Stabilization of Ni by rhamnolipid modified nano zero-valent iron in soil: Effect of simulated acid rain and microbial response

Xuan Zhao; Li Sang; Huihui Song; Weiyu Liang; Kailin Gong; Cheng Peng; Wei Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.140008

Stabilization of Ni by rhamnolipid modified nano zero-valent iron in soil: Effect of simulated acid rain and microbial response

Chemosphere. 2023 Nov:341:140008. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.140008. Epub 2023 Sep 2.

Authors

Xuan Zhao¹, Li Sang², Huihui Song¹, Weiyu Liang¹, Kailin Gong¹, Cheng Peng³, Wei Zhang⁴

Affiliations

¹ State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China.
² State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China; Ningbo Yonghuanyuan Environmental Engineering and Technology Co., Ltd, China.
³ State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, China. Electronic address: cpeng@ecust.edu.cn.
⁴ State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China. Electronic address: wzhang@ecust.edu.cn.

PMID: 37660786
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.140008

Abstract

Nickel (Ni), as one of the essential micronutrients, exists widely in nature, but high concentration of Ni in soil can pose certain biological toxicity. Nano zero-valent iron (nZVI) and rhamnolipid modified nZVI (RL@nZVI) can effectively stabilize Ni in soil. In this study, the stabilization effect of nZVI and RL@nZVI on the Ni-polluted soil under simulated acid rain and the microbial community response during the soil remediation under different Ni levels (200, 600, and 1800 mg/kg) were investigated. The results show that the addition of nZVI and RL@nZVI increased the pH of leachate to neutral and decreased the amount of Ni in leachate (23.33%-47.06% by nZVI and 50.01%-70.47% by RL@nZVI), indicating that nZVI and RL@nZVI could reduce the potential radial migration risk of Ni in soil under simulated acid rain. The addition of RL@nZVI was beneficial to recover the soil bacterial community diversity, which was inhibited by Ni pollution, and rhamnolipid coating could reduce the toxicity of nZVI. The dominant bacteria in RL@nZVI-treated soil with low, medium, and high Ni pollution were Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria, respectively. Soil potential, total organic carbon, and pH were the main driving factors affecting the bacterial community structure, while Ni stress only caused changes in the relative abundance of some tolerant bacteria.

Keywords: Microbial community; Ni pollution; Simulated acid rain; Soil remediation; nZVI.

MeSH terms

Acid Rain*
Iron
Nickel / toxicity
Soil

Substances

Acid Rain
rhamnolipid
Nickel
Iron
Soil