Analysis of linear and cyclic methylsiloxanes in sewage sludges and urban soils by concurrent solvent recondensation – large volume injection – gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Distribution and spatial variation of volatile methylsiloxanes in surface water and wastewater from the Yangtze River Basin, China

Volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) earned serious concerns due to their detection and toxicities after their release to the environments. They were also detected in rivers around the globe, but their distribution remained to be explored in larger rivers with longer length, higher water volume and wider watershed. In the present study, 8 cyclic VMSs (cVMSs) and 7 linear ones (lVMSs) were investigated in 42 water samples (27 surface water (including 7 drinking source water) and 15 wastewater) from the Yangtze River Basin, China. Results showed that VMSs were detected in all sampling sites. In surface water, the concentrations of total cVMSs ranged from 17.3 to 4.57 × 103 ng/L, while those of lVMSs ranged from 1.72 to 81.6 ng/L. In wastewater, the total concentrations of cVMSs and lVMSs showed ranges of 17.6-1.66 × 103 ng/L and 2.59-252 ng/L, respectively. Apparently, cVMSs showed significantly higher concentrations than lVMSs. The concentrations of cVMSs followed an order of lower > upper > middle reaches, while those of lVMSs did not show clear distribution patterns. Among cVMSs, those with less Si numbers were dominant, while those with more Si numbers were dominant in lVMSs. Notably, the VMSs were also detected in 7 surface waters that served as drinking source waters, which earned them further concerns. In addition, the VMSs in surface water showed positive correlation with those in wastewater, which led to necessity in management on industrial emissions in the future.

Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (D4, D5, and D6) as the emerging pollutants in environment: environmental distribution, fate, and toxicological assessments

Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) have now become a subject of environmental contamination and risk assessment due to their widespread use and occurrence in different environmental matrices. Due to their exceptional physio-chemical properties, these compounds are diversely used for formulations of consumer products and others implying their continuous and significant release to environmental compartments. This has captured the major attention of the concerned communities on the grounds of potential health hazards to human and biota. The present study aims at comprehensively reviewing its occurrence in air, water, soil, sediments, sludge, dusts, biogas, biosolids, and biota and their environmental behavior as well. Concentrations of cVMS in indoor air and biosolids were higher; however, no significant concentrations were observed in water, soil, and sediments except for wastewaters. No threat to the aquatic organisms has been identified as their concentrations do not exceed the NOEC (maximum no observed effect concentration) thresholds. Mammalian (rodents) toxicity hazards were not very evident except for the occurrence of uterine tumors in very rare cases under long-term chronic and repeated dose exposures in laboratory conditions. Human relevancy to rodents were also not strongly enough established. Therefore, more careful examinations are required to develop stringent weight of evidences in scientific domain and ease the policy making with respect to their production and use so as to combat any environmental consequences.

Siloxane Emissions and Exposures during the Use of Hair Care Products in Buildings

Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) are ubiquitous in hair care products (HCPs). cVMS emissions from HCPs are of concern, given the potential adverse impact of siloxanes on the environment and human health. To characterize cVMS emissions and exposures during the use of HCPs, realistic hair care experiments were conducted in a residential building. Siloxane-based HCPs were tested using common hair styling techniques, including straightening, curling, waving, and oiling. VOC concentrations were measured via proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometry. HCP use drove rapid changes in the chemical composition of the indoor atmosphere. cVMS dominated VOC emissions from HCP use, and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) contributed the most to cVMS emissions. cVMS emission factors (EFs) during hair care routines ranged from 110-1500 mg/person and were influenced by HCP type, styling tools, operation temperatures, and hair length. The high temperature of styling tools and the high surface area of hair enhanced VOC emissions. Increasing the hair straightener temperature from room temperature to 210 °C increased cVMS EFs by 50-310%. Elevated indoor cVMS concentrations can result in substantial indoor-to-outdoor transport of cVMS via ventilation (0.4-6 tons D5/year in the U.S.); thus, hair care routines may augment the abundance of cVMS in the outdoor atmosphere.

