Development of a straightforward direct injection UHPLC-MS/MS method for quantification of plastic additive chemicals in roadside retention ponds.

There is growing interest in road pollution that enters surface waters. Additive chemicals used in the manufacture of plastics, including tyre rubber, are mobile pollutants that pose a threat to aquatic life. Therefore, an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was developed to measure 25 plastic additive chemicals in road runoff and water of retention ponds used to manage road runoff.

Septic tanks as a pathway for emerging contaminants to the aquatic environment-Need for alternative rural wastewater treatment?

Septic tanks (STs) as a decentralised approach to community wastewater treatment were investigated as a pathway for emerging contaminants (ECs) entering the aquatic environment. A broad range of ECs were examined in five community STs (population equivalents 217-475) and receiving rivers in Scotland over 12 months. All 68 studied ECs were detected at least once in ST influent or effluent at a broad concentration range from ng L - μg L which can surpass freshwater predicted no-effect concentrations.

Targeted multi-analyte UHPLC-MS/MS methodology for emerging contaminants in septic tank wastewater, sludge and receiving surface water.

Septic tanks treat wastewater of individual houses and small communities (up to 2000 people in Scotland) in rural and semi-urban areas and are understudied sources of surface water contamination. A multi-analyte methodology with solid phase extraction (SPE), ultra-sonic extraction, and direct injection sample preparation methods was developed to analyse a comprehensive range of emerging contaminants (ECs) including prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals and related metabolites, natural and synthetic hormones, and other human wastewater marker compounds in septic tank influent and effluent, river water, suspended solids, and septic tank sludge by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). The number of quantifiable compounds in each matrix varied from 68 in septic tank wastewater to 59 in sludge illustrating its applicability across a range of matrices.

Influence of solids and hydraulic retention times on microbial diversity and removal of estrogens and nonylphenols in a pilot-scale activated sludge plant.

The removal of EDCs in activated sludge processes can be enhanced by increasing solid and hydraulic retention times (SRT and HRT); it has been suggested that the improvement in removal is due to changes in microbial community structure (MCS). Though the influence of SRT and HRT on chemical removal and MCS has been studied in isolation, their synergistic impact on MCS and the removal of estrogens and nonylphenols in activated sludge remains unknown. Hence, we investigated how both parameters influence MCS in activated sludge processes and their ulterior effect on EDC removal.

Occurrence and fate of chiral and achiral drugs in estuarine water - a case study of the Clyde Estuary, Scotland.

There is currently a lack of enantiospecific studies on chiral drugs in estuarine environments. In this study, the occurrence and fate of 20 prescription and illicit drugs, metabolites and associated contaminants were investigated in the Clyde Estuary, Scotland, over a 6 month period. More than half of the drugs were detected in at least 50% of water samples collected ( = 30), with considerable enantiomer enrichment observed for some of the compounds.

Adsorption of a diverse range of pharmaceuticals to polyethylene microplastics in wastewater and their desorption in environmental matrices.

It is proposed that microplastics discharged from wastewater treatment plants act as a vector of pharmaceuticals. In this study, adsorption of pharmaceuticals to polyethylene microplastics was investigated in municipal wastewater. Pharmaceuticals for study were selected to represent different speciation (anionic, cationic, and neutral) and a range of pH dependant octanol-water distribution coefficients (log D).

Polyamide microplastics in wastewater as vectors of cationic pharmaceutical drugs.

Reported here is the first study to investigate the adsorption of pharmaceutical drugs to microplastics in wastewater. Wastewater is an environmental source of microplastics and pharmaceuticals, which is discharged as treated effluent or combined sewer overflows. In this study, adsorption of cationic pharmaceuticals, with a range of octanol-water distribution coefficients, to polyamide (Nylon 12) microplastics was investigated in real wastewater samples.

A review of combined sewer overflows as a source of wastewater-derived emerging contaminants in the environment and their management.

Emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals, illicit drugs and personal care products can be released to the environment in untreated wastewater/stormwater mixtures following storm events. The frequency and intensity of combined sewer overflows (CSOs) has increased in some areas due to increasing urbanisation and climate change. Therefore, this review provides an up-to-date overview on CSOs as an environmental source of emerging contaminants.

Micropollutant fluxes in urban environment - A catchment perspective.

This study provided a holistic understanding of the sources, fate and behaviour of 142 compounds of emerging concern (CECs) throughout a river catchment impacted by 5 major urban areas. Of the incoming 169.3 kg d of CECs entering the WwTWs, 167.

Multi-residue enantioselective determination of emerging drug contaminants in seawater by solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

This study proposes a new multi-residue enantioselective method for the determination of emerging drug contaminants in sea water by solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). To achieve satisfactory enantiomeric separation with a vancomycin stationary phase it was essential to limit sodium chloride in extracted samples to <1 μg per injection. This was achieved through a straightforward SPE method using a 50 mL water wash volume and analyte elution in acetonitrile.

Enantiospecific behaviour of chiral drugs in soil.

The importance of stereochemistry on the behaviour and effects of chiral pharmaceutical and illicit drugs in amended agricultural soils has been over looked to date. Therefore, this study was aimed at investigating the enantiospecific behaviour of a chemically diverse range of chiral drugs including naproxen, ibuprofen, salbutamol, bisoprolol, metoprolol, propranolol, acebutolol, atenolol, chlorpheniramine, amphetamine, fluoxetine and citalopram in soil microcosms. Considerable changes of the enantiomeric composition of ibuprofen, naproxen, atenolol, acebutolol and amphetamine were observed within 56 d.

Multi-residue ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry method for comprehensive multi-class anthropogenic compounds of emerging concern analysis in a catchment-based exposure-driven study.

This paper presents a new multi-residue method for the quantification of more than 142 anthropogenic compounds of emerging concern (CECs) in various environmental matrices. These CECs are from a wide range of major classes including pharmaceuticals, household, industrial and agricultural. This method utilises ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) for analysis of five matrices (three liquid and two solid) from wastewater treatment processes and the surrounding environment.

Stereoisomeric profiling of chiral pharmaceutically active compounds in wastewaters and the receiving environment - A catchment-scale and a laboratory study.

Chiral pharmaceutically active compounds (cPACs) are not currently governed by environmental regulation yet are expected to be in the future. As cPACs can exert stereospecific toxicity in the aquatic environment, it is essential to better understand their stereoselective behaviour here. Therefore, this study aims to provide a new perspective towards comprehensive evaluation of cPACs at a river catchment level, including their stereochemistry as a chemical phenomenon driving fate of chiral molecules in the environment.

Estimation of community-wide exposure to bisphenol A via water fingerprinting.

Molecular epidemiology in human biomonitoring allows for verification of public exposure to chemical substances. Unfortunately, due to logistical difficulties and high cost, it evaluates only small study groups and as a result does not provide comprehensive large scale community-wide exposure data. Wastewater fingerprinting utilizing metabolic biomarkers of exposure that are excreted collectively by studied populations into urine and ultimately into the community's wastewater, provides a timely alternative to traditional approaches.

Enantioselective LC-MS/MS for anthropogenic markers of septic tank discharge.

Households in rural locations utilize septic tanks for wastewater treatment and can cause surface water contamination. A new methodology was developed to help investigate the role septic tanks play in the dissemination of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, personal care products and stimulants in the aqueous environment. Simultaneous analysis of 16 chiral and achiral anthropogenic markers was achieved using a Chirobiotic V2 enantioselective column in polar ionic mode.

Assessment of bisphenol-A in the urban water cycle.

The plasticizer bisphenol-A (BPA) is common to municipal wastewaters and can exert toxicity to exposed organisms in the environment. Here BPA concentration at 5 sewage treatment works (STW) and distribution throughout a river catchment in South West UK were investigated. Sampling sites included influent and effluent wastewater (n = 5), river water (n = 7) and digested sludge (n = 2) which were monitored for 7 consecutive days.

