Nature Communications (Aug 2019)

Significant contribution of metastable particulate organic matter to natural formation of silver nanoparticles in soils

  • Ying-Nan Huang,
  • Ting-Ting Qian,
  • Fei Dang,
  • Yong-Guang Yin,
  • Min Li,
  • Dong-Mei Zhou

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11643-6
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 1
pp. 1 – 8

Abstract

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Silver nanoparticles are known environmental contaminants, however it is unclear whether they arise in soils through natural processes, anthropogenic processes, or both. Here Huang and colleagues offer fresh insight into the natural formation of these contaminants by soil particulate organic matter exposed to solar irradiation.