Themed collection Best Papers 2019 – Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts

High persistence has important implications for chemicals regulation and management.

The concept of essential use is developed and applied to various uses of PFASs to determine the feasibility of elimination or substitution in each use category.

Understanding the theory behind passive sampling is essential for proper development of sampling methods and for accurate interpretation of the results.

A review of the current understanding of oxidants and their precursors in indoor environments.

We report on the development of a modelling consortium for chemistry in indoor environments that connects models over a range of spatial and temporal scales, from molecular to room scales and from sub-nanosecond to days, respectively.

Isocyanic acid (HNCO) has recently been identified in ambient air at potentially concerning concentrations for human health. Since its first atmospheric detection, significant progress has been made in understanding its sources and sinks.

Major point sources of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) cause ubiquitous spread of PFASs in the environment.

In the Orge River, the contribution of PFAA precursors decreases between the base and the top of the trophic web.

The present work assesses the exposure of a child cohort to PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS from 1 year to 10.5 years of age.

Alternatives to long-chain PFAAs sorb similarly strongly to serum albumin as the classical PFAAs.

The reactive uptake kinetics of nitrogen pentoxide (N₂O₅) to authentic biomass-burning aerosol and the production of nitryl chloride (ClNO₂) was determined using an entrained aerosol flow tube reactor.

Structural transformations of green rust and the partitioning of arsenic were tracked during aging for up to a year.

The aim of this study was to analyze a variety of environmental organic contaminants of emerging concern (CEC) and their metabolites in representative digestate samples from Norwegian biogas production plants.

The House Observations of Microbial and Environmental Chemistry (HOMEChem) study was a large-scale collaborative experimental investigation probing indoor air composition and chemistry.

Secondary Product Creation Potential (SPCP): a new metric for ranking the impact of volatile organic compounds on indoor air chemistry and human health.

Occupancy in indoor spaces can contribute to indoor aerosol mass via reactions of oxidants such as ozone with skin constituents and subsequent partitioning of those oxidation product to existing aerosol.

Emerging investigator series: Phthalate losses in floor dust are due to abiotic chemical degradation as well as microbial degradation of phthalates under elevated relative humidity conditions.

Mass balance study in peregrine falcons showed efficient dietary uptake, bioaccumulation, transfer to eggs of tri–decaBDE, HBCDD; metabolism also indicated.

Electrophoretic mobility measurements and ATR-FTIR provide the first evidence of non-electrostatic interactions between a uranyl-based polyoxometalate and iron oxide surface.

Estuaries are considered to be seriously polluted by microplastics.

The impact of dissolved and particulate organic mater on coastal water denitrification is evaluated. Particulate organic matter and its composition play a dominant role in regulating denitrifying activity.

This study conducted mercury (Hg) isotopic analysis, which has been expected as a new indicator for understanding the behavior of atmospheric Hg.

Maturity and mineralogy of shale significantly controls dissolution/precipitation reactions and release of organic contaminants during hydraulic fracturing.

Sea spray aerosols can act as a vector for sea-to-land transport of perfluorinated alkyl acids via the atmosphere.

The δ-MnO₂ oxidation of cephalosporin antibiotics can be affected by different environment factors (MnO₂ loading, pH, metal ions, natural organic matter and sunlight).

Outdoor-originated aerosols transported indoors impact air quality, and chemically transform due to temperature and humidity gradients.

Evidence for microbes has been detected in extreme subsurface environments as deep as 2.5 km with temperatures as high as 90 °C, demonstrating that microbes can adapt and survive extreme environmental conditions.

Results from this inter-laboratory comparison indicate that O&G waste analyses can be inaccurate and imprecise.