Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Synthesis, characterization, and ecotoxicity of CeO2 nanoparticles with differing properties

  • Research Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Nanoparticle Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

CeO2 nanoparticles with various characteristics find an increasing number of applications in the electronic, medical, and other industries and are therefore likely released in the environment. This calls for investigations linking the physicochemical properties of these particles with their potential environmental impacts. In this study, CeO2 nanoparticle powders were prepared using three different precursors [Ce(NO3)3, CeCl3, and Ce(CH3COO)3] and annealing temperatures (300, 500, and 700 °C). This procedure resulted in nine different types of nanoparticles with differing size (5–90 nm), morphology, surface Ce3+/Ce4+ ratio, and slightly different crystal structures as characterized using transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction measurements with Rietveld refinement. These CeO2 nanoparticles underwent toxicity testing at concentrations up to 64 mg L−1 using Daphnia magna. Toxic effects were observed for three particle types with EC50 values between 5 and 64 mg L−1. No clear correlation was observed between the physicochemical properties (size, shape, oxygen occupancy, Ce3+/Ce4+ ratio) of the nanoparticles and their toxicity. However, toxicity was correlated with the amount of Ce remaining suspended in the test medium after 24 h. This indicated that toxic effects may depend on the colloidal stability of CeO2 nanoparticles during the first day of exposure. Therefore, being readily suspended and remaining stable for several days in the aquatic media increases the likelihood that CeO2 nanoparticles will cause unwanted adverse effects.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Artells E, Issartel J, Auffan M, Borschneck D, Thill A, Tella M et al (2013) Exposure to cerium dioxide nanoparticles differently affect swimming performance and survival in two daphnid species. PLoS ONE 8(8):e71260

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ASTM (2014) E729–96. Standard guide for conducting acute toxicity tests on test materials with fishes, macroinvertebrates, and amphibians. doi:10.1520/E0729-96R14

  • Avgouropoulos G, Ioannides T, Papadopoulou C, Batista J, Hocevar S, Matralis H (2002) A comparative study of Pt/γ-Al2O3, Au/α-Fe2O3 and CuO–CeO2 catalysts for the selective oxidation of carbon monoxide in excess hydrogen. Catal Today 75(1):157–167

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balzar D, Audebrand N, Daymond M, Fitch A, Hewat A, Langford J et al (2004) Size-strain line-broadening analysis of the ceria round-robin sample. J Appl Crystallogr 37(6):911–924

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bêche E, Charvin P, Perarnau D, Abanades S, Flamant G (2008) Ce 3d XPS investigation of cerium oxides and mixed cerium oxide (CexTiyOz). Surf Interface Anal 40(3–4):264–267

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bundschuh M, Seitz F, Rosenfeldt RR, Schulz R (2016) Effects of nanoparticles in fresh waters: risks, mechanisms and interactions. Freshw Biol. doi:10.1111/fwb.12701

    Google Scholar 

  • Cornelis G, Ryan B, McLaughlin MJ, Kirby JK, Beak D, Chittleborough D (2011) Solubility and batch retention of CeO2 nanoparticles in soils. Environ Sci Technol 45(7):2777–2782

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cuahtecontzi-Delint R, Mendez-Rojas MA, Bandala ER, Quiroz MA, Recillas S, Sanchez-Salas JL (2013) Enhanced antibacterial activity of CeO2 nanoparticles by surfactants. Int J Chem React Eng 11(2):1–5

    Google Scholar 

  • Dabrunz A, Duester L, Prasse C, Seitz F, Rosenfeldt R, Schilde C et al (2011) Biological surface coating and molting inhibition as mechanisms of TiO2 nanoparticle toxicity in Daphnia magna. PLoS One 6(5):e20112

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dahle JT, Livi K, Arai Y (2015) Effects of pH and phosphate on CeO2 nanoparticle dissolution. Chemosphere 119:1365–1371

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deshpande S, Patil S, Kuchibhatla SV, Seal S (2005) Size dependency variation in lattice parameter and valency states in nanocrystalline cerium oxide. Appl Phys Lett 87(13):133113

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisichella M, Berenguer F, Steinmetz G, Auffan M, Rose J, Prat O (2014) Toxicity evaluation of manufactured CeO2 nanoparticles before and after alteration: combined physicochemical and whole-genome expression analysis in Caco-2 cells. BMC Genom 15(1):1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gaiser BK, Fernandes TF, Jepson M, Lead JR, Tyler CR, Stone V (2009) Assessing exposure, uptake and toxicity of silver and cerium dioxide nanoparticles from contaminated environments. Environ Health 8(Suppl 1):S2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia A, Espinosa R, Delgado L, Casals E, González E, Puntes V et al (2011) Acute toxicity of cerium oxide, titanium oxide and iron oxide nanoparticles using standardized tests. Desalination 269(1):136–141

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter RJ (2001) Foundations of colloid science. (Oxford University, Ed.), 2nd edn. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Keller AA, Lazareva A (2013) Predicted releases of engineered nanomaterials: from global to regional to local. Environ Sci Technol Lett 1(1):65–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim Y-H, Kim S-K, Kim N, Park J-G, Paik U (2008) Crystalline structure of ceria particles controlled by the oxygen partial pressure and STI CMP performances. Ultramicroscopy 108(10):1292–1296

