Effects of pristine and photoaged tire wear particles and their leachable additives on key nitrogen removal processes and nitrous oxide accumulation in estuarine sediments

Jinyu Ye, Yuan Gao, Huan Gao, Qingqing Zhao, Dan Xu, Minjie Zhou, Meng Shi, Xiangdong Xue

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Despite growing attention to the environmental pollution caused by tire wear particles (TWPs), the effects of pristine and photoaged TWPs (P-TWPs and A-TWPs) and their TWP leachates (TWPLs; P-TWPL and A-TWPL) on key nitrogen removal processes in estuarine sediments remain unclear. This study explores the responses of the denitrification rate, anammox rate, and nitrous oxide (N2O) accumulation to P-TWP, A-TWP, P-TWPL, and A-TWPL exposure in estuarine sediments, and assesses the potential biotoxic substances present in TWPLs. P-TWPs reduced the denitrification rate by 17.1 ± 10.0 % and increased N2O accumulation by 28.1 ± 18.7 %. The A-TWPs not only reduced the denitrification rate by 31.3 ± 8.3 % and increased N2O accumulation by 43.1 ± 22.0 %, but also decreased the anammox rate by 22.1 ± 13.3 %. A-TWPs further inhibited the denitrification rate by reducing nitrate reductase activity and the abundance of its gene (narG ), while simultaneously decreasing hydrazine synthase activity and the abundance of its gene (hzo), thereby slowing the anammox rate. N2O accumulation after exposure to TWPs and TWPLs was positively correlated with the activity ratio of N2O-producing and N2O-consuming enzymes. Zinc (Zn) release in A-TWPL was 48.5 ± 6.9 % higher than that in P-TWPL, which is a crucial reason for the higher biotoxicity produced by A-TWPs. In addition, the abundance of denitrifying and anammox bacteria closely linked to the Zn, manganese, and arsenic concentrations in the TWPLs. This study provides insights into assessing the environmental risks posed by TWPs to estuarine ecosystems.
Original languageEnglish
Article number137136
JournalJournal of Hazardous Materials
Volume487
Number of pages13
ISSN0304-3894
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2025

Keywords

  • Anammox
  • Denitrification
  • Leachable additives
  • Nitrous oxide
  • Tire wear particles

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