Volatile Methylsiloxanes in Complex Samples: Recent Updates on Pretreatment and Analysis Methods

Volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) are massively produced chemicals having applications in industry and home because of their physical and chemical characteristics. They are used in personal care products such as cosmetics, household coatings, cleaners, skin care products, and others. Resultantly, large number of VMSs are discharged into air where they can be subjected to atmospheric migrations over long distances causing toxic and estrogenic effects, persistence, and bioaccumulations. Many institutions have taken measures to control VMSs. They require accurate, rapid, and sensitive pretreatment and analysis methods for diverse samples. Herein, the pretreatment and determination methods of VMSs as reported in recent years are reviewed and summarized. Pretreatments include commonly methods such as membrane-assisted solvent extraction, liquid-liquid extraction, and others, while novel methods are solid phase extraction, solid phase microextraction, diverse liquid phase microextraction and others. Analyses are made through gas chromatography-based methods. In addition, the advantages, and disadvantages of techniques are compared, and the prospects of pretreatment and analysis methods are discussed.

Plant uptake potential and soil persistence of volatile methylsiloxanes in sewage sludge amended soils

Volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) are organosilicon compounds, ubiquitous in modern life. Due to their high use in consumer products, large amounts of these compounds are released into sewer systems, reaching wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Its frequent detection in sewage sludge can be of concern when considering its land application, not only due to potential negative impacts on the environment, but also on human health. In this work, the effects of sewage sludge application on plant development and crop productivity were studied, as well as VMSs persistence in the soil and their plant uptake. This study focused on 7 VMSs (D3, D4, D5, D6, L3, L4 and L5) and consisted of a 12-week greenhouse pot experiment, where sewage sludge-amended soils were used to cultivate Pisum sativum (peas). Sewage sludge application to soils had no negative effects on plant development and was tied to crop productivity improvements. Most of the VMSs were still present in soils at the end of the experiment and plant uptake and translocation of the 4 cyclic VMSs (D3, D4, D5, D6) occurred. VMSs were detected in plant tissues up to 161 ± 27 ng g^-1 dw (samples of stems, leaves and tendrils), but did not exceed 50 ± 19 ng g^-1 dw in peas, which did not translate into a human exposure risk due to ingestion, according to an intake risk assessment. However, soil risk assessments showed that for L5 the hazardous ratios were higher than the threshold value of 1. This means a potential environmental risk despite the low levels of this compound in soils (up to 7.3 ± 0.7 ng g^-1 dw). Considering these results, sewage sludge monitoring plans should be defined for VMSs, namely when its final destination is land application, thus allowing a safer management of this residue, taking advantage of its valorization potential.

Occurrence and Behavior of Methylsiloxanes in Urban Environment in Four Cities of China

Methylsiloxanes (MSs), used in industrial production and personal care products, are released in various environmental media. In this study, we combined monitoring and modeling to investigate the occurrence and behavior of MSs in the urban environment in China. MSs were widely found in the air, water, soil and sediment of four cities in China. The concentrations of MSs in all four environmental media of Zhangjiagang were higher than those in the other three cities (Beijing, Kunming and Lijiang), indicating that the siloxane production plant had a significant impact on the pollution level of MSs in the surrounding environment. The samples with high MS concentrations were all from the sample sites near the outlet of the WWTPs, which showed that the effluent of the WWTPs was the main source of MS pollution in the surrounding environment. The modeling results of the EQC level III model showed that D4 discharged into the environment was mainly distributed in the air, while D5 and D6 were mainly distributed in the sediment. CMSs (D4-D6) discharged into various environmental media could exist in the urban environment for a long time with low temperatures in cities. When the temperature was 0 °C, the residence time of D5 and D6 could be 68.1 days and 243 days in the whole environmental system in Beijing. This study illustrates the importance of CMSs (D4-D6) in low-temperature environments and the potential environmental risks that they may pose.

Differences in Trophic Level, Contaminant Load, and DNA Damage in an Urban and a Remote Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) Breeding Colony in Coastal Norway

Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are opportunistic feeders, resulting in contaminant exposure depending on area and habitat. We compared contaminant concentrations and dietary markers between two herring gull breeding colonies with different distances to extensive human activity and presumed contaminant exposure from the local marine diet. Furthermore, we investigated the integrity of DNA in white blood cells and sensitivity to oxidative stress. We analyzed blood from 15 herring gulls from each colony-the urban Oslofjord near the Norwegian capital Oslo in the temperate region and the remote Hornøya island in northern Norway, on the Barents Sea coast. Based on d¹³ C and d³⁴ S, the dietary sources of urban gulls differed, with some individuals having a marine and others a more terrestrial dietary signal. All remote gulls had a marine dietary signal and higher relative trophic level than the urban marine feeding gulls. Concentrations (mean ± standard deviation [SD]) of most persistent organic pollutants, such as polychlorinated biphenyl ethers (PCBs) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), were higher in urban marine (PCB153 17 ± 17 ng/g wet weight, PFOS 25 ± 21 ng/g wet wt) than urban terrestrial feeders (PCB153 3.7 ± 2.4 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 6.7 ± 10 ng/g wet wt). Despite feeding at a higher trophic level (d¹⁵ N), the remote gulls (PCB153 17 ± 1221 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 19 ± 1421 ng/g wet wt) were similar to the urban marine feeders. Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes were detected in only a few gulls, except for decamethylcyclopentasiloxane in the urban colony, which was found in 12 of 13 gulls. Only hexachlorobenzene was present in higher concentrations in the remote (2.6 ± 0.42 ng/g wet wt) compared with the urban colony (0.34 ± 0.33 ng/g wet wt). Baseline and induced DNA damage (doublestreak breaks) was higher in urban than in remote gulls for both terrestrial and marine feeders. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:2466-2478. © 2022 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

Assessment of distributional characteristics and ecological risks of cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes in sediments from urban rivers in northern Vietnam

In this report, four cVMSs including hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3), octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5), and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) were determined in 85 sediment samples collected from three rivers in northern Vietnam during the period from May to November 2020. Total mean concentrations of cVMSs ranged from 75.4 to 15,000 ng/g-dw. The highest levels of cVMS were found in sediment samples collected from the To Lich River (range, 260-15,000 ng/g-dw; median, 2840 ng/g-dw), followed by the Nhue River (range, 188-6800 ng/g-dw; median, 1370 ng/g-dw), and the Day River (range, 75.4-4600 ng/g-dw; median, 666 ng/g-dw). Among cVMSs, decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) was found at the highest levels in all samples and ranged from 9.00 to 11,000 ng/g-dw. Significant correlations exist between the concentrations of D4/D6 and D5/D6 pairs in river sediment samples. Although the calculated ecological risk was not high, the presence of cVMSs in the sediment raises concerns about the impact on aquatic life because of their long-term accumulation capacity.

Spatial distribution and accumulation profiles of volatile methylsiloxanes in Tokyo Bay, Japan: Mass loadings and historical trends

We investigated mass loading and the spatial distribution of volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) including four cyclic VMSs (D3-D6; cVMSs, the number refers to the number of SiO bonds) and three linear VMSs (L3-L5; lVMSs) in Tokyo Bay, Japan, which is one of the most industrialized, urbanized, and populated areas in the world. Based on the VMS concentrations determined in eight main inflow rivers to the bay, the mass loading of VMSs via inflow rivers and sewage treatment plants located in Tokyo Bay was estimated at 2500 kg/y for total VMSs. Elevated mass loadings of VMSs were found in three of the rivers, inflowing to the inner west of Tokyo Bay. The distribution and deposition characteristics of VMSs were observed depending on the estuarine condition. Estuarine sediments were found to be efficient and effective traps for VMSs and the salting-out effect is one possible mechanism to explain this phenomenon. The overall profiles of D4, D5, and D6 in surface water and sediment were observed across Tokyo Bay; elevated concentrations were identified in the inner west bay with dispersed low concentrations in the outer bay, except for one hotspot of D4 in the sediment, indicating a major emission route of VMSs via inflow rivers. Additionally, the historical pollution profiles of VMSs in Tokyo Bay were reconstructed based on the VMS concentrations determined in a dated sediment core. VMSs were identified throughout the upper 40 cm of the sediment core (representing the mid 1980s); the profiles correspond with the historical use of VMSs in wash-off personal care-products. The noted decreasing trend of D4 might be a reflection of the early 2000s replacement of D4 with D5 in such products. The elevated VMS concentrations in the estuarine sediment raise concerns about the impact on the aquatic environment.

Distribution of cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes in drinking water, tap water, surface water, and wastewater in Hanoi, Vietnam

In this study, four cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes (cVMSs) were determined in drinking water, tap water, surface water, and wastewater samples collected from Hanoi metropolitan area, Vietnam, during August to December 2020 (dry season) by using solid phase extraction combined with gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Highest concentrations of cVMSs in the range of 63-7400 ng/L (mean/median: 1840/1310 ng/L) were found in wastewater samples. A significant difference existed in the concentrations of cVMSs between influent and effluent of a wastewater treatment plant. The sum concentrations of four cVMSs in lake water, tap water, and bottled water samples were in the ranges of 67.0-1100 ng/L (mean/median: 350/282 ng/L), 19.8-350 ng/L (12.6/12.3 ng/L), and 2.31-28.1 ng/L (10.3/8.23 ng/L), respectively. Among the four cVMSs, decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) was found at the highest concentrations in all water samples analyzed. The mean exposure doses of cVMSs calculated for adults and children through the consumption of drinking were 0.409 and 0.412 ng/kg-bw/day, respectively. Human exposure to cVMSs calculated through drinking water consumption was significantly lower than that reported for inhalation.

