Comparison of TiO2 nanoparticle and graphene–TiO2 nanoparticle composite phototoxicity to Daphnia magna and Oryzias latipes

[Display omitted] •Graphene–TiO2 nanocomposite (GNP) was synthesized by a hydrothermal method.•GNP has increased photoactivity, especially in the visible light region.•Nano-TiO2 and GNP exhibited similar parts-per-billion level phototoxicity.•Both primary particle reactivity and environmental factor...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Chemosphere (Oxford) 2014-10, Vol.112, p.62-69
Main Authors: Li, Shibin, Pan, Xuan, Wallis, Lindsay K., Fan, Zhaoyang, Chen, ZuLiang, Diamond, Stephen A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agglomeration
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Applied ecology
Aquatic organism
Biological and medical sciences
Daphnia - drug effects
Daphnia magna
Ecotoxicology
Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution
Fresh water environment
Freshwater
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Graphene
Graphite - chemistry
Graphite - toxicity
Illumination
Light
Nano-TiO2
Nanocomposite
Nanoparticles - chemistry
Nanoparticles - toxicity
Nanostructure
Oryzias
Oryzias latipes
Photochemical Processes
Phototoxicity
Reduction
Sedimentation
Titanium - chemistry
Titanium - toxicity
Titanium dioxide
Toxicity
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Summary:[Display omitted] •Graphene–TiO2 nanocomposite (GNP) was synthesized by a hydrothermal method.•GNP has increased photoactivity, especially in the visible light region.•Nano-TiO2 and GNP exhibited similar parts-per-billion level phototoxicity.•Both primary particle reactivity and environmental factors determine toxicity.•Graphene exhibited no toxicity with or without illumination. With a dramatic rise in complexity, needs of nanotoxicology research go beyond simple forms of nanomaterials. This study compared the phototoxicity of nano-TiO2 and graphene–TiO2 nanocomposite (GNP). GNP was synthesized based on a hydrothermal method, which simultaneously performed the reduction of graphene oxide and nano-TiO2 loading. A series of acute toxicity tests of nano-TiO2, graphene and GNP was performed on two aquatic organisms, Daphnia magna and Oryzias latipes. Fast and substantial agglomeration and sedimentation of nanoparticles in test media and surface attachment of nano-TiO2 and GNP on D. magna surface was observed. Similar phototoxicity of nano-TiO2 and GNP for both species existed, though compared with nano-TiO2, GNP had a 2.3-fold increase in visible light photocatalytic ROS generation. In summary, this study demonstrated the significance of illumination spectrum, particle behavior, and species sensitivity on nanophototoxicity, and the needs for research on increasingly sophisticated functional materials.
ISSN:0045-6535
1879-1298
DOI:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.03.058