Journal of Hazardous Materials Letters (Nov 2022)
Natural nanoparticles of the critical element tellurium
- Owen P. Missen,
- Ella R. Lausberg,
- Joël Brugger,
- Barbara Etschmann,
- Stuart J. Mills,
- Koichi Momma,
- Rahul Ram,
- Mihoko Maruyama,
- Xi-Ya Fang,
- Erik Melchiorre,
- Christopher G. Ryan,
- Edgar E. Villalobos-Portillo,
- Hiram Castillo-Michel,
- Kiyofumi Nitta,
- Oki Sekizawa,
- Jeremiah Shuster,
- Santonu K. Sanyal,
- Andrew Frierdich,
- Steve Hunt,
- Yuka Tsuri,
- Yuriko Takahashi,
- Uta Michibata,
- Sahil Dwivedi,
- Maria A.D. Rea
Affiliations
- Owen P. Missen
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia; Geosciences, Museums Victoria, GPO Box 666, Melbourne 3001, Victoria, Australia; Corresponding author at: School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia.
- Ella R. Lausberg
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
- Joël Brugger
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
- Barbara Etschmann
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
- Stuart J. Mills
- Geosciences, Museums Victoria, GPO Box 666, Melbourne 3001, Victoria, Australia
- Koichi Momma
- National Museum of Nature and Science, 4-1-1 Amakubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0005, Japan
- Rahul Ram
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
- Mihoko Maruyama
- Applied Electro-Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
- Xi-Ya Fang
- Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
- Erik Melchiorre
- Department of Geological Sciences, California State University of San Bernardino, 5500 University Parkway, San Bernardino, CA 92407, USA
- Christopher G. Ryan
- CSIRO Minerals, Normanby Road, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
- Edgar E. Villalobos-Portillo
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
- Hiram Castillo-Michel
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
- Kiyofumi Nitta
- Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI), 1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5198, Japan
- Oki Sekizawa
- Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI), 1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5198, Japan
- Jeremiah Shuster
- Tübingen Structural Microscopy Core Facility & Department of Geosciences, Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen, Schnarrenbergstraße 94-96, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Santonu K. Sanyal
- Department of Microbiology, Jagannath University, Dhaka 1100, Bangladesh
- Andrew Frierdich
- School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
- Steve Hunt
- Gold Eye Claim, Cholla Rd, Quartzsite, AZ 85346, United States
- Yuka Tsuri
- Applied Electro-Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
- Yuriko Takahashi
- Applied Electro-Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
- Uta Michibata
- Applied Electro-Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
- Sahil Dwivedi
- Applied Electro-Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
- Maria A.D. Rea
- CSIRO Land and Water, Contaminant Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, PMB2, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia; College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia 5042, Australia; Corresponding author at: CSIRO Land and Water, Contaminant Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, PMB2, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia.
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 3
p. 100053
Abstract
Tellurium (Te) is a Critical Element that is toxic to microorganisms and humans alike, most notably in its soluble oxyanionic forms. To date, the biogeochemical behaviour of Te in Earth’s surface environment is largely unknown. Here, we report the discovery of elemental Te nanoparticles (Te NPs) in regolith samples using Single-Particle Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectroscopy. Tellurium NPs were detected in both proximal and distal locations (bulk concentrations >4 ppm) relative to weathering Te ores. Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence Mapping and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy showed that bulk Te in the regolith is generally associated with Fe (oxyhydr)oxides and clay minerals, and mostly found in the oxidation states +IV and +VI. Although Te NPs account for less than 2 mol‰ of Te in our samples, their detection provides evidence for the active biogeochemical cycling of Te in surface environments. Te NPs are reactive and are likely to have formed in situ in distal samples, most likely via microbially-mediated reduction. Hence, the presence of Te NPs indicates the potential for release of toxic soluble forms of Te even in environments where most Te is “fixed” in forms such as Fe (oxyhydr)oxides that have low solubility and poor bioavailability.
