Olivine Dissolution in Simulated Lung and Gastric Fluid as an Analog to the Behavior of Lunar Particulate Matter Inside the Human Respiratory and Gastrointestinal Systems

Autor: Joel A. Hurowitz, Donald Hendrix, Martin A.A. Schoonen, Timothy D. Glotch
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Gravitational Fields
Epidemiology
Health
Toxicology and Mutagenesis
General or Miscellaneous
Volcanology
Mining and Planetary Health
Management
Monitoring
Policy and Law
engineering.material
Environmental protection
simulated lung fluid
Crystallinity
Ferrihydrite
Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects
lunar dust
TD169-171.8
Geodesy and Gravity
astronaut
Moon
Waste Management and Disposal
Magnesium ion
Dissolution
olivine
Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets
Planetary Sciences: Fluid Planets
Mineralogy and Petrology
Water Science and Technology
Global and Planetary Change
Orbital and Rotational Dynamics
Olivine
Mineral and Crystal Chemistry
hydroxyl radical
Chemistry
dust inhalation
Public Health
Environmental and Occupational Health
Geohealth
health
Particulates
Lunar and Planetary Geodesy and Gravity
Pollution
Amorphous solid
Geochemistry
Environmental chemistry
engineering
Particle
Planetary Sciences: Comets and Small Bodies
Health Impact
Geochemical Modeling
Natural Hazards
Research Article
Zdroj: GeoHealth, Vol 5, Iss 11, Pp n/a-n/a (2021)
GeoHealth
ISSN: 2471-1403
Popis: With the Artemis III mission scheduled to land humans on the Moon in 2025, work must be done to understand the hazards lunar dust inhalation would pose to humans. In this study, San Carlos olivine was used as an analog of lunar olivine, a common component of lunar dust. Olivine was dissolved in a flow‐through apparatus in both simulated lung fluid and 0.1 M HCl (simulated gastric fluid) over a period of approximately 2 weeks at physiological temperature, 37°C. Effluent samples were collected periodically and analyzed for pH, iron, silicon, and magnesium ion concentrations. The dissolution rate data derived from our measurements allow us to estimate that an inhaled 1.0 μm diameter olivine particle would take approximately 24 years to dissolve in the human lungs and approximately 3 weeks to dissolve in gastric fluid. Results revealed that inhaled olivine particles may generate the toxic chemical, hydroxyl radical, for up to 5–6 days in lung fluid. Olivine dissolved in 0.1 M HCl for 2 weeks transformed to an amorphous silica‐rich solid plus the ferric iron oxy‐hydroxide ferrihydrite. Olivine dissolved in simulated lung fluid shows no detectable change in composition or crystallinity. Equilibrium thermodynamic models indicate that olivine in the human lungs can precipitate secondary minerals with fibrous crystal structures that have the potential to induce detrimental health effects similar to asbestos exposure. Our work indicates that inhaled lunar dust containing olivine can settle in the human lungs for years and could induce long‐term potential health effects like that of silicosis.
Key Points An inhaled one‐micron diameter olivine particle is predicted to dissolve in approximately 24 years inside the human lungsInhaled olivine could react with lung fluid over time and precipitate amorphous silica, ferrihydrite, and asbestos‐like mineralsInhaled lunar dust could potentially lead to long‐term health consequences due to mineral dissolution and precipitation of secondary mineral phases
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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