Abstract
Eutrophication of water bodies is a phenomenon during which toxic microcystins from cyanobacteria are released into water. Natural minerals in soils and sediments are able to catalyze the degradation of microcystins. Here we studied the hydrolytic removal of microcystins on the surface of pyrite (FeS2). The surface structure of pyrite was analyzed by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transformed infrared. The surface acidity of pyrite was measured by in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy during pyridine adsorption/desorption. The concentration of d-alanine, d-glutamic acid, l-arginine and l-leucine were determined in pyrite/microcystin aqueous solution by high-performance liquid chromatography. Hydrolysis at the pyrite–microcystin interface was monitored by attenuated total reflection Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy. Results show that sulfion and iron are layered, wherein the sulfion is above the surface, which provides active sites for the hydrolysis of microcystins. The hydrolysis rate of microcystins was up to 100% at 60 °C after 24 h in the presence of pyrite, based on the yield of l-arginine. Surface Lewis (≡Fe) and Brönsted acid (≡SH) sites of pyrite possibly bond to the carbonyl oxygen of peptide bonds, leading to highly efficient hydrolysis of microcystins.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bertrand C, Witczak L, Sabadie J et al (2003) Flazasulfuron: alcoholysis, chemical hydrolysis, and degradation on various minerals. J Agric Food Chem 51:7717–7721. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf0347970
Brigante M, Zanini G, Avena M (2010) Effect of humic acids on the adsorption of paraquat by goethite. J Hazard Mater 184:241–247. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.08.028
Borda M, Elsetinow A, Strongin D et al (2003) A mechanism for the production of hydroxyl radical at surface defect sites on pyrite. Geochim Cosmochim Ac 67:935–939. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7037(02)01222-X
Barrow GM (1956) The nature of hydrogen bonded ion-pairs: the reaction of pyridine and carboxylic acids in chloroform. J Am Chem Soc 78:5802–5806. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja01603a022
Fang Y, Zhou W, Tang C et al (2018) Brönsted catalyzed hydrolysis of microcystin-LR by siderite. Enviro Sci Technol 52:6426–6437. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.7b06096
Miao C, Ren Y, Chen M et al (2016) Microcystin-LR promotes migration and invasion of colorectal cancer through matrix metalloproteinase-13 up-regulation. Mol Carcinogen 55:514–524. https://doi.org/10.1002/mc.22298
Tan J, Yang L, Kang Q et al (2011) In situ ATR-FTIR and UV–visible spectroscopy study of photocatalytic oxidation of ethanol over TiO2 nanotubes. Anal Lett 44(6):1114–1125. https://doi.org/10.1080/00032719.2010.507296
Wei J, Furrer G, Kaufmann S et al (2001) Influence of clay minerals on the hydrolysis of carbamate pesticides. Environ Sci Technol 35:2226–2232. https://doi.org/10.1021/es000179d
Xian H, Zhu J, Tan W et al (2018) The mechanism of defect induced hydroxylation on pyrite surfaces and implications for hydroxyl radical generation in prebiotic chemistry. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 244:163–172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2018.10.009
Yoo J, Lee C, Wang B et al (2001) Investigation of catalytic property in the t-butylation of 1,2-dihydroxybenzene using FT-IR and XPS study. Res Chem Intermed 27:561–570. https://doi.org/10.1163/156856701317051662
Zhou W, Fang Y, Zhang Y et al (2017) Mechanism of photochemical degradation of MC-LR by pyrite. Environ Sci 38:3762–3768. https://doi.org/10.13227/j.hjkx.201603216
Acknowledgements
This work is founded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21577078, 21677086, 21407092 and 21972073), the Natural Science Foundation for Innovation Group of Hubei Province, China (2015CFA021), and the Three Gorges University Master's Thesis Training Fund (2019SSPY154).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fang, Y., Cao, X., Feng, W. et al. High catalytic hydrolysis of microcystins on pyrite surface. Environ Chem Lett 18, 483–487 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-019-00948-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-019-00948-z