Department of Natural Sciences, Marymount Manhattan College, 221 E 71st St., New York, NY 10021, United States.
Ecosphere Resilience Research Centre, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda, 10250, Sri Lanka.
J Hazard Mater. 2024 May 5;469:133881. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.133881. Epub 2024 Feb 24.
Bromine (Br) is widely distributed through the lithosphere and hydrosphere, and its chemistry in the environment is affected by natural processes and anthropogenic activities. While the chemistry of Br in the atmosphere has been comprehensively explored, there has never been an overview of the chemistry of Br in soil and aquatic systems. This review synthesizes current knowledge on the sources, geochemistry, health and environmental threats, remediation approaches, and regulatory guidelines pertaining to Br pollution in terrestrial and aquatic environments. Volcanic eruptions, geothermal streams, and seawater are the major natural sources of Br. In soils and sediments, Br undergoes natural cycling between organic and inorganic forms, with bromination reactions occurring both abiotically and through microbial activity. For organisms, Br is a non-essential element; it is passively taken up by plant roots in the form of the Br anion. Elevated Br levels can limit plant growth on coastal soils of arid and semi-arid environments. Br is used in the chemical industry to manufacture pesticides, flame retardants, pharmaceuticals, and other products. Anthropogenic sources of organobromine contaminants in the environment are primarily wastewater treatment, fumigants, and flame retardants. When aqueous Br reacts with oxidants in water treatment plants, it can generate brominated disinfection by-products (DBPs), and exposure to DBPs is linked to adverse human health effects including increased cancer risk. Br can be removed from aquatic systems using adsorbents, and amelioration of soils containing excess Br can be achieved by leaching, adding various amendments, or phytoremediation. Developing cost-effective methods for Br removal from wastewater would help address the problem of toxic brominated DBPs. Other anthropogenic organobromines, such as polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants, are persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative, posing a challenge in environmental remediation. Future research directives for managing Br pollution sustainably in various environmental settings are suggested here.
溴(Br)广泛分布于岩石圈和水圈,其环境化学受到自然过程和人为活动的影响。尽管大气中 Br 的化学性质已经得到了全面的研究,但土壤和水生系统中 Br 的化学性质却从未得到过概述。本综述综合了当前关于陆地和水生环境中 Br 污染的来源、地球化学、健康和环境威胁、修复方法以及监管指南的知识。火山喷发、地热泉和海水是 Br 的主要天然来源。在土壤和沉积物中,Br 在有机和无机形式之间自然循环,通过非生物和微生物活性发生溴化反应。对于生物体来说,Br 是非必需元素;它以 Br 阴离子的形式被植物根系被动吸收。高 Br 水平会限制干旱和半干旱环境沿海土壤上的植物生长。Br 被用于化学工业,以制造农药、阻燃剂、药品和其他产品。环境中有机溴污染物的人为来源主要是污水处理厂、熏蒸剂和阻燃剂。当水培中 Br 与水中的氧化剂反应时,会产生溴代消毒副产物(DBPs),而接触 DBPs 与不良的人类健康影响有关,包括癌症风险增加。可以使用吸附剂去除水中的 Br,通过淋洗、添加各种改良剂或植物修复来改善含有过量 Br 的土壤。开发从废水中去除 Br 的经济有效的方法将有助于解决有毒溴代 DBPs 的问题。其他人为有机溴化合物,如多溴联苯醚(PBDE)阻燃剂,具有持久性、毒性和生物累积性,这在环境修复方面构成了挑战。建议在此提出可持续管理各种环境中 Br 污染的未来研究方向。