Invisible? Assessing the Fate of Sunscreen-Derived Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles in Swimming Pool Water Using Single Particle and Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

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Heilgeist, S
Sekine, R
Clases, D
Sahin, O
Stewart, RA
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2023
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Abstract

Using nano-TiO2 as a UV filter in sunscreens eventually leads to its release into the environment. Yet, understanding the behavior and fate of nano-TiO2, even in closed environments such as swimming pools, remains challenging due to the complex dynamics of environmental and nano-TiO2 interactions. This study characterizes (1) the behavior of nano-TiO2 in swimming pool water using single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and (2) the efficacy of a commonly used cartridge pool filter in removing nano-TiO2 by acid-based digestion and quantification, as well as its accumulation on the filter using laser ablation (LA-)ICP-MS. The findings show that adding 40 g of sunscreen to the pool water significantly increases mass and particle number concentrations from about 300 ng TiO2/L and 5.8 × 104 particles/mL to 8605 ng TiO2/L and 2.0 × 106 particles/mL, respectively. However, almost 90% of the added nano-TiO2 was removed after 3 days of typical filtration cycles, and the average TiO2 particle size shifted from 92 nm after loading the pool with sunscreen to a size below 64 nm. Analysis of filter material confirmed the removal of Ti-containing particles by the filter, and LA-ICP-MS imaging revealed Ti accumulation close to the cartridge filter core, gradually spreading across the rest of the filter area.

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ACS ES&T Water

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This publication has been entered in Griffith Research Online as an advanced online version.

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Nanotechnology

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Heilgeist, S; Sekine, R; Clases, D; Sahin, O; Stewart, RA, Invisible? Assessing the Fate of Sunscreen-Derived Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles in Swimming Pool Water Using Single Particle and Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry, ACS ES&T Water, 2023

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