Multi-residue analysis of chiral and achiral trace organic contaminants in soil by accelerated solvent extraction and enantioselective liquid chromatography tandem-mass spectrometry.

Reported here is the first analytical methodology for the enantiomeric determination of chiral trace organic contaminants (TOrCs) in soil. Direct enantioselective separations were achieved on a Chirobiotic V2 column operated in polar ionic mode. Initial screening of vancomycin stationary phases found Chirobiotic V2 better suited for multi-residue separation of chiral TOrCs than Chirobiotic V due to differences in the ligand linkage chemistry.

Biotic phase micropollutant distribution in horizontal sub-surface flow constructed wetlands.

The distribution of micropollutants in biotic phases of horizontal sub-surface flow (HSSF) constructed wetlands was investigated. 88 diverse micropollutants (personal care products, pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs) were monitored for in full-scale HSSF steel slag and gravel beds to assess their fate and behaviour during tertiary wastewater treatment. Of the studied micropollutants 54 were found in receiving and treated wastewaters.

The fate of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), endocrine disrupting contaminants (EDCs), metabolites and illicit drugs in a WWTW and environmental waters.

A large number of emerging contaminants (ECs) are known to persist in surface waters, and create pressure on wastewater treatment works (WWTW) for their effective removal. Although a large database for the levels of these pollutants in water systems exist globally, there is still a lack in the correlation of the levels of these pollutants with possible long-term adverse health effects in wildlife and humans, such as endocrine disruption. The current study detected a total of 55 ECs in WWTW influent surface water, 41 ECs in effluent, and 40 ECs in environmental waters located upstream and downstream of the plant.

Multi-residue determination of micropollutants in Phragmites australis from constructed wetlands using microwave assisted extraction and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

In constructed wetlands micropollutants can be removed from water by phytoremediation. However, micropollutant uptake and metabolism by plants here is poorly understood due to the lack of good analytical approaches. Reported herein is the first methodology developed and validated for the multi-residue determination of 81 micropollutants (pharmaceuticals, personal care products and illicit drugs) in the emergent macrophyte Phragmites australis.

Critical evaluation of monitoring strategy for the multi-residue determination of 90 chiral and achiral micropollutants in effluent wastewater.

It is essential to monitor the release of organic micropollutants from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) for developing environmental risk assessment and assessing compliance with legislative regulation. In this study the impact of sampling strategy on the quantitative determination of micropollutants in effluent wastewater was investigated. An extended list of 90 chiral and achiral micropollutants representing a broad range of biological and physico-chemical properties were studied simultaneously for the first time.

Enantiomeric Profiling of Chiral Pharmacologically Active Compounds in the Environment with the Usage of Chiral Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Tandem Mass Spectrometry.

The issue of drug chirality is attracting increasing attention among the scientific community. The phenomenon of chirality has been overlooked in environmental research (environmental occurrence, fate and toxicity) despite the great impact that chiral pharmacologically active compounds (cPACs) can provoke on ecosystems. The aim of this paper is to introduce the topic of chirality and its implications in environmental contamination.

In Situ Calibration of a New Chemcatcher Configuration for the Determination of Polar Organic Micropollutants in Wastewater Effluent.

Passive sampling is proposed as an alternative to traditional grab- and composite-sampling modes. Investigated here is a novel passive sampler configuration, the Chemcatcher containing an Atlantic HLB disk covered by a 0.2 μm poly(ether sulfone) membrane, for monitoring polar organic micropollutants (personal care products, pharmaceuticals, and illicit drugs) in wastewater effluent.

New Framework To Diagnose the Direct Disposal of Prescribed Drugs in Wastewater - A Case Study of the Antidepressant Fluoxetine.

Intentional or accidental release (direct disposal) of high loads of unused pharmaceuticals into wastewater can go unnoticed. Here, direct disposal of a pharmaceutical drug via the sewer network was identified for the first time using wastewater analysis. An irregularly high load of the antidepressant fluoxetine in raw wastewater (10.