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Nanobiosensors for Monitoring Soil and Water Health
Published in Sunil K. Deshmukh, Mandira Kochar, Pawan Kaur, Pushplata Prasad Singh, Nanotechnology in Agriculture and Environmental Science, 2023
Archeka, Nidhi Chauhan, Neelam, Kusuml, Vinita Hoodal
Nitrate, an essential element for plant growth, is naturally present in the environment. Excessive use of manures and fertilizers has resulted in undesirable increase in its concentrations in the biota polluting agricultural soil, underground water reserves, and agricultural produce. Nitrate, when consumed in excess, either by drinking contaminated water or by eating nitrate loaded vegetables, is toxic to life. Inside the body, nitrate is converted to nitrite that causes oxidation of hemoglobin to methemoglobin impairing the ability of hemoglobin to carry oxygen. The condition is clinically known as methemoglobinemia or `blue-baby’ syndrome as it affects infants more and could even be fatal to them.
Chemicals in California Drinking Water: Source of Contamination, Risk Assessment, and Drinking Water Standards
Published in Rhoda G.M. Wang, Water Contamination and Health, 2020
Richard H. F. Lam, Joseph P. Brown, Anna M. Fan
Although much attention has been focused on the contamination of groundwater supplies in the state by organic chemicals, the greatest threat to this source of drinking water is from contamination by nitrate. The principal concern for excessive nitrate levels in drinking water is the development of methemoglobinemia in infants. After ingestion, nitrate is converted to nitrite in the gut of the infant. The absorbed nitrite reacts with hemoglobin in the blood, forming methemoglobin, which significantly reduces the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. This gives rise to the “blue baby” syndrome. More detailed environmental and toxicological assessment of nitrate can be obtained from other publications (14,15).
Groundwater: Nitrogen Fertilizer Contamination
Published in Brian D. Fath, Sven E. Jørgensen, Megan Cole, Managing Water Resources and Hydrological Systems, 2020
Lloyd B. Owens, Douglas L. Karlen
Why is NO3-N in groundwater a problem? When water with high nitrate (NO3) concentrations is consumed by humans, it can cause several adverse health problems. One of the most common is known as “blue baby syndrome” or methemoglobinemia, an illness that arises when an infant’s blood is unable to carry enough oxygen to body cells and tissue. Consumption of high-NO3 water has also been associated with increased levels of nitrosamine and some types of cancer. High levels of NO3-N in streams, lakes, and oceans can stimulate excess growth of plants and bacteria, which upon death and decay subsequently deplete much of the oxygen in water. This causes fish kills and “dead zones,” such as the hypoxic area in the Gulf of Mexico.
Adsorption isotherm and kinetics for the removal of nitrate from wastewater using chicken feather fiber
Published in Cogent Engineering, 2022
O O Elemile, B O Akpor, E M Ibitogbe, Y T Afolabi, D. O Ajani
Access to safe drinking water is not taken for granted in developing countries, where economic growth is often sacrificed at the expense of environmental protection and water quality (Masindi et al., 2018; Pandey et al., 2020, 2021). The price of urbanization and rapid industrialization is a cost laid on the environment and this burden is a global priority. Agricultural practices also play a major role in the release of organic and inorganic chemicals to water bodies (Blowes et al., 1994). High concentration levels of nitrate in existing water tables have been associated with leaching and run-off from agricultural inputs into groundwater reserves. Land use and hydrogeology are factors that affect the levels of nitrate in water. Nitrate pollution of drinking water sources (which has been linked with certain health outcomes) is known to be increasing (Fewtrell, 2004). This increase can be associated with excessive usage of nitrogen based fertilizers, leaching of wastewater and other organic wastes into surface water and groundwater sources (Hajhamad & Almasri, 2009). Excess intake of nitrate can affect the blood by reducing hemoglobin content responsible for carrying oxygen in the blood. This phenomenon is known as blue-baby syndrome, also called infant methemoglobinemia, which is exclusively harmful to infants. Growing demands in the developing world for better water quality and stronger legislation for water safety have necessitated the need for nitrate remediation systems. Developing world has experience intensification level of nitrate contamination of groundwater with high emergent populations, putting strains on drinking water resources (Gu et al., 2013). The maximum concentration level (MCL) for nitrate as stated by the World Health Organization (WHO) is given as 50 mg/L NO3 and 11 mg/L NO3-N, while Environmental Protection Agency, EPA is given as 45 mg/L NO3 and 10 mg/L NO3-N (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2012) respectively.