Routine method for the analysis of microplastics in natural and drinking water by pyrolysis coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

The presence of microplastics (MPs) in water intended for human consumption represents a growing concern due to their ubiquity in the aquatic environments and the potential adverse effects on human health. In this context, validated and standardized analytical methods are required to minimize uncertainties associated with the determination of MPs in water, especially during the drinking water treatment process. In this study, a simple water sampling and extraction procedure and analysis using pyrolysis with gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) was developed to determine 7 types of polymers in water.

Indirect potable water reuse to face drought events in Barcelona city. Setting a monitoring procedure to protect aquatic ecosystems and to ensure a safe drinking water supply.

The climate change and increasing anthropogenic pressures are expected to limit the availability of water resources. Hence, active measures must be planned in vulnerable regions to ensure a sustainable water supply and minimize environmental impacts. A pilot test was carried out in the Llobregat River (NE Spain) aiming to provide a useful procedure to cope with severe droughts through indirect water reuse.

Microplastics from headwaters to tap water: occurrence and removal in a drinking water treatment plant in Barcelona Metropolitan area (Catalonia, NE Spain).

Nowadays, the presence of microplastics in drinking water is of concern worldwide due to potential impacts on human health. This paper has examined the presence of microplastics along the Llobregat river basin (Catalonia, Spain) and studied their behaviour and elimination along the drinking water treatment plant (DWTP). Due to different water composition, different sampling and sample preparation protocols were used to determine microplastics from river water and in the DWTP.

Monitoring the complex occurrence of pesticides in the Llobregat basin, natural and drinking waters in Barcelona metropolitan area (Catalonia, NE Spain) by a validated multi-residue online analytical method.

The European Directive 98/83/CE legislates the presence of pesticides in drinking water, but apart from a few compounds, nothing is said about which pesticides should be monitored. Nevertheless, water companies need to go beyond the accomplishment of the legislation and find out pesticide contamination in all sources of water in order to manage the hazard assessment, and to guarantee safe drinking water to all the population. The aim of this work was to develop an analytical multi-residue method for circa 100 compounds.

Formation of new disinfection by-products of priority substances (Directive 2013/39/UE and Watch List) in drinking water treatment.

The degradation of priority substances (Directive 2013/39/UE and Watch List) by chlorine dioxide (ClO) and the formation of disinfection by-products (DBPs) in a drinking water treatment plant (DWTP) located near Barcelona (NE Spain) were investigated. For the first time, the reactivity with ClO of several compounds frequently found at the entrance of the DWTP such as erythromycin, clarithromycin, chlorpyrifos, and imidacloprid was evaluated in both simulated and real conditions. To identify potential DBPs, experiments were performed at laboratory scale by simulating the operational disinfection conditions in the DWTP.

Simultaneous analysis of 11 haloacetic acids by direct injection-liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry and high resolution mass spectrometry: occurrence and evolution in chlorine-treated water.

A fast, simple, selective, and sensitive method for the analysis of 11 haloacetic acids (HAAs) in chlorine-treated water has been developed. The method is based on liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-QqQ-MS/MS) with direct injection of the aqueous sample. The main novelty of this method over the previously published procedures based on different techniques of mass spectrometry with direct injection is the combination of the simultaneous analysis of three types of HAAs (chlorinated, brominated, and iodinated) with its simplicity and low LODs (0.

Dioxanes and dioxolanes in source waters: Occurrence, odor thresholds and behavior through upgraded conventional and advanced processes in a drinking water treatment plant.

Over the last years, the human probable carcinogen 1,4-dioxane and alkyl-1,3-dioxanes and dioxolanes have been detected and identified as the cause of several pollution episodes in the Llobregat River (Catalonia, NE Spain) and its aquifer. It is an issue of major concern to study these compounds which are released to the environment by resin manufacturing plants' spills and wastewater discharges spread along rivers and reach drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) in order to protect the environment and public health. In this study four seasonal sampling campaigns were carried out over a year to determine the removal efficiency of the dioxanes and dioxolanes at each step of a DWTP including ozonation, granular activated carbon filters, ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis step's treatments.

Multiresidue analysis of 24 Water Framework Directive priority substances by on-line solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry in environmental waters.

