Organophosphate esters (OPEs) pollution characteristics, bioaccumulation and human consumption implication in wild marine organisms from the Yellow River Estuary, China.

As the substitutes of polybrominated diphenyl ethers, organophosphate esters (OPEs) with high concentrations have accumulated in the estuaries, bays, and harbors. However, limited information is available about the OPEs in the estuary organism categories, especially under the multiple industrial pressure. This study investigated the occurrence, bioaccumulation and human consumption implication in wild marine organisms from the Yellow River Estuary, where located many petroleum and chemical manufacturing industries. This study found that concentrations of Σ13OPEs ranged from 547 ng/L to 1164 ng/L in seawater (median: 802 ng/L), from 384 to 1366 ng/g dw in the sediment (median: 601 ng/g dw), and from 419 to 959 ng/g dw (median: 560 ng/g dw) in the marine organisms. The congener compositions in the organisms were dominated by alkyl-OPEs (80.7 %), followed by halogenated-OPEs (18.8 %) and aryl-OPEs (0.5 %). Based on the principal component analysis, petrochemical pollution, and industrial wastewater discharge were distinguished as the main plausible sources of OPEs to the YRE ecosystem. Most OPEs had potential or strong bioaccumulation capacity on the organisms, with a positive correlation between log BAF (Bioaccumulation Factor) and log Kow of OPEs. The highest estimated daily intake value of OPEs was tri-n-propyl phosphate, exceeding 300 ng/kg·bw/day via consuming fish. The highest hazard quotients from OPEs ranged from 0.001 to 0.1, indicating a low risk to human health by consuming marine organisms in the YRE. As the consumption of OPEs increases year by year, the risks of OPEs still cannot be ignored.

Improving Photocatalytic Performance through the Construction of a Supramolecular Organic Framework.

A supramolecular organic framework-type photocatalyst, named TM-SOF, is constructed by the self-assembly of cucurbit[8]uril and a tetra-arm monomer containing four N, N'-dimethyl 2,5-bis(4-pyridinium)thiazolo[5,4-d]thiazole (MPT) moieties. Benefiting from the multivalent assembly, a photocatalytically active supramolecular MPT dimer can be stably formed in TM-SOF. In addition, TM-SOF exhibits better stability against temperature, substrate, and light irradiation. As a result, TM-SOF shows a significantly improved performance for the photocatalytic aerobic oxidation of aryl boronic acids and thioethers. It is anticipated that this line of research will provide a facile approach for fabricating high-performance supramolecular photocatalysis systems.

Research progress of nanoplastics in freshwater.

With the mass production and use of plastic products, which leads to their continuous entry into the water environment, the problem of environmental pollution has been paid more and more attention by scholars from different countries. In recent years, a large number of studies have focused on microplastics, but few on nanoplastics (NPs). However, NPs are smaller in size, have a higher affinity for cells, and surface and volume ratios are higher than those of microplastics. NPs may also enter biological tissues, blood and cells, which may cause greater potential harm to organisms. In this paper, firstly, the environmental fate of NPs accumulation and deposition is summarized, and further research is needed in the future; secondly, the current techniques for NPs extraction and characterization of NPs extraction and characterization are summarized. At present, the analytical methods of NPs are in the primary stage, and lack of standardized and accurate methods; finally, the toxic effects of NPs on biological morphology, behavior and reproduction are discussed. It has been found that the small size and high surface area of NPs make them more toxic to organisms than microplastics. However, most of the current toxicological studies of NPs on freshwater organisms could not be simulated in real environment.

Research Progress of Microplastics in Freshwater Sediments in China.

Microplastic pollution has attracted more and more people's attention, and it exists widely in our living environment. Microplastics are difficult to be degraded, most of them migrate from the land to the water, and finally deposit in the sediment. They are easy to have a great impact on water bodies and aquatic organisms, and even affect the daily life of human beings. Based on the research literature on microplastics in recent years, this paper reviews the research progress of microplastics in freshwater sediments in China, discusses several commonly used methods of sampling, separation, and detection of microplastics in freshwater sediments, summarizes the distribution characteristics of microplastics in freshwater sediments in China, analyzes the toxicological effects of microplastics, and introduces the degradation methods of microplastics. This study will provide valuable reference for further study of microplastics in freshwater environment in the future.