Review of recent findings on occurrence and fates of siloxanes in environmental compartments

In view of their vast global usage in both consumer products and industrial processes, environmental emission and fates of siloxanes have become concerned issue. This review summarized the research progress, especially in the last decade, on production/consumption data, toxicities, analysis methods, environmental distribution, migration and degradation/transformation of both dimethylsiloxanes and modified siloxanes in atmospheric, aquatic and terrestrial compartments from various areas (especially in China). In spite of their fast degradation (hydrolysis and hydroxylation, etc) in various matrices (except sediment), dimethylsiloxane oligomers have been found in various environmental matrices from many countries due to their constant usage and emission. Moreover, recent literatures have paid attention to behaviors of dimethylsiloxanes in industrial areas, e.g., their higher residual levels compared with residential areas and unique transformed products (such as halogenated products) arose from special industrial production scenarios. Meanwhile, although most prior studies focused on dimethylsiloxanes, identification of modified-siloxanes with other functional groups in environment have been beginning to attract the attention of scientists. Furthermore, related literatures indicated that compared with dimethylsiloxanes, both halogenated-dimethylsiloxanes and modified methylsiloxanes (phenylsiloxanes and trifluoropropylsiloxanes) could have stronger persistence due to their weaker volatilization and degradation, especially in terrestrial matrices.

In-Vial Extraction Large Volume Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry for Analysis of Volatile PFASs on Papers and Textiles

Volatile per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) are found in consumer goods that contribute to human exposure to PFASs. Volatile PFAS precursors transform to perfluorinated carboxylates (PFCAs) and sulfonates (PFSAs) in both humans and the environment. Established methods for volatile PFASs in consumer goods exist, but higher sample throughput and greener sample preparation methods are needed to minimize analyte loss, while maintaining sensitivity. New analytical methodology was developed where a 1.5 × 1.5 cm piece of paper or textile is placed into an autosampler vial with solvent and mass-labeled internal standards, sonicated for 30 min, and directly injected without removal of material from the autosampler vial. Large volume injection (20 μL) gas chromatography mass spectrometry was applied for the quantification for 21 individual PFASs from five classes: fluorotelomer alcohols (FTOHs), fluorinated sulfonamides (N-MeFASA, N-EtFASA), and fluorinated sulfonamidoethanols (N-MeFASE, N-EtFASE). Nontargeted analysis revealed additional C₂-C₇ homologues of N-MeFASE and N-EtFASE, which accounted for 14-18% of the total volatile PFASs on three textiles. Overlooking short-chain (≤C₇) N-MeFASE, N-EtFASE, and long-chained (10:2-14:2) FTOHs on older textiles from the 1980s leads to an underestimation of human and environmental exposure to volatile PFAS.

Volatile methylsiloxanes through wastewater treatment plants - A review of levels and implications

The use of siloxanes has been increasing due to physicochemical properties that are appropriate to be included in the formulations of a large variety of consumer products. This implies a considerable release of these chemicals into the environment, which caught the attention of the scientific community in view of some reports of potential hazardous effects. However, the studies related to the presence and partition of volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are still scarce. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive assessment of the current state of the knowledge concerning the presence of VMSs in WWTPs and also a discussion of the efficiency of the removal technologies available. Levels, fate and behaviour of VMSs in WWTPs were reviewed, covering not only the water and sludge lines during the treatment processes, but also in the surrounding air. Several approaches for the analysis of VMSs within the WWTPs have been developed to cope with the complexity of the mentioned matrices, which led to sometimes challenging protocols. Hence, an overview of methodologies normally used was also included in the present review. Regarding the wastewater samples, VMSs have been detected in influents in concentrations ranging from a few nanograms to a hundred micrograms per litre, in which linear VMSs were usually detected in lower levels than cyclic siloxanes. The levels of VMSs in effluents were lower than those found in influents, suggesting an effective removal from the water line. However, they are commonly accumulating in the sludge, instead of suffering degradation during the treatment process. Therefore, due to the volatile character of VMSs it can be expected that a fraction may be removed in WWTPs by volatilization, thus completing the mass balances to the whole treatment facilities.

