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Rodrigues-Silva F, Santos CS, Marrero JA, Montes R, Quintana JB, Rodil R, Nunes OC, Starling MCVM, Amorim CC, Gomes AI, Vilar VJP. Continuous UV-C/H 2O 2 and UV-C/Chlorine applied to municipal secondary effluent and nanofiltration retentate: Removal of contaminants of emerging concern, ecotoxicity, and reuse potential. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 361:142355. [PMID: 38768787 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2024] [Revised: 05/14/2024] [Accepted: 05/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
As global effects of water scarcity raise concerns and environmental regulations evolve, contemporary wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) face the challenge of effectively removing a diverse range of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) from municipal effluents. This study focuses on the assessment of advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), specifically UV-C/H2O2 and UV-C/Chlorine, for the removal of 14 target CECs in municipal secondary effluent (MSE, spiked with 10 μg L-1 of each CEC) or in the subsequent MSE nanofiltration retentate (NFR, no spiking). Phototreatments were carried out in continuous mode operation, with a hydraulic retention time of 3.4 min, using a tube-in-tube membrane photoreactor. For both wastewater matrices, UV-C photolysis (3.3 kJ L-1) exhibited high efficacy in removing CECs susceptible to photolysis, although lower treatment performance was observed for NFR. In MSE, adding 10 mg L-1 of H2O2 or Cl2 enhanced treatment efficiency, with UV-C/H2O2 outperforming UV-C/Chlorine. Both UV-C/AOPs eliminated the chronic toxicity of MSE toward Chlorella vulgaris. In the NFR, not only was the degradation of target CECs diminished, but chronic toxicity to C. vulgaris persisted after both UV-C/AOPs, with UV-C/Chlorine increasing toxicity due to potential toxic by-products. Nanofiltration permeate (NFP) exhibited low CECs and microbial content. A single chlorine addition effectively controlled Escherichia coli regrowth for 3 days, proving NFP potential for safe reuse in crop irrigation (<1 CFU/100 mL for E. coli; <1 mg L-1 for free chlorine). These findings provide valuable insights into the applications and limitations of UV-C/H2O2 and UV-C/Chlorine for distinct wastewater treatment scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernando Rodrigues-Silva
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes (GruPOA), Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, The Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Carla S Santos
- Laboratory of Separation and Reaction Engineering-Laboratory of Catalysis and Materials (LSRE-LCM), Faculty of Engineering University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal; Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering (ALiCE), Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal
| | - Joaquín A Marrero
- Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering (ALiCE), Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal; Laboratory for Process and Reaction Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy (LEPABE), Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal
| | - Rosa Montes
- Aquatic One Health Research Center (ARCUS) & Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Chemistry. R. Constantino Candeira S/N, IIAA building. Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - José Benito Quintana
- Aquatic One Health Research Center (ARCUS) & Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Chemistry. R. Constantino Candeira S/N, IIAA building. Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Rosario Rodil
- Aquatic One Health Research Center (ARCUS) & Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Chemistry. R. Constantino Candeira S/N, IIAA building. Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Olga C Nunes
- Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering (ALiCE), Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal; Laboratory for Process and Reaction Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy (LEPABE), Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal
| | - Maria Clara V M Starling
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes (GruPOA), Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, The Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Camila C Amorim
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes (GruPOA), Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, The Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
| | - Ana I Gomes
- Laboratory of Separation and Reaction Engineering-Laboratory of Catalysis and Materials (LSRE-LCM), Faculty of Engineering University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal; Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering (ALiCE), Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal.
| | - Vítor J P Vilar
- Laboratory of Separation and Reaction Engineering-Laboratory of Catalysis and Materials (LSRE-LCM), Faculty of Engineering University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal; Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering (ALiCE), Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal.
