The reactive surface areas of nanoparticles have long been recognized by the scientific community to have catalytic activity against a wide range of contaminants, including chlorinated aromatic and aliphatic compounds, as well as metals.  Dechlorination, sequestration and coprecipitation reactions are potentially significant contributors to detoxification in the environment.

Our early work on dioxin dechlorination using powdered metal ligands demonstrated the value of chemically generated nanoparticles.  Since 1996, we have focused on the dechlorination of solvents using biogenic magnetite (Fe3O4) and metal sequestration using biogenic mackinawite and pyrrothite(FeSx).  This work has been funded by EPA, NIEHS, NSF and SERDP.

Representative publications are provided below:

1. 1. McCormick, M.L., and P. Adriaens.  2004.  Product Distribution During Tetrachloromethane Degradation under Iron Reducing Conditions.  Environ. Sci. Technol., 38: 1045-1053.
   

2. 2.McCormick, M.L, E.J. Bouwer, and P. Adriaens. 2002, Carbon Tetrachloride Transformation in a Defined Iron-Reducing Culture: Relative Kinetics of Biotic and Abiotic Reactions, Environ. Sci. Technol. 36(3): 403-410.
   

3. 3.Selig, H., K.F. Hayes, and P. Adriaens.  1999.  The Role of Silica Dissolution on the Biodegradation of Octylamine.  Environ. Sci. Technol., 33, 3723-3729.
   

4. 4.Adriaens, P., P.R.-L. Chang, and A.L. Barkovskii.  1996.  Dechlorination of Chlorinated PCDD/F by Organic and Inorganic Electron Transfer Molecules in Reduced Environments.  Chemosphere 32: 433-441.
   

5. 5.McCormick, M.L., P.T. Jung, P.G. Koster van Groos, K.F. Hayes, and P. Adriaens.  2002.  Assessing biotic and abiotic contributions to chlorinated solvent transformation in iron-reducing and sulfidogenic environments.  In Thornton, S.F., and S.E. Oswald, Groundwater Quality: Natural and Enhanced Restoration of Groundwater Pollution, pp. 119-125, International Association of Hydrological Sciences, Oxfordshire, U.K.