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Transport of sulfanilamide in saturated porous media under different solution chemistry conditions: role of physicochemical characteristics of soils

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Abstract

Identification of the transport of sulfonamide antibiotics in soils facilitates a better understanding of the environmental fate and behaviors of these ubiquitous contaminants. In this study, the mobility properties of sulfanilamide (SNM, a typical sulfonamide antibiotic) through saturated soils with different physicochemical characteristics were investigated. The results showed that the physicochemical characteristics controlled SNM mobility. Generally, the mobility of SNM was positively correlated with CEC values and soil organic matter content, which was mainly related to the interactions between the organic matter in soils and SNM molecules via π-π stacking, H-bonding, ligand exchange, and hydrophobic interaction. Furthermore, higher clay mineral content and lower sand content were beneficial for restraining SNM transport in the soils. Unlike Na+, Cu2+ ions could act as bridging agents between the soil grains and SNM molecules, contributing to the relatively weak transport of SNM. Furthermore, the trend of SNM mobility in different soil columns was unaffected by solution pH (5.0–9.0). Meanwhile, for a given soil, the SNM mobility was promoted as the solution pH values increased, which was caused by the enhanced electrostatic repulsion between SNM– species and soil particles as well as the declined hydrophobic interaction between SNM and soil organic matter. The obtained results provide helpful information for the contribution of soil physicochemical characteristics to the transport behaviors of sulfonamide antibiotics in soil-water systems.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude to the NSFC-Shandong United Fund, the National Key Research and Development Program, and Key Scientific Research Project of Colleges and Universities in Henan Province.

Funding

This project was supported by the NSFC-Shandong United Fund (U1906222), the National Key Research and Development Program (2019YFC1804104), Key Scientific Research Project of Colleges and Universities in Henan Province (23A610001), and the Project Management of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program for Henan Kaifeng College of Science Technology and Communication Students (KCCXSYLX-2022-080).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dabieshan National Observation and Research Field Station of Forest Ecosystem at Henan, International Joint Research Laboratory for Global Change Ecology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475004, China

    Qingxin Yang & Renhui Miao

  2. Henan Joint International Research Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control Materials, College of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475004, China

    Qingxin Yang, Usman Farooq, Bin Wang & Zhichong Qi

  3. College of Hydraulic Science and Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China

    Taotao Lu

  4. Ecology institute of the Shandong academy of sciences, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan, 250353, China

    Qiang Zhang

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  1. Qingxin Yang
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  2. Taotao Lu
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  3. Qiang Zhang
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  4. Usman Farooq
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  5. Bin Wang
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  6. Zhichong Qi
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  7. Renhui Miao
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Zhichong Qi designed all experiments. Qingxin Yang and Taotao Lu performed the transport experiments and chemical analysis. Qiang Zhang and Usman Farooq performed the integrated data analysis and conducted to the adsorption experiments. Weifeng Chen and Bin Wang performed simulation model to fit the transport results. Renhui Miao interpreted the data and wrote the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Renhui Miao.

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Yang, Q., Lu, T., Zhang, Q. et al. Transport of sulfanilamide in saturated porous media under different solution chemistry conditions: role of physicochemical characteristics of soils. Environ Sci Pollut Res 31, 11622–11632 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-31966-2

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