Investigating natural attenuation of pharmaceuticals through unsaturated column tests.

Chemosphere

University of Alcalá, Geology, Geography and Environment Department, Faculty of Sciences, External Campus, Ctra. A-II km 33.6, 28871 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain; IMDEA Water Institute, Avda Punto Com, 2, 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain.

Published: June 2017

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study examines how certain pharmaceuticals like caffeine and acetaminophen break down when filtered through sandy-loamy soil, with some not being detected at all, indicating they pose a low risk to the environment.
  • Researchers observed that other pharmaceuticals, including carbamazepine, sulfamethoxazole, and naproxen, exhibited varying levels of persistence, with carbamazepine proving to be the most resistant to removal.
  • The removal rates of sulfamethoxazole and naproxen were influenced by the concentration of inputs, with higher concentrations resulting in slower breakdown due to reduced microbial activity; two transformation products from sulfamethoxazole and carbamazepine were also found at higher input levels.

Article Abstract

The growing consumption of pharmaceuticals together with their incomplete removal in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) implies the occurrence of these compounds in natural water resources. To investigate the natural attenuation of selected pharmaceuticals (caffeine, acetaminophen, sulfamethoxazole, naproxen and carbamazepine) during vadose zone infiltration, unsaturated column (L 26.67 cm, Ø 7.62 cm) experiments, filled with a sandy-loamy soil, were performed using two input concentrations (100 and 1000 μg L). The software Hydrus 1D was used to simulate experimental data. Caffeine and acetaminophen were never detected at the column outlet indicating a low environmental concern. On the other hand, attenuation of the detected pharmaceuticals could be reproduced by a combination of retardation and removal approaches. Carbamazepine is among the selected contaminants the most persistent. A dependence of removal rates on input concentrations was detected for sulfamethoxazole (μ from 2.78 d to 1.16 d) and naproxen (μ from 1.16 d to 0.63 d) attributed mainly to decreased metabolism of microorganisms when a higher input concentration is applied. Two transformation products (TPs) (N4-Acetylsulfamethoxazole and epoxycarbamazepine) derived from sulfamethoxazole and carbamazepine transformation, respectively, were detected during the experiment with the highest input concentration.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.03.021DOI Listing

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