This work investigates influence of different aluminosillicate nanoparticles (NPs) which are found in air in selected workplaces on the properties of the phospholipid (DPPC) monolayer at air–saline interface considered as ex vivo model of the lung surfactant (LS). The measurements were done under physiological-like conditions (deformable liquid interface at 37 °C) for NP concentrations matching the calculated lung doses after exposure in the working environment. Measured surface pressure–area (π–A) isotherms and compressibility curves demonstrated NP-induced changes in the structure and mechanical properties of the lipid monolayer. It was shown that hydrophilic nanomaterials (halloysite and bentonite) induced concentration-dependent impairment of DPPC’s ability of attaining high surface pressures on interfacial compression, suggesting a possibility of reduction of physiological function of natural LS. Hydrophobic montmorillonites affected DPPC monolayer in the opposite way; however, they significantly changed the mechanical properties of the air–liquid interface during compression. The results support the hypothesis of possible reduction or even degradation of the natural function of the lung surfactant induced by particle–phospholipid interactions after inhalation of nanoclays. Presented data do not only supplement the earlier results obtained with another LS model (animal-derived surfactant in oscillating bubble experiments) but also offer an explanation of physicochemical mechanisms responsible for detrimental effects which arise after deposition of inhaled nanomaterials on the surface of the respiratory system.

One-dimensional mathematical model is developed to investigate the behavior of contaminant transport in landfill composite liner system considering coupled effect of consolidation, diffusion, and degradation. The first- and second-type bottom boundary conditions are used to derive the steady-state and quasi-steady-state analytical solutions. The concentration profiles obtained by the proposed analytical solution are in good agreement with those obtained by the laboratory tests. The bottom concentration and flux of the soil liners can be greatly reduced when the degradation effect and porosity changing are considered. For the case under steady-state, the bottom flux and concentration for the case with t ₁/₂ =10 years can be 2.8 and 5.5 times lower than those of the case with t ₁/₂ =100 years, respectively. The bottom concentration and flux of the soil liners can be greatly reduced when the coefficient of volume compressibility decreases. For quasi-steady-state and with t ₁/₂ = 10 years, the bottom flux and concentration for the case with m ᵥ = 0.02/MPa can be 17.4 and 21 times lower than the case with m ᵥ = 0.5/MPa. This may be due to the fact that the true fluid velocity induced by consolidation is greater for the case with high coefficient of volume compressibility. The bottom flux for the case with single compacted clay liner (CCL) can be 1.5 times larger than that for the case with GMB/CCL considering diffusion and consolidation for DCM. The proposed analytical model can be used for verification of more complicated numerical models and assessment of the coupled effect of diffusion, consolidation, and degradation on contaminant transport in landfill liner systems.