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Barka E, Nika MC, Galani A, Mamais D, Thomaidis NS, Malamis S, Noutsopoulos C. Evaluating an integrated nano zero-valent iron column system for emerging contaminants removal from different wastewater matrices - Identification of transformation products. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 352:141425. [PMID: 38340995 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.141425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
The presence of micropollutants in water bodies has become a growing concern due to their persistence, bioaccumulation and potential toxicological effects on aquatic life and humans. In this study, the performance of a column system consisting of zero-valent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) incorporated into a cationic resin and synthesized from green tea extract with the addition of persulfate for the elimination of selected pharmaceuticals and endocrine disruptors from wastewater is evaluated. Ibuprofen, naproxen, diclofenac and ketoprofen were the target pharmaceuticals from non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs group, while bisphenol A was the target endocrine disruptor. In this context, different real wastewater effluent matrices were investigated: anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR), upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor (UASB) after microfiltration, tertiary treated by conventional activated sludge system and saturated vertical constructed wetland followed by a sand filtration unit effluent (hybrid). The transformation products of diclofenac and bisphenol A were also identified. The experimental results indicated that the performance of the R-nFe/PS system towards the removal efficiency of the target compounds was enhanced in the order of effluents: tertiary > AnMBR ≈ hybrid > UASB. More than 70% removal was obtained for almost all target compounds when conventional tertiary effluent was used, while the maximum removal efficiency was about 50% in the case of filtered UASB. As far as we know, this is the first time that nZVI has been assessed in combination with persulfate for the removal of micropollutants in a continuous flow system receiving various types of real wastewater with different matrix characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evridiki Barka
- Sanitary Engineering Laboratory, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15780, Athens, Greece.
| | - Maria Christina Nika
- Analytical Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15784, Athens, Greece.
| | - Andriani Galani
- Sanitary Engineering Laboratory, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15780, Athens, Greece.
| | - Daniel Mamais
- Sanitary Engineering Laboratory, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15780, Athens, Greece.
| | - Nikolaos S Thomaidis
- Analytical Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15784, Athens, Greece.
| | - Simos Malamis
- Sanitary Engineering Laboratory, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15780, Athens, Greece.
| | - Constantinos Noutsopoulos
- Sanitary Engineering Laboratory, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15780, Athens, Greece.
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Manetti M, Tomei MC. Anaerobic removal of contaminants of emerging concern in municipal wastewater: Eco-toxicological risk evaluation and strategic selection of optimal treatment. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 912:168895. [PMID: 38042180 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 12/04/2023]
Abstract
In the last decades, the interest for anaerobic process as a mainstream treatment of municipal wastewater increased due to the development of high-rate anaerobic bioreactors able to achieve removal kinetics comparable to the aerobic ones. Moreover, they have the additional advantages of energy production, nutrient recovery and reduced excess sludge yield, which are interesting features in the frame of sustainability wastewater treatment goals. These appealing factors increased the research demand to evaluate the potential of the anaerobic removal for contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in municipal wastewater. However, despite the growing interest for the subject, literature is still fragmentary and reviews are mainly focused on specific technologies and target compounds or groups of compounds. We propose this review with the main objectives of presenting the state of knowledge, the performances of anaerobic systems for CECs' removal and, more important, to give the reader guidelines for optimal treatment selection. In the first part, a general overview of the investigated technologies at different scale, with a special focus on the recently proposed enhancements, is presented. Collected data are analysed to select the target CECs and the analysis results employed to define the optimal technological solution for their removal. A first novelty element of the paper is the original procedure for contaminant selection consisting of a risk assessment tool for CECs, based on their frequency of detection, concentration and potential for biosorption in wastewater treatment plants. Data of selected target CECs are combined with compound and technology performance data to implement a flowchart tool to evaluate the optimal treatment strategy, which constitute another, even more important, novelty element of this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Manetti
- Water Research Institute, C.N.R., Via Salaria km 29.300, CP 10, 00015 Monterotondo Stazione (Rome), Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Tomei
- Water Research Institute, C.N.R., Via Salaria km 29.300, CP 10, 00015 Monterotondo Stazione (Rome), Italy.
