This study investigated if standard risk assessment hazard tests are long enough to adequately provide the worst case exposure for nanomaterials. This study therefore determined the comparative effects of the aging on the bioavailability and toxicity to earthworms of soils dosed with silver ions and silver nanoparticles (Ag NP) for 1, 9, 30 & 52 weeks, and related this to the total Ag in the soil, Ag in soil pore water and earthworm tissue Ag concentrations. For ionic Ag, a classical pattern of reduced bioavailability and toxicity with time aged in the soil was observed. For the Ag NP, toxicity increased with time apparently driven by Ag ion dissolution from the added Ag NPs. Internal Ag in the earthworms did not always explain toxicity and suggested the presence of an internalised, low-toxicity Ag fraction (as intact or transformed NPs) after shorter aging times. Our results indicate that short-term exposures, without long-term soil aging, are not able to properly assess the environmental risk of Ag NPs and that ultimately, with aging time, Ag ion and Ag NP effect will merge to a common value.

The implications of biochar aging regarding their material properties as well as their interactions with other contaminants are not vivid. We report the role of biochar aging on sorption behavior of di-alkyl phthalates (PAEs). Biochars used in this study were produced from peanut-shell and their aging was simulated by chemical oxidation. The structural composition and morphology of the obtained biochars, before and after oxidation with HNO3/H2SO4, were analyzed by element composition, XPS, DRIFT, and SEM/EDX. Several experimental results unequivocally showed oxygen enrichment in the mixed acid treated samples compared to their precursors. Despite surface area reduction and pore destruction, increased PAEs sorption on oxidized biochar surfaces portrayed existence of strong PAEs binding sites. The adsorption of PAEs on oxidized biochar surface is a cumulative influence of hydrophobic interactions and pi–pi electron donor–acceptor interactions. Our results suggest that imminent aging of biochar upon environmental exposure may change their sorbent properties.

Earthworm density and feeding during exposure to contaminated soil have been used inconsistently in bioaccumulation studies, which may lead to possible errors in risk assessment and modeling. Hydrophobic organic pollutants with a wide range of environmental properties (phenanthrene, pyrene, lindane, p,p′-DDT, and PCB 153) were used to study the effect of different earthworm densities in combination with the presence or absence of feeding on bioaccumulation factors (BAFs). Similar BAFs were found at various soil-to-worm ratios, with the exception of phenanthrene. We recommend using at least 15 gsoil dw per earthworm. The absence of feeding doubled the BAFs and, thus, using no food ration can be considered as “the worst case scenario”. Whenever food is to be applied (i.e. to ensure the validity of the test in earthworm mass loss), we suggest feeding depending on the organic carbon content of the studied soil.