Perspective
The high persistence of PFAS is sufficient for their management as a chemical class
While per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of synthetic organic substances with diverse structures, properties, uses, bioaccumulation potentials and toxicities, nearly all PFAS are highly persistent.
A critical review on the potential impacts of neonicotinoid insecticide use: current knowledge of environmental fate, toxicity, and implications for human health
The review examines literature relevant to environmental fate, transformation, and toxicity, and human exposure and health risks of neonicotinoid insecticides.
How the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill reshaped our understanding of crude oil photochemical weathering at sea: a past, present, and future perspective
A critical review of the diverse and consequential roles that photochemical weathering plays in oil spill science, with emphasis placed on how our understanding of these roles has been reshaped since the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill.
Critical Review
The atmospheric chemistry of indoor environments
The review article summarizes the wide variety of atmospheric chemistry phenomena that occur indoors.
Paper
An overview of the uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
Systematic description of more than 200 uses of PFAS and the individual substances associated with each of them (over 1400 PFAS in total).
Glass surface evolution following gas adsorption and particle deposition from indoor cooking events as probed by microspectroscopic analysis
Microspectroscopic analyses of glass surfaces following a single day of cooking events reveal organic depositions that can be traced back to emission sources and airborne distributions.
Compound health risk assessment of cumulative heavy metal exposure: a case study of a village near a battery factory in Henan Province, China
The concentrations of the heavy metals Hg, As, Ni, Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn in soil, groundwater, air, and locally produced grain (wheat and corn) and vegetables were determined in a village near a battery factory in Xinxiang, Henan Province, China.
Paper
Interactions of ferrous iron with clay mineral surfaces during sorption and subsequent oxidation
Under anoxic conditions, clay minerals sorb dissolved Fe(II) predominantly by forming surface precipitates, which transform into Fe(III)-phases upon aeration.
Paper
Aging induced changes in ice nucleation activity of combustion aerosol as determined by near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy
Soot particles aged in acidic aqueous solutions reveal significantly enhanced ice nucleating activity.
Sources and sinks of chloromethane in a salt marsh ecosystem: constraints from concentration and stable isotope measurements of laboratory incubation experiments
Chloromethane (CH3Cl) is the most abundant long-lived chlorinated organic compound in the atmosphere and contributes significantly to natural stratospheric ozone depletion.
Paper
Comprehensive screening of quaternary ammonium surfactants and ionic liquids in wastewater effluents and lake sediments
Quaternary ammonium compounds were found at substantial levels in wastewater effluents and sediment samples with wastewater treatment practices and usage rates determining their environmental prevalence.
Characterizing microplastic size and morphology of photodegraded polymers placed in simulated moving water conditions
Aquatic plastic debris experiences environmental stressors that lead to breakdown into smaller micro-sized plastic particles.
Paper
Trends in heavy metals, polychlorinated biphenyls and toxicity from sediment cores of the inner River Thames estuary, London, UK
River islands (Ait or Eyot) within the inner tidal Thames serve as unique recorders of current and historical estuarine chemical pollution.
Paper
A global atmospheric chemistry model for the fate and transport of PFCAs and their precursors
Global model for the atmospheric chemistry of PFCA precursors.
Paper
Emerging investigator series: use of behavioural endpoints in the regulation of chemicals
Suggestion for how the use of behavioral endpoints can improve in environmental risk assessment of chemicals.
Evidence for a kinetically controlled burying mechanism for growth of high viscosity secondary organic aerosol
The incorporation of organic nitrates into viscous secondary organic aerosol during particle formation is enhanced relative to expected equilibrium partitioning, and is best described by a kinetically controlled “burying” mechanism.
About this collection
The Environmental Science Best Papers Initiative identifies a variety of excellent papers published in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Environmental Science journal family, showcasing great research from across the globe. To celebrate more of the great papers published in Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts during 2020 which really deserve recognition, we’ve gathered all nominated papers in this special collection.