Skip to main content

Transformation and toxicity of environmental contaminants as influenced by Fe containing clay minerals: a review

Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology volume 104, pages 8–14 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

Clay minerals are ubiquitous in soil and sediments, and play important roles in environmental processes. Virtually all clay minerals contain some Fe, either in the crystal structure or adsorbed at the surface of the clay minerals, which could promote many reactions on the clay minerals. The interaction between Fe containing clay mineral and its surrounding contaminants would greatly affect the transformation and toxicity of the contaminants. While it is certain that the Fe plays important roles in the fate of the contaminants, relative qualitative and quantitative assessment of these processes is limited. Based on the overall toxicity variation, this paper reviews the active areas of the researches on the interactions between Fe containing clay mineral and contaminants, and provides perspectives for future work.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

43,34 €

Price includes VAT (Finland)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

References

  • Bishop ME, Dong H, Kukkadapu RK et al (2011) Bioreduction of Fe-bearing clay minerals and their reactivity toward pertechnetate (Tc-99). Geochim Cosmochim Acta 75:5229–5246

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bishop ME, Glasser P, Dong H et al (2014) Reduction and immobilization of hexavalent chromium by microbially reduced Fe-bearing clay minerals. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 133:186–203

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cervini-Silva J, Larson RA, Wu J et al (2001) Transformation of chlorinated aliphatic compounds by ferruginous smectite. Environ Sci Technol 35:805–809

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chakraborty S, Favre F, Banerjee D et al (2010) U (VI) sorption and reduction by Fe(II) sorbed on montmorillonite. Environ Sci Technol 44:3779–3785

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cui D, Eriksen TE (1996) Reduction of pertechnetate in solution by heterogeneous electron transfer from Fe(II)-containing geological material. Environ Sci Technol 30:2263–2269

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Daud N, Ahmad M, Hameed B (2010) Decolorization of Acid Red 1 dye solution by Fenton-like process using Fe–montmorillonite K10 catalyst. Chem Eng J 165:111–116

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • dela Cruz ALN, Gehling W, Lomnicki S et al (2011) Detection of environmentally persistent free radicals at a superfund wood treating site. Environ Sci Technol 45:6356–6365

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dellinger B, Lomnicki S, Khachatryan L et al (2007) Formation and stabilization of persistent free radicals. Proc Combust Inst 31:521–528

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong H, Jaisi DP, Kim J et al (2009) Microbe-clay mineral interactions. Am Miner 94:1505–1519

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Elsner M, Schwarzenbach RP, Haderlein SB (2004) Reactivity of Fe(II)-bearing minerals toward reductive transformation of organic contaminants. Environ Sci Technol 38:799–807

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gan H, Bailey GW, Yu YS (1996) Morphology of lead (II) and chromium (III) reaction products on phyllosilicate surfaces as determined by atomic force microscopy. Clays Clay Miner 44:734–743

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Giaquinta D, Soderholm L, Yuchs S et al (1997) The speciation of uranium in a smectite clay: evidence for catalysed uranyl reduction. Radiochim Acta 76:113–122

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gorby Y, Amonette J, Fruchter J (1994) Remediation of contaminated subsurface materials by a metal-reducing bacterium. Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland

    Google Scholar 

  • Gu C, Li H, Teppen BJ et al (2008) Octachlorodibenzodioxin formation on Fe(III)-montmorillonite clay. Environ Sci Technol 42:4758

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gu C, Liu C, Ding Y et al (2011a) Clay mediated route to natural formation of polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins. Environ Sci Technol 45:3445–3451

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gu C, Liu C, Johnston CT et al (2011b) Pentachlorophenol radical cations generated on Fe(III)-montmorillonite initiate octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin formation in clays: density functional theory and fourier transform infrared studies. Environ Sci Technol 45:1399–1406

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haderlein SB, Schwarzenbach RP (1995) Environmental processes influencing the rate of abiotic reduction of nitroaromatic compounds in the subsurface. In: Spain JC (ed) Biodegradation of nitroaromatic compounds. Springer, New York, pp 199–225