Understanding of Cyclic Volatile Methyl Siloxane Fate in a High Latitude Lake Is Constrained by Uncertainty in Organic Carbon-Water Partitioning

Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) are emitted to aquatic environments with wastewater effluents. Here, we evaluate the environmental behavior of three cVMS compounds (octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6)) in a high latitude lake (Storvannet, 70°N 23°E), experiencing intermittent wastewater emissions and high latitude environmental conditions (low temperatures and seasonal ice cover). Measured cVMS concentrations in lake water were below detection limits in both March and June 2014. However, mean concentrations in sediments were 207 ± 30, 3775 ± 973 and 848 ± 211 ng g^-1 organic carbon for D4, D5 and D6, respectively. To rationalize measurements, a fugacity-based model for lakes (QWASI) was parametrized for Storvannet. The key removal process for cVMS from the lake was predicted to be advection due to the low hydraulic retention time of the lake, followed by volatilization. Predicted cVMS behavior was highly sensitive to the partition coefficient between organic carbon and water (K_OC) and its temperature dependence. Predictions indicated lower overall persistence with decreasing temperature due to enhanced partitioning from sediments to water. Inverse modeling to predict steady-state emissions from cVMS concentrations in sediment provided unrealistically high emissions, when evaluated against measured concentrations in sewage. However, high concentrations of cVMS in sediment and low concentrations in water could be explained via a hypothetical dynamic emission scenario consistent with combined sewer overflows. The study illustrates the importance of considering compound-specific behavior of emerging contaminants that may differ from legacy organic contaminants.

Volatile dimethylsiloxanes in market seafood and freshwater fish from the Xúquer River, Spain

Volatile dimethylsiloxanes are a family of synthetic organosilicon-compounds, which have received rising attention because of their widespread use and occurrence in the environment. In the present work, an analytical method based on ultrasound-assisted solid-liquid extraction (USAE) followed by gas chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) has been optimized and applied to assess the presence of eight volatile dimethyl siloxanes (VMS) (hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3), octamethylcyclotetra-siloxane (D4), decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5), dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6), octamethyltrisiloxane (MDM), decamethyltetrasiloxane (MD2M) and dodecamethylpentasiloxane (MD3M) and tetradecamethylhexasiloxane (MD4M)) in fish. The optimized method presented limits of quantification between 0.1 and 1.3 pg/g for linear volatile dimethylsiloxanes (lVMS) and between 13 and 39 pg/g for cyclic volatile dimethylsiloxanes (cVMS) and intraday relative standard deviation (between 1.9 and 7.0%). Recovery yields were between 71 and 92%. 40 fish samples collected in different markets in Barcelona, (Spain), and 16 samples of fish directly collected at the Xúquer River were analysed. cVMS were detected in almost all the river fish samples at concentrations between pg/g and ng/g, with a significant correlation between the fat content and VMS concentrations in fish. In addition, significant higher concentrations were found in market samples, suggesting sources of contamination from their manipulation and storage in indoor environments. Multivariate analyses were applied to the results and the siloxane profiles and analyte correlations are discussed.

Persistent and emerging pollutants in the blood of German adults: Occurrence of dechloranes, polychlorinated naphthalenes, and siloxanes

Human biomonitoring is a valid method to determine exposure, identify time trends, and monitor the effects of restrictions and measures. To characterize the recent exposure of Germans to persistent or emerging substances, we analyzed 4 dechloranes, 33 polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs), and 3 cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) in 42 plasma samples. The samples were collected from blood donors on a random selection. The median values of both Dechlorane Plus (DDC-CO) isomers were 1.23ng/gl.w. for anti- and 0.77ng/gl.w. for syn-DDC-CO. The two other dechloranes were found at lower levels. The median level of ∑-PCNs was 575pg/gl.w. (range: 101-1406pg/gl.w.). On average, the levels of PCNs in plasma were dominated by the congeners CN73, CN66/67, and CN51, which were responsible for approximately 71% of the total amount of PCNs. The cVMS octa-, deca-, and dodecamethylcyclotetrasiloxane could be determined in only some samples, with maximum values of 0.73, 0.48, and 0.79μg/l, respectively. Regarding dechloranes, our results are similar to those from other western countries but slightly lower than results from China. The levels of PCNs in German blood are similar to those observed in the U.S.A., but considerably lower than those reported for Korea. Using a preliminary TEF (toxic equivalency factor), the mean TEQ of the 9 quantifiable PCNs in Germany was low (0.36pg TEQ/gl.w.). The PCN levels in our study group are lower compared to previous studies.

