The detrimental effects of carbonaceous nanoparticles emitted from fuel combustion are well-known, but their underlying chemical mechanisms are not. Particle toxicity is generally thought to stem from the in vivo production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), but the details remain tenuous. Here, experiments were carried out to investigate the production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), an ROS, as a function of soot characteristics and redox-active iron content in the presence of biological electron donors. At biologically representative concentrations, results show that the presence of soot is essential in the continuous production of H2O2 at concentrations on the order of hundreds of nM and that a small redox-active pool of iron may be responsible for the conversion of H2O2 to the more potent ROS, hydroxyl radical (OH˙). Further investigation on the role of particle characteristics is underway. Data from this study is likely to lead to a better understanding of the reactivity and transformation of carbonaceous particles in a variety of settings.

Hydrogen peroxide production in the presence of soot and biological electron donors

249th National Meeting (2015)

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