Environmental and health effects
Research leader:
Inger Odnevall Wallinder,
professor
Tel: +46 8 790 6621
e-mail: ingero@kth.se
On-going research activities of the team of Prof. Odnevall Wallinder at the Div. Surface and Corrosion Science ( Gunilla Herting , Eva Blomberg , Amanda Kessler , Tingru Chan , Alex Khort , Xuying Wang ) aim to address important industrial and societal aspects of metals and alloys used in a variety of applications ranging from external buildings, food related utensils and surfaces to implant materials and engineered metal-containing (nano)particles from a combined fundamental and applied perspective. This is accomplished via a multi-analytical approach to characterize corrosion and surface phenomena, the generation of quantitative metal bioaccessibility data, speciation analysis, and correlation with toxicological aspects. Potential environmental and health hazards and risks induced by the dispersion of metals from coated or non-coated metals and alloys as massive sheet or as powder particles are addressed via specific crossovers and highly interdisciplinary activities with national and international academic partners skilled in e.g. atmospheric and aerosol chemistry, industrial ecology, human toxicology and dermatology, ecotoxicology, colloid science, surface chemistry and environmental chemistry.
As the regulatory demands of the European chemicals legislation, REACH, have been placed on industry to demonstrate safe use of materials and products placed on the market for all intended uses, and to assure adequate control of identified risks to humans, several of the research projects have been directed in this direction. Due to the significant lack of knowledge on hazards and risks induced by alloys and metals on potential in-vivo exposures to particles through the main routes, oral – ingestion, dermal – skin contact and/or inhalation, unique sets of high quality in-vitro bioaccessibility data from a surface perspective are generated for metals, alloys and metal compounds. Studies are performed on relevant materials and products, both as massive surfaces and as powder particles used on the global market in actual applications during their entire life cycle at given exposure conditions. Research activities are both fundamental and applied and performed in close collaboration with several international metal associations and national and international companies and enterprises, all with a general wish for an improved understanding of their materials and products from a product development and risk management perspective. Scientific data, generated in close dialogue with the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, has been used to generate several chemical safety reports and REACH registration dossiers reported to ECHA.
Fundamental interdisciplinary studies are further focusing on the correlation of surface reactivity, protein interaction and toxicity of nano-sized and micron-sized metal-containing particles of relevance for e.g. occupational exposure scenarios and for the dispersion of engineered nanoparticles used in different consumer products. The research strategy provides an in-depth understanding of surface characteristics and reactivity, bioaccessibility, bioavailability, fate and toxicity of nano- and micron-sized metal particles. These activities are performed in close collaboration with colleagues at Karolinska Institutet, Institute for Environmental Medicine, and Stockholm University. See also the
Mistra Environmental Nanosafety project
. In-depth fundamental protein-metal surface interaction and surface reactivity studies are in addition performed in close collaboration with surface chemists within the division.
Other research activities focus on aspects of atmospheric corrosion of outdoor construction materials, addressing the entire scenario from an in-depth understanding of corrosion processes on the surface of e.g. roofing material, to quantify and understand metal runoff mechanisms and rates, to investigate the chemical form and bioavailability of released metals and how it changes in contact with different solid surfaces in the near vicinity of buildings, possibilities for natural retention of released metals with surfaces such as soil, limestone and concrete, remobilization possibilities and ecotoxicity aspects on aquatic organisms. This research is highly interdisciplinary and conducted in close collaboration with expertise in cultural heritage aspects, ecotoxicology, soil- colloidal- and environmental science.
Funding:
Some examples: Swedish Research Council, Mistra, Vinnova, industry partners, Åforsk