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Silva LDC, Bernardelli JKB, Souza ADO, Lafay CBB, Nagalli A, Passig FH, Kreutz C, Carvalho KQD. Biodegradation and sorption of nutrients and endocrine disruptors in a novel concrete-based substrate in vertical-flow constructed wetlands. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 346:140531. [PMID: 37918529 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.140531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
Removing phosphorus and endocrine-disruptors (EDC) is still challenging for low-cost sewage treatment systems. This study investigated the efficiency of three vertical-flow constructed wetlands (VFCW) vegetated with Eichhornia crassipes onto red clay (CW-RC), autoclaved aerated concrete (CW-AC), and composite from the chemical activation of autoclaved aerated concrete with white cement (CW-AAC) in the removal of organic matter, nutrients, and estrone, 17β-estradiol, and 17α-ethinylestradiol. The novelty aspect of this study is related to selecting these clay and cementitious-based materials in removing endocrine disruptors and nutrients in VFCW. The subsurface VFCW were operated in sequencing-batch mode (cycles of 48-48-72 h), treating synthetic wastewater for 308 days. The operation consisted of Stages I and II, different by adding EDC in Stage II. The presence of EDC increased the competition for dissolved oxygen (DO) and reduced the active sites available for adsorption, diminishing the removal efficiencies of TKN and TAN and total phosphorus in the systems. CW-RC showed a significant increase in COD removal from 65% to 91%, while CW-AC and CW-AAC maintained stable COD removal (84%-82% and 78%-81%, respectively). Overall, the substrates proved effective in removing EDC, with CW-AC and CW-AAC achieving >60% of removal. Bacteria Candidatus Brocadia and Candidatus Jettenia, responsible for carrying out the Anammox process, were identified in assessing the microbial community structure. According to the mass balance analysis, adsorption is the main mechanism for removing TP in CW-AC and CW-AAC, while other losses were predominant in CW-RC. Conversely, for TN removal, the adsorption is more representative in CW-RC, and the different metabolic routes of microorganisms, biofilm assimilation, and partial ammonia volatilization in CW-AC and CW-AAC. The results suggest that the composite AAC is the most suitable material for enhancing the simultaneous removal of organic matter, nutrients, and EDC in VFCW under the evaluated operational conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas de Carvalho Silva
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Civil Engineering Graduate Program, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Jossy Karla Brasil Bernardelli
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Civil Engineering Graduate Program, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Adelania de Oliveira Souza
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Civil Engineering Graduate Program, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Cíntia Boeira Batista Lafay
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Chemistry Academic Department. Via do Conhecimento, s/n - Km 01, Fraron, 85503-390. Pato Branco, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - André Nagalli
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Civil Construction Academic Department, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Fernando Hermes Passig
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Chemistry and Biology Academic Department, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Cristiane Kreutz
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Environmental Academic Department, Rosalina Maria dos Santos St., 1233, 87301-899, Campo Mourão, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Karina Querne de Carvalho
- Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Civil Construction Academic Department, Deputado Heitor de Alencar Furtado St., 5000, Ecoville, 81280-340. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
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Rodrigues-Silva F, V M Starling MC, Amorim CC. Challenges on solar oxidation as post-treatment of municipal wastewater from UASB systems: Treatment efficiency, disinfection and toxicity. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 850:157940. [PMID: 35952890 PMCID: PMC9554792 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2022] [Revised: 08/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The application of solar photo-Fenton as post-treatment of municipal secondary effluents (MSE) in developing tropical countries is the main topic of this review. Alternative technologies such as stabilization ponds and upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) are vastly applied in these countries. However, data related to the application of solar photo-Fenton to improve the quality of effluents from UASB systems are scarce. This review gathered main achievements and limitations associated to the application of solar photo-Fenton at neutral pH and at pilot scale to analyze possible challenges associated to its application as post-treatment of MSE generated by alternative treatments. To this end, the literature review considered studies published in the last decade focusing on CECs removal, toxicity reduction and disinfection via solar photo-Fenton. Physicochemical characteristics of effluents originated after UASB systems alone and followed by a biological post-treatment show significant difference when compared with effluents from conventional activated sludge (CAS) systems. Results obtained for solar photo-Fenton as post-treatment of MSE in developed countries indicate that remaining organic matter and alkalinity present in UASB effluents may pose challenges to the performance of solar advanced oxidation processes (AOPs). This drawback could result in a more toxic effluent. The use of chelating agents such as Fe3+-EDDS to perform solar photo-Fenton at neutral pH was compared to the application of intermittent additions of Fe2+ and both of these strategies were reported as effective to remove CECs from MSE. The latter strategy may be of greater interest in developing countries due to costs associated to complexing agents. In addition, more studies are needed to confirm the efficiency of solar photo-Fenton on the disinfection of effluent from UASB systems to verify reuse possibilities. Finally, future research urges to evaluate the efficiency of solar photo-Fenton at natural pH for the treatment of effluents from UASB systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernando Rodrigues-Silva
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes, Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Maria Clara V M Starling
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes, Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Camila C Amorim
- Research Group on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes, Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil.
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