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Effects of physical and chemical aging on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) content and potential toxicity in rice straw biochars

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Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in biochars threaten their environmental application. The aging process may affect the concentration of PAHs, potential toxicity, and the properties of biochar. In this study, the aged biochars were obtained by simulated physical aging method (freeze-thaw treatment) and chemical aging method (H2O2 chemical oxidation). The PAH contents in biochars were measured, and their potential toxicity was assessed. Meanwhile, the influence of aging process on the physicochemical properties of biochar was also investigated. This study shows that the change of PAH content of aged biochars depended on pyrolysis temperature, ambient temperature, and oxidant concentration. Furthermore, physical and chemical aging process influenced the distribution of different ring PAHs in biochars. High-ring-number PAHs (four, five, six-ring PAHs) appeared in some aged biochar. Aging at ±20 °C and 0.01 M H2O2 increased the toxic equivalent quantity of all biochars which may be attributed to the change of the physicochemical properties influencing the different PAH ring distribution in biochars. The contribution of PAHs with different rings to TEQ varied in pristine and aged biochars. Physical and chemical aging process significantly affected the properties of biochars, such as element content, ash content, surface area, pore volume, pH, functional groups, and surface morphology. Correlation analysis confirmed that surface area and pore volume are dominant factors determining the PAH content in the biochars. Therefore, the aging process indeed affected the PAH concentration and toxicity of PAHs in biochar. Assessing PAH behavior in biochar over long timescales should not be overlooked.

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (51809001), the Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province (2108085QD175), and Natural Science Foundation of the Education Department of Anhui Province (KJ2021A0675).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Fuyang Normal University, Fuyang, 236037, China

    Li Liu

  2. School of Resources and Environment, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China

    Shisuo Fan

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  1. Li Liu
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  2. Shisuo Fan
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Contributions

Li Liu: methodology, software, writing—original draft, data curation, formal analysis. Shisuo Fan: investigation, conceptualization, supervision, revising—original draft, project administration.

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Correspondence to Shisuo Fan.

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Responsible Editor: Zhihong Xu

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Liu, L., Fan, S. Effects of physical and chemical aging on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) content and potential toxicity in rice straw biochars. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 57479–57489 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-19869-6

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