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Research Briefs By Category: Fate and Transport

Superfund Research Program

  • 348 - Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals, PAHs Interact to Increase Toxicity of Particulate Mixtures -- Lomnicki
    Release Date: 12/13/2023

    Toxic air pollutants called environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) may react with certain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on the surface of airborne particles to form more toxic chemicals, according to researchers funded by the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP). The study, led by Slawomir Lomnicki, Ph.D., of the Louisiana State University SRP Center, demonstrated that interactions between components of fine particulate matter mixtures may enhance their overall toxicity.

  • 347 - High-Temperature Biochar for Arsenic Remediation -- Duckworth
    Release Date: 11/01/2023

    Adding biochar produced at a high temperature may be an effective way to immobilize arsenic in sediment, according to researchers partially funded by the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP). The study, led by Owen Duckworth, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill SRP Center, in partnership with researchers from the Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Brazil, also provided further insight into the conditions that influenced the effectiveness of biochar for soil remediation.

  • 345 - Modified Iron Particles Could Improve Bioremediation of PFAS -- Jaffe
    Release Date: 09/06/2023

    Iron particles coated in a nontoxic material may enhance PFAS degradation by a certain bacterium, according to researchers funded by the NIEHS Superfund Research Program. The study could inform bioremediation efforts that harness the microbe, known as Acidimicrobium Strain A6, for cleaning up contaminated soil, sediments, and aquifers.

  • 339 - New Model Estimates PFAS Exposures From Contaminated Drinking Water -- Chiu
    Release Date: 03/01/2023

    Researchers partially funded by the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) developed a model to estimate individual exposure to four per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) commonly found in drinking water. The model integrates published data from multiple studies on PFAS levels in human blood along with measured PFAS concentrations in drinking water. Tools for estimating PFAS exposure from contaminated drinking water can inform public health risk assessments and advisories.

  • 330 - Study Sheds Light on Breakdown Products of PCBs in the Environment -- Hornbuckle
    Release Date: 06/01/2022

    NIEHS Superfund Research program (SRP) grantees discovered toxic breakdown products of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in contaminated sediments at proportionally higher levels than found in commercial PCB mixtures. According to the team, these findings point to environmental processes, such as metabolism by animals, plants, or bacteria, in generating the harmful chemicals.

  • 328 - Sampling Device May Predict Methylmercury Accumulation in Wetlands -- Hsu-Kim
    Release Date: 04/06/2022

    NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP)-funded researchers, led by Heileen Hsu-Kim, Ph.D., of the Duke University SRP Center, showed that a small plastic sampling device can efficiently predict the potential for methylmercury — an environmental contaminant — to form in freshwater wetlands and to accumulate in organisms living there.

  • 325 - Biosensor Helps Characterize Contaminants and Health Risks Following Disasters -- Unger, Knap
    Release Date: 01/05/2022

    A sophisticated biosensor may provide information about contaminant distribution in the aftermath of natural disasters, according to an NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP)-funded study. Led by former Texas A&M University (TAMU) SRP Center trainee Krisa Camargo and Michael Unger, Ph.D., from the Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences, the team demonstrated this type of tool is useful for quickly characterizing and prioritizing environmental samples for further analysis, particularly in the context of disaster research response.

  • 323 - New Passive Sampling Device for PFAS -- Lohmann, Hurt
    Release Date: 11/03/2021

    Researchers from the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP)-funded centers at the University of Rhode Island (URI) and Brown University developed a new type of passive sampling device for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Their new tool overcomes many limitations to traditional approaches, such as detecting short-chain PFAS and low concentrations of the chemicals in water.

  • 322 - Helping Communities Monitor Air Pollution Using Plants -- Ramirez-Andreotta
    Release Date: 10/06/2021

    An NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP)-funded study revealed that certain plants can be used to effectively monitor metals and other pollutants in air. Community members collected environmental data used in the study as part of the Gardenroots project, which involves residents in research activities to evaluate human and environmental health effects near former and operating mining sites in Arizona. The study was led by University of Arizona SRP Center researcher Monica Ramirez-Andreotta, Ph.D.

  • 317 - New Technique Sheds Light on PFAS in Coastal Watersheds -- Sunderland
    Release Date: 05/05/2021

    A new analytical workflow, developed by NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) grantees, can identify and characterize previously undetected per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) compounds in contaminated watersheds. The team is led by Elsie Sunderland, Ph.D., of the University of Rhode Island SRP Center, and SRP trainee Bridger Ruyle, a doctoral student at Harvard.

  • 315 - Modeling and Field Tests Yield Promising Results for Aquifer Clean Up -- Christenson, Comfort
    Release Date: 03/03/2021

    NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) grantees have developed novel, slow-release oxidant-paraffin candles that dissolve and degrade chlorinated contaminants in underground aquifers. The grant recipient, small business AirLift Environmental, worked with partners at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) to optimize this groundwater clean-up method and demonstrated its effectiveness in a field study.

  • 307 - Clay Layers May Worsen Arsenic Contamination -- van Geen
    Release Date: 07/08/2020

    Layers of clay are widely thought to protect groundwater aquifers from above-ground contaminants. But according to a new NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) study, these clay layers may play a role in increasing groundwater arsenic contamination.

  • 291 - Passive Samplers Tackle PCB Flux -- Hornbuckle
    Release Date: 03/06/2019

    Researchers from the University of Iowa Superfund Research Program (SRP) Center have developed a method to measure the movement, or flux, of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from water to air using passive sampling devices.

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