Ti-containing NPs in raw water and their removal with conventional treatments in four water treatment plants in Taiwan.

The ingestion of Ti-containing nanoparticles from drinking water has emerged as a concern in recent years. This study therefore aimed to characterize Ti-containing nanoparticles in water samples collected from four water treatment plants in Taiwan and to explore the challenges associated with measuring them at low levels using single particle-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Additionally, the study sought to identify the most effective processes for the removal of Ti-containing nanoparticles. For each water treatment plant, two water samples were collected from raw water, sedimentation effluent, filtration effluent, and finished water, respectively. Results revealed that Ti-containing nanoparticles in raw water, with levels at 8.69 µg/L and 296.8 × 103 particles/L, were removed by approximately 35% and 98%, respectively, in terms of mass concentration and particle number concentration, primarily through flocculation and sedimentation processes. The largest most frequent nanoparticle size in raw water (112.0 ± 2.8 nm) was effectively reduced to 62.0 ± 0.7 nm in finished water, while nanoparticles in the size range of 50-70 nm showed limited changes. Anthracite was identified as a necessary component in the filter beds to further improve removal efficiency at the filtration unit. Moreover, the most frequent sizes of Ti-containing nanoparticles were found to be influenced by salinity. Insights into the challenges associated with measuring low-level Ti-containing nanoparticles in aqueous samples provide valuable information for future research and management of water treatment processes, thereby safeguarding human health.

Characterization of Ti-containing nanoparticles in the aquatic environment of the Tamsuei River Basin in northern Taiwan.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is commonly contained in many commercial products and there are concerns about its release into the aquatic environment after use. This study was designed to characterize the distribution of Ti-containing nanoparticulates (NPs) in the water of the Tamsuei River Basin in northern Taiwan. Water samples were collected from the upstream, mid-stream, and downstream areas of the Tamsuei River Basin and analyzed with single-particle ICPMS to profile the Ti-containing NPs in terms of mass concentration, number concentration and particulate size. The lowest mass concentration of Ti-containing NPs, 1.04 ± 0.04 µg/L, was found in the upstream water samples, while the highest mass concentration, 31.7 ± 0.6 µg/L, was observed in downstream samples; there was an increasing trend from upstream to downstream. The highest particulate number concentration, 479 ± 163 × 103/mL, was observed for the downstream samples, but the lowest concentration, 45.4 ± 5.6 × 103/mL, was found in the mid-stream water samples taken from Site C. Moreover, the average mode values for particulate sizes were approximately 50 nm for all samples, although a relatively larger average mode value of 62 ± 5.7 nm was observed in the mid-stream samples from Site A. Increasing mass concentrations and particulate number concentrations from upstream to downstream implied that these NPs might have originally resulted from anthropogenic activities involving the use of TiO2 NPs-containing products. Surprisingly, however, the lowest number concentrations for Ti-containing NPs in the mid-stream samples can probably be attributed to the fact that the corresponding sampling sites were located in the water preservation zone, which exhibits a particle-settling effect. Additionally, the sizes of Ti-containing NPs in downstream samples were not significantly larger than those in the upstream and mid-stream samples, as expected, which was probably due to the steric effects resulting from the presence of large amounts of macromolecule polymers in aquatic environments.

Administration of Bacillus Amyloliquefaciens and Saccharomyces Cerevisiae as Direct-Fed Microbials Improves Intestinal Microflora and Morphology in Broiler Chickens.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BA) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SC) as directed-fed microbials on performance, intestinal microflora, and intestinal morphology in broiler chickens. A total of four hundred one-day-old broiler chickens were randomly divided into 16 pens of 25 chickens each, and every treatment had 4 replicated pens with two pens of males and females respectively. A formulated corn-soybean meal based control diets and experimental diets, including 0.1% BA (1×107 colony-forming units (CFU)/kg), the mixture of 0.05% BA (5×106 CFU/kg) and 0.05% SC (5×106 CFU/kg), and 10 ppm antibiotic (avilamycin), were fed for 5 weeks. The results showed no significant difference in the growth performance among all treatments. Supplementation of the mixture of BA and SC increased acetate and propionate and decreased the E. coli in ceca compared to control and antibiotic treatment. The treatments with antibiotic, BA, and the mixture of BA and SC compared to control treatment increased villus height / crypt depth ratio and decreased ammonia in excreta. In addition, supplementation of BA and the mixture of BA and SC compared to antibiotic treatment increased serum high-density lipoprotein, and decreased serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase, respectively. In conclusion, supplementation of the mixture of BA and SC was better than added BA only, and the mixed probiotics product could potentially alter the use of avilamycin in broiler diets.