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Korsvik C, Patil S, Seal S, Self WT (2007) Superoxide dismutase mimetic properties exhibited by vacancy engineered ceria nanoparticles. Chem Commun 10:1056–1058

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lin W, Huang Y, Zhou X-D, Ma Y (2006) Toxicity of cerium oxide nanoparticles in human lung cancer cells. Int J Toxicol 25(6):451–457

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu HH, Cohen Y (2014) Multimedia environmental distribution of engineered nanomaterials. Environ Sci Technol 48(6):3281–3292

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu X, Ray JR, Neil CW, Li Q, Jun Y-S (2015) Enhanced colloidal stability of CeO2 nanoparticles by ferrous ions: adsorption, redox reaction, and surface precipitation. Environ Sci Technol 49(9):5476–5483

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • López-Moreno ML, de la Rosa G, Hernández-Viezcas JA, Peralta-Videa JR, Gardea-Torresdey JL (2010) XAS corroboration of the uptake and storage of CeO2 nanoparticles and assessment of their differential toxicity in four edible plant species. J Agric Food Chem 58(6):3689

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manier N, Bado-Nilles A, Delalain P, Aguerre-Chariol O, Pandard P (2013) Ecotoxicity of non-aged and aged CeO2 nanomaterials towards freshwater microalgae. Environ Pollut 180:63–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patil S, Sandberg A, Heckert E, Self W, Seal S (2007) Protein adsorption and cellular uptake of cerium oxide nanoparticles as a function of zeta potential. Biomaterials 28(31):4600–4607

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quik JTK, Lynch I, Van Hoecke K, Miermans CJH, Schamphelaere KACD, Janssen CR et al (2010) Effect of natural organic matter on cerium dioxide nanoparticles settling in model fresh water. Chemosphere 81(6):711–715

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seitz F, Bundschuh M, Rosenfeldt RR, Schulz R (2013) Nanoparticle toxicity in Daphnia magna reproduction studies: the importance of test design. Aquat Toxicol 126:163–168

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seitz F, Rosenfeldt R, Müller M, Lüderwald S, Schulz R, Bundschuh M (2016) Quantity and quality of natural organic matter influence the ecotoxicity of titanium dioxide nanoparticles. Nanotoxicology 1. doi:10.1080/17435390.2016.1222458

    Google Scholar 

  • Tarnuzzer RW, Colon J, Patil S, Seal S (2005) Vacancy engineered ceria nanostructures for protection from radiation-induced cellular damage. Nano Lett 5(12):2573–2577

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson P, Cox D, Hastings J (1987) Rietveld refinement of Debye–Scherrer synchrotron X-ray data from Al2O3. J Appl Crystallogr 20(2):79–83

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Hoecke K, Quik JT, Mankiewicz-Boczek J, Schamphelaere KAD, Elsaesser A, der Meeren PV et al (2009) Fate and effects of CeO2 nanoparticles in aquatic ecotoxicity tests. Environ Sci Technol 43(12):4537–4546

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Hoecke K, De Schamphelaere KA, Van der Meeren P, Smagghe G, Janssen CR (2011) Aggregation and ecotoxicity of CeO2 nanoparticles in synthetic and natural waters with variable pH, organic matter concentration and ionic strength. Environ Pollut 159(4):970–976

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang F, Chan S-W, Spanier JE, Apak E, Jin Q, Robinson RD, Herman IP (2002) Cerium oxide nanoparticles: size-selective formation and structure analysis. Appl Phys Lett 80(1):127–129

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a fellowship in the frame of the research initiative of the Ministry of Education, Science, Further Education and Culture, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, in the framework of the research project AufLand. The authors would like to thank James Dillon (SUNY Polytechnic Institute) for his assistance with the background materials on this paper and Dr. Michael Hatzistergos (SUNY Polytechnic Institute) for his guidance and assistance with the XPS data reported in this paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Aero Shade Technologies Inc, 3104 Industrial Ave 3, Fort Pierce, FL, 34946, USA

    Bushra Alam

  2. Group of Environmental and Soil Chemistry, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Fortstrasse 7, 76829, Landau, Germany

    Allan Philippe, Ricki R. Rosenfeldt, Frank Seitz, Mirco Bundschuh & Gabriele E. Schaumann

  3. nEcoTox, Am Römerweg 53, 67105, Schifferstadt, Germany

    Ricki R. Rosenfeldt & Frank Seitz

  4. Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, 257 Fuller Road, Albany, NY, 12203, USA

    Sonal Dey & Sara A. Brenner

  5. Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lennart Hjelms väg 9, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden

    Mirco Bundschuh

Authors
  1. Bushra Alam
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Allan Philippe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ricki R. Rosenfeldt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Frank Seitz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Sonal Dey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Mirco Bundschuh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Gabriele E. Schaumann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Sara A. Brenner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Allan Philippe.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 1254 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Alam, B., Philippe, A., Rosenfeldt, R.R. et al. Synthesis, characterization, and ecotoxicity of CeO2 nanoparticles with differing properties. J Nanopart Res 18, 303 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-016-3613-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-016-3613-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation