Environmental impact of engineered carbon nanoparticles: from releases to effects on the aquatic biota

•Engineered carbon nanoparticles are emerging environmental contaminants.•Their potential environmental impact is still poorly understood.•Their composition make them difficult to detect and quantify in biological matrices.•Predicted environmental concentrations are low, but bioaccumulation might occur.•Investigation of their potential impact after release from commercial products is challenging.

Nano-ecotoxicology is an emerging science which aims to assess the environmental effect of nanotechnologies. The development of this particular aspect of ecotoxicology was made necessary in order to evaluate the potential impact of recently produced and used materials: nanoparticles (NPs). Among all the types of NPs, carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) especially draw attention giving the increasing number of applications and integration into consumer products. However the potential impacts of CNPs in the environment remain poorly known. This review aims to point out the critical issues and aspects that will govern the toxicity of CNPs in the environment.

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