to 20.01 nm. From this work, it was proved that, SP-ICPMS is an effective technique for detection and characterization of nanoparticles in aqueous environment. Moreover, this study has revealed that hydrogeochemical properties of water as well as dissolved organic carbon (DOC), affect the presence and physical properties of Ag NPs in aqueous environment.