This paper reports the development of a fully multiresidue and automated on-line solid phase extraction (SPE) - liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the determination of 24 priority substances (PS) belonging to different classes (pesticides, hormones or pharmaceuticals) included in the Directive 2013/39/UE and the recent Watch List (Decision 2015/495) in water samples (drinking water, surface water, and effluent wastewaters). LC-MS/MS conditions and on-line SPE parameters such as sorbent type, sample and wash volumes were optimized. The developed method is highly sensitive (limits of detection between 0.

Simultaneous determination of the potential carcinogen 1,4-dioxane and malodorous alkyl-1,3-dioxanes and alkyl-1,3-dioxolanes in environmental waters by solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

1,4-dioxane is a synthetic industrial solvent used in various industrial processes, and it is a probable human carcinogen whose presence in the aquatic environment is frequently reported. Alkyl-1,3-dioxanes and alkyl-1,3-dioxolanes are compounds that have been identified as causing several odor episodes in waters over the last years, with the result of downtime of drinking water treatment plants. According to published studies, some of these episodes may be caused either by resins synthesis processes, or by industrial residues added to dehydrated sludge in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in order to increase biogas production efficiency.

Odor Events in Surface and Treated Water: The Case of 1,3-Dioxane Related Compounds.

A study has been carried out to identify the origin of the odorous compounds at trace levels detected in surface waters and in Barcelona's tap water (NE Spain) which caused consumer complaints. The malodorous compounds were 2,5,5-trimethyl-1,3-dioxane (TMD) and 2-ethyl-5,5-dimethyl-1,3-dioxane (2EDD) which impart a distinctive sickening or olive-oil odor to drinking water at low ng/L levels. Flavor profile analysis (FPA) or threshold odor number (TON) were used for organoleptic purposes.

Do cytostatic drugs reach drinking water? The case of mycophenolic acid.

Mycophenolic acid (MPA) has been identified as a new river contaminant according to its wide use and high predicted concentration. The aim of this study was to monitor the impact of MPA in a drinking water treatment plant (DWTP) that collects water downstream Llobregat River (NE Spain) in a highly densified urban area. During a one week survey MPA was recurrently detected in the DWTP intake (17-56.

Analysis of 3-chloro-4-(dichloromethyl)-5-hydroxy-2(5H)-furanone (MX) and its brominated analogues in chlorine-treated water by gas chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (GC-QqQ-MS/MS).

A simple, selective and sensitive method for the analysis of the strong mutagen 3-chloro-4-(dichloromethyl)-5-hydroxy-2(5H)-furanone (MX) and its brominated analogues (BMXs) in chlorine-treated water has been developed. The method is based on gas chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (GC-QqQ-MS/MS), previous liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) of a smaller sample volume compared to other methods and on-line derivatization with a silylation reactive. GC-QqQ-MS/MS has been raised as an alternative easier to perform than gas chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS) for the analysis of MX and BMXs, and it allows to achieve low LODs (0.

Survey of the occurrence of pharmaceuticals in Spanish finished drinking waters.

Fifty samples of finished drinking waters (FDWs) from Spain covering 12 million inhabitants were tested for 53 pharmaceuticals pertaining to 12 different Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification system codes. The studied compounds are a combination of most commonly consumed pharmaceuticals with other barely reported in the literature. Five compounds, azithromycin, clarithromycin, erythromycin, sulfamethoxazole, and ibuprofen were tentatively identified by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in some samples (2 to 15 %), but only ibuprofen and azithromycin could be confirmed when analyzed by liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) with a quadrupole-Orbitrap instrument.

Evaluation of the presence of drugs of abuse in tap waters.

A total of seventy samples of drinking water were tested for non-controlled and illicit drugs. Of these, 43 were from Spanish cities, 15 from seven other European countries, three from Japan and nine from seven different Latin American countries. The most frequently detected compounds were caffeine, nicotine, cotinine, cocaine and its metabolite benzoylecgonine, methadone and its metabolite EDDP.

Multiresidue determination of pesticides in drinking and related waters by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection: interlaboratory study.

As part of a project funded by the European Commission (EC) for the development and evaluation of multiresidue methods for analysis of drinking and related waters, 17 European laboratories evaluated a method using styrene-divinylbenzene copolymer solid-phase extraction followed by liquid chromatography with diode array detection. The main aim of the study was to evaluate whether the method meets the requirements of EC Drinking Water Directive 98/83 in terms of accuracy, precision, and detection limit for 21 pesticides according to the following requirements: limit of detection, < or =0.025 microg/L; accuracy expressed as recovery, between 75 and 125%; and precision expressed as repeatability relative standard deviation of the method, <12.