Natural nanominerals, abundant in water and soil systems, control the fate and transport of multiple contaminants, such as heavy metals and organic pollutants, as nanominerals can coprecipitate with multiple metals and organics during its formation, and the homogeneous coprecipitates in bulk solution can facilitate the colloidal transport of metals and organic pollutants, while the heterogeneous precipitates on soil surfaces can immobilize the metals and organic pollutants. Due to the technical difficulty in quantifying nanoscale interfacial processes, the nucleation of nanominerals with metals and organics were not well understood, which limited the understanding on the fate and transport of contaminants. Applying new interfacial characterization techniques developed in nanochemistry fields, and integrating with classic nucleation theory, the nucleation rates of environmentally abundant nanominerals (e.g., iron oxides, lead phosphate, barium sulfate) in solution and at soil-water interfaces were quantified, and the controlling mechanisms were explored, which provided new insights into traditional geochemistry fields, and could help soil remediation.

From mineral nucleation to soil remediation: my career pathway

Fall 2022 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch in mid-September.

ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.