Magnetic Nanoparticles: From COVID-19 to Environmental Remediation

Dear Colleagues,

Magnetic nanoparticles –mostly made of iron oxides- are ubiquitous and have been with humans even before the spiritual world was reflected in rock art imagery. Its natural sources include cosmic dust, volcanoes, and wildfires or even desert storms. We can also find them inside magnetotatic bacteria or stored in our brain associated with neurodegenerative diseases. This is partly due to the presence of environmental pollutants we create with vehicle and industrial emissions, and it adds to the increasing use of engineered magnetic nanoparticles in recent years with numerous applications in the food industry, biomedicine, cosmetics, fertilization and catalysis. In another telling example, the response of the research community during the last pandemic has prompted the use of magnetic nanoparticles in immunoassays to detect SARS-CoV-2. At the same time, higher levels of airborne iron-rich pollution have been associated with a higher risk of developing severe COVID-19. Thus, magnetic nanoparticles are a two-faced Janus.

This Special Issue aims to highlight recent advances in the field of green/sustainable synthesis of magnetic nanomaterials and their application to problems affecting our society and the planet. These applications include the detection, remediation and removal of environmental contaminants or pathogens, with special (but not exclusively) focus on water remediation. In addition, we also wish to cover the many challenges related to their scalability, cost-effectiveness, and environmental fate and impact. Opinion pieces, research papers and short critical reviews will be considered.

Dr. Carlos Martinez-Boubeta
Dr. Konstantinos Simeonidis
Guest Editors

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• magnetic nanoparticles
• environmentally friendly synthesis
• novel methods to treat and reduce environmental pollution
• assessment of the environmental or human health impact of engineered nanomaterials
• nanomagnets for catalysis and adsorption
• water pollution remediation
• magnetic aerosols
• monitoring of airborne virus and bacteria
• health effects of desert dust storm events and wildfires