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstetter TB, Neumann A, Schwarzenbach RP (2006) Reduction of nitroaromatic compounds by Fe(II) species associated with iron-rich smectites. Environ Sci Technol 40:235–242

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ilgen AG, Foster AL, Trainor TP (2012) Role of structural Fe in nontronite NAu-1 and dissolved Fe(II) in redox transformations of arsenic and antimony. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 94:128–145

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ilgen AG, Kruichak JN, Artyushkova K et al (2017) Redox transformations of As and Se at the surfaces of natural and synthetic ferric nontronites: role of structural and adsorbed Fe(II). Environ Sci Technol 51:11105–11114

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jaisi DP, Dong H, Morton JP (2008) Partitioning of Fe(II) in reduced nontronite (NAu-2) to reactive sites: reactivity in terms of Tc(VII) reduction. Clays Clay Miner 56:175–189

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jaisi DP, Dong H, Plymale AE et al (2009) Reduction and long-term immobilization of technetium by Fe(II) associated with clay mineral nontronite. Chem Geol 264:127–138

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Zhao J, Fan X et al (2012) Photodegradation of phenanthrene on cation-modified clays under visible light. Appl Catal B 123–124:43–51

    Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Li L, Fan X et al (2013) Visible light photodegradation of phenanthrene catalyzed by Fe(III)-smectite: role of soil organic matter. J Hazard Mater 256–257:16–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Chen H, Nulaji G et al (2015) Effect of low-molecular-weight organic acids on photo-degradation of phenanthrene catalyzed by Fe(III)–smectite under visible light. Chemosphere 138:266–271

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Nulaji G, Gao H et al (2016) Formation and stabilization of environmentally persistent free radicals induced by the interaction of anthracene with Fe(III)-modified clays. Environ Sci Technol 50:6310–6319

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Zhao S, Nulaji G et al (2017) Environmentally persistent free radicals in soils of past coking Sites: distribution and stabilization. Environ Sci Technol 51:6000–6008

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Zhao S, Shi Y et al (2018) Transformation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and formation of environmentally persistent free radicals on modified montmorillonite: the role of surface metal ions and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecular properties. Environ Sci Technol 52:5725–5733

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia H, Zhao S, Shi Y et al (2019) Mechanisms for light-driven evolution of environmentally persistent free radicals and photolytic degradation of PAHs on Fe(III)-montmorillonite surface. J Hazard Mater 362:92–98

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jickells T, An Z, Andersen KK et al (2005) Global iron connections between desert dust, ocean biogeochemistry, and climate. Science 308:67–71

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lee W, Batchelor B (2004) Abiotic reductive dechlorination of chlorinated ethylenes by iron-bearing phyllosilicates. Chemosphere 56:999–1009

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Luan F, Liu Y, Griffin AM et al (2015) Iron(III)-bearing clay minerals enhance bioreduction of nitrobenzene by Shewanella putrefaciens CN32. Environ Sci Technol 49:1418–1426

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neumann A, Hofstetter TB, Lüssi M et al (2008) Assessing the redox reactivity of structural iron in smectites using nitroaromatic compounds as kinetic probes. Environ Sci Technol 42:8381–8387

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neumann A, Hofstetter TB, Skarpeli-Liati M et al (2009) Reduction of polychlorinated ethanes and carbon tetrachloride by structural Fe(II) in smectites. Environ Sci Technol 43:4082–4089

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neumann A, Olson TL, Scherer MM (2013) Spectroscopic evidence for Fe(II)–Fe(III) electron transfer at clay mineral edge and basal sites. Environ Sci Technol 47:6969–6977

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nwosu UG, Khachatryan L, Youm SG et al (2016) Model system study of environmentally persistent free radicals formation in a semiconducting polymer modified copper clay system at ambient temperature. RSC Adv 6:43453–43462

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Peng A, Gao J, Chen Z et al (2018) Interactions of gaseous 2-chlorophenol with Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite and their toxicity to human lung cells. Environ Sci Technol 52:5208–5217

