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Deposition and mobilization of functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes in saturated porous media: effect of grain size, flow velocity and solution chemistry

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Abstract

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are widely manufactured nanoparticles which are utilized in a number of consumer products, such as sporting goods, electronics and biomedical applications. Due to their accelerating production and use, CNTs constitute a potential environmental risk if they are released to soil and groundwater systems. It is, therefore, essential to improve the current understanding of environmental fate and transport of CNTs. The current study systematically investigated the effect of solution chemistry (pH and ionic strength) and physical conditions (collector grain size and flow rate) on the deposition and mobilization of functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) using a series of column experiments under fully saturated conditions. A one-dimensional convection–dispersion model including collector efficiency for cylindrical nanoparticles was used to simulate the transport of MWCNTs in porous media. It was observed that an increase in pH resulted in increased mobility of MWCNTs. However, the transport of MWCNTs was strongly dependent on ionic strength of the background solution and a critical deposition concentration was observed between 3 and 4 mM NaCl concentration, with more than 99 % filtration of MWCNTs at 4 mM. The finer sand grains were able to filter a significant amount of MWCNTs (15 % more than coarse sand) from the inflow solution; this was likely caused by grain-to-grain straining mechanisms in the finer sand. A decrease in pore water velocity also led to more deposition of MWCNTs due to lowering of the kinetic energy of the particles. The results from this study indicated that a weak secondary minimum existed under unfavorable conditions for deposition, but the particles were trapped at both primary and secondary minimum.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Villavagan 16, SE-75236, Uppsala, Sweden

    Prabhakar Sharma, Dixiao Bao & Fritjof Fagerlund

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  1. Prabhakar Sharma
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  2. Dixiao Bao
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  3. Fritjof Fagerlund
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Correspondence to Prabhakar Sharma.

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Sharma, P., Bao, D. & Fagerlund, F. Deposition and mobilization of functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes in saturated porous media: effect of grain size, flow velocity and solution chemistry. Environ Earth Sci 72, 3025–3035 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3208-7

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