Unexpected occurrence of volatile dimethylsiloxanes in Antarctic soils, vegetation, phytoplankton, and krill

Volatile methyl siloxanes (VMS) are high-production synthetic compounds, ubiquitously found in the environment of source regions. Here, we show for the first time the occurrence of VMS in soils, vegetation, phytoplankton, and krill samples from the Antarctic Peninsula region, which questions previous claims that these compounds are "flyers" and do not significantly reach remote ecosystems. Cyclic VMS are the predominant compounds, with concentrations ranging from the limits of detection to 110 ng/g in soils. Concentrations of cyclic VMS in phytoplankton are negatively correlated with sea surface salinity, indicating a source from ice and snow melting and consistent with snow depositional inputs. After the summer snow melting, VMS accumulate in the Southern Ocean and Antarctic biota. Therefore, once introduced into the marine environment, VMS are eventually trapped by the biological pump and, thus, behave as "single hoppers". Conversely, VMS in soils and vegetation behave as "multiple hoppers" due to their high volatility.

Concentrations and distribution of synthetic musks and siloxanes in sewage sludge of wastewater treatment plants in China

In this study, we assessed the occurrence and distribution patterns of seven synthetic musks (SMs) and 17 siloxanes in anaerobic digested sludge samples collected at the dewatering process from 42 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in China. SMs in sludge from different WWTPs exhibited similar composition profiles, and their total concentrations ranged from 47.3 ng/g to 68.2 μg/g dry weight (dw). On average, galaxolide (HHCB, 63.8%) and tonalide (AHTN, 31.7%) accounted for 95.5% of ∑SMs. The total concentrations of cyclic siloxanes ranged from <LOQ (limit of quantitation) to 36.1 μg/g dw (mean: 1.98 μg/g), while from <LOQ to 13.2 μg/g dw (mean: 0.937 μg/g) for linear siloxanes. On average, cyclic siloxanes accounted for 68% of the total siloxanes. High concentrations and detection frequencies of SMs and siloxanes in sewage sludge indicated that both of them were widely used in China. Among the sludge samples from 42 WWTPs, the concentrations of both ∑SMs and ∑siloxanes had considerable variations. We investigated the influence of potential factors (wastewater and sludge characteristics, the treatment capacity, serving population, and the treatment techniques of WWTPs) on the levels of target compounds in sludge, and found that SMs were significantly (p<0.05) correlated with the total organic carbon (TOC) of the sludge and the serving population of WWTP. There were also strong correlations (p<0.05) between the treatment capacity of WWTPs and cyclic siloxanes, as well as between the TOC of the sludge and linear siloxanes. In addition, the ecological risks of SMs and siloxanes in sewage sludge addressed to land application were assessed, which suggested that there was a low risk to the soil environment.

Analytical methodology for sampling and analysing eight siloxanes and trimethylsilanol in biogas from different wastewater treatment plants in Europe

Siloxanes and trimethylsilanol belong to a family of organic silicone compounds that are currently used extensively in industry. Those that are prone to volatilisation become minor compounds in biogas adversely affecting energetic applications. However, non-standard analytical methodologies are available to analyse biogas-based gaseous matrixes. To this end, different sampling techniques (adsorbent tubes, impingers and tedlar bags) were compared using two different configurations: sampling directly from the biogas source or from a 200 L tedlar bag filled with biogas and homogenised. No significant differences were apparent between the two sampling configurations. The adsorbent tubes performed better than the tedlar bags and impingers, particularly for quantifying low concentrations. A method for the speciation of silicon compounds in biogas was developed using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry working in dual scan/single ion monitoring mode. The optimised conditions could separate and quantify eight siloxane compounds (L2, L3, L4, L5, D3, D4, D5 and D6) and trimethylsilanol within fourteen minutes. Biogas from five waste water treatment plants located in Spain, France and England was sampled and analysed using the developed methodology. The siloxane concentrations in the biogas samples were influenced by the anaerobic digestion temperature, as well as the nature and composition of the sewage inlet. Siloxanes D4 and D5 were the most abundant, ranging in concentration from 1.5 to 10.1 and 10.8 to 124.0 mg Nm(-3), respectively, and exceeding the tolerance limit of most energy conversion systems.