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Peretyazhko T, Zachara JM, Heald SM et al (2008) Heterogeneous reduction of Tc(VII) by Fe(II) at the solid–water interface. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 72:1521–1539

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Richmond SA, Lindstrom JE, Braddock JF (2001) Assessment of natural attenuation of chlorinated aliphatics and BTEX in subarctic groundwater. Environ Sci Technol 35:4038–4045

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rügge K, Hofstetter TB, Haderlein SB et al (1998) Characterization of predominant reductants in an anaerobic leachate-contaminated aquifer by nitroaromatic probe compounds. Environ Sci Technol 32:23–31

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaefer MV, Gorski CA, Scherer MM (2011) Spectroscopic evidence for interfacial Fe(II)–Fe(III) electron transfer in a clay mineral. Environ Sci Technol 45:540–545

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shao H, Butler EC (2009) The relative importance of abiotic and biotic transformation of carbon tetrachloride in anaerobic soils and sediments. Soil Sediment Contam 18:455–469

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Soma Y, Soma M (1989a) Formation of hydroxydibenzofurans from chlorophenols adsorbed on Fe-ion exchanged montmorillonite. Chemosphere 18:1895–1902

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Soma Y, Soma M (1989b) Chemical reactions of organic compounds on clay surfaces. Environ Health Perspect 83:205–214

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stucki JW (2013) Properties and behaviour of iron in clay minerals. In: Bergaya F, Lagaly G (eds) Developments in clay science. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 559–611

    Google Scholar 

  • Stucki JW, Kostka JE (2006) Microbial reduction of iron in smectite. Comptes Rendus Géosci 338:468–475

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stucki JW, Lee K, Zhang L et al (2002) Effects of iron oxidation states on the surface and structural properties of smectites. Pure Appl Chem 74:2145–2158

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor RW, Shen S, Bleam WF et al (2000) Chromate removal by dithionite-reduced clays: evidence from direct X-ray adsorption near edge spectroscopy (XANES) of chromate reduction at clay surfaces. Clays Clay Miner 48:648–654

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Y, Liu C, Peng A et al (2019a) Fomration of hydroxylated polychlorinated diphenyl ethers mediated by structural Fe(III) in smectites. Chemosphere 226:94–102

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Y, Peng A, Chen Z et al (2019b) Transformation of gaseous 2-bromophenol on clay mineral dust and the potential health effect. Environ Pollut 250:686–694

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wildung RE, Li SW, Murray CJ et al (2004) Technetium reduction in sediments of a shallow aquifer exhibiting dissimilatory iron reduction potential. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 49:151–162

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yan L, Bailey GW (2001) Sorption and abiotic redox transformation of nitrobenzene at the smectite–water interface. J Colloid Interface Sci 241:142–153

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang C, Ge Y, Yao H et al (2012) Iron oxidation-reduction and its impacts on cadmium bioavailability in paddy soils: a review. Front Environ Sci Eng 6:509–517

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao L, Dong H, Kukkadapu R et al (2013) Biological oxidation of Fe(II) in reduced nontronite coupled with nitrate reduction by Pseudogulbenkiania sp. strain 2002. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 119:231–247

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by National Science Foundation of China (Grants 21477051 and 41703090) and Collaborative Innovation Center for Regional Environmental Quality and Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province of China (BK20170634).

Author information

Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China

    Yi Wang, Xin Jin & Cheng Gu

  2. School of Environmental and Municipla Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin, 300384, People’s Republic of China

    Anping Peng

Authors
  1. Yi Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Xin Jin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anping Peng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Cheng Gu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Anping Peng or Cheng Gu.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Wang, Y., Jin, X., Peng, A. et al. Transformation and toxicity of environmental contaminants as influenced by Fe containing clay minerals: a review. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 104, 8–14 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-019-02747-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-019-02747-2

Keywords

  • Contaminants
  • Transformation
  • Toxicity
  • Fe
  • Clay mineral