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Uptake and photoinduced degradation of phthalic acid esters (PAEs) in Ulva lactuca highlight its potential application in environmental bioremediation
Summary
Researchers found that the sea lettuce alga Ulva lactuca rapidly absorbs phthalate plasticizers from water, accumulating higher concentrations of the compounds that are more fat-soluble, and that UV irradiation can then destroy over 70% of the absorbed phthalates within 8 hours. This dual uptake-and-degradation capability positions the alga as a promising low-cost tool for removing plastic-linked chemical pollutants from contaminated water.
The bioaccumulation of phthalates was studied in fragments of Ulva lactuca exposed for a maximum of 31 days at different concentrations of a solution of six phthalic acid esters (PAEs). The algal matrix showed rapid uptake since the first sampling, which increased over the time of the experimental period, at the end of which seaweed's bioaccumulation potential was also evaluated. After the uptake, the algal matrix was subjected to UV irradiation in order to verify the removal of the phthalates. PAEs with higher octanol-water partition coefficients (logKow) and molecular weights were preferentially uptaken by U. lactuca in all the exposure experiments. It was observed that both accumulation (biota-sediment accumulation factor (log10BSAF) ranging from 3.75 to 4.02) and photodegradation (higher than 70% removal for all phthalates in 8 h) are more efficient at lower concentration levels. These results suggest the potential use of the algal matrices for environmental bioremediation, in order to mitigate the impact of pollution from ubiquitous pollutants such as PAEs.