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Separation, detection and characterization of nanomaterials in municipal wastewaters using hydrodynamic chromatography coupled to ICPMS and single particle ICPMS

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Abstract

Engineered nanoparticles (ENP) are increasingly being incorporated into consumer products and reaching the environment at a growing rate. Unfortunately, few analytical techniques are available that allow the detection of ENP in complex environmental matrices. The major limitations with existing techniques are their relatively high detection limits and their inability to distinguish ENP from other chemical forms (e.g. ions, dissolved) or from natural colloids. Of the matrices that are considered to be a priority for method development, ENP are predicted to be found at relatively high concentrations in wastewaters and wastewater biosolids. In this paper, we demonstrate the capability of hydrodynamic chromatography (HDC) coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS), in its classical and single particle modes (SP ICPMS), to identify ENP in wastewater influents and effluents. The paper first focuses on the detection of standard silver nanoparticles (Ag NP) and their mixtures, showing that significant dissolution of the Ag NP was likely to occur. For the Ag NP, detection limits of 0.03 μg L−1 were found for the HDC ICPMS whereas 0.1 μg L−1 was determined for the HDC SP ICPMS (based on results for the 80 nm Ag NP). In the second part of the paper, HDC ICPMS and HDC SP ICPMS were performed on some unspiked natural samples (wastewaters, river water). While nanosilver was below detection limits, it was possible to identify some (likely natural) Cu nanoparticles using the developed separation technology.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this work was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Nature et Technologies, the Canadian Water Network and the City of Calgary. Assistance from the Repentigny, Le Gardeur and Montreal WWTP and the groups of Y. Comeau (École Polytechnique) and S. Ghoshal (McGill) was also greatly appreciated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Biophysical Environmental Chemistry Group, University of Montreal, P.O. Box 6128, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada

    Kim Proulx, Madjid Hadioui & Kevin J. Wilkinson

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  1. Kim Proulx
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  2. Madjid Hadioui
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  3. Kevin J. Wilkinson
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Correspondence to Kevin J. Wilkinson.

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Published in the topical collection Single-particle-ICP-MS Advances with guest editors Antonio R. Montoro Bustos and Michael R. Winchester.

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Proulx, K., Hadioui, M. & Wilkinson, K.J. Separation, detection and characterization of nanomaterials in municipal wastewaters using hydrodynamic chromatography coupled to ICPMS and single particle ICPMS. Anal Bioanal Chem 408, 5147–5155 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-016-9451-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-016-9451-x

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