The thermal decomposition, amalgamation, and atomic absorption spectrometry (TDA-AAS) method was validated for mercury (Hg) determination in sludge samples. A linear range was obtained from 30 to 200 ng. The TDA-AAS method provides a limit of quantification (LOQ) well below the legal maximum admitted concentration of Hg in sludge samples, which makes it suitable to measure its concentrations at the imposed legal limits, and for monitoring studies of Hg trace levels in sludge samples. Repeatability and within-laboratory reproducibility of the method were good with relative standard deviations lower than 6%. Expanded uncertainty, estimated using a top-down approach with the data obtained from accuracy and precision studies, was 18% for a coverage factor k = 2. Mercury concentration in sludge samples from water treatment plants was below the LOQ (0.33 mg Hg per kg dw) and in wastewater treatment plants was well below the legal limit for their reuse in agriculture (16 mg Hg per kg dw).
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/d0ay01839b | DOI Listing |
Environ Monit Assess
December 2024
Environmental Technology Division, CSIR - National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India, 695019.
The study presents findings from physico-chemical and elemental analyses of fresh faecal matter from a residential apartment in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Samples were taken every 8-10 days over 4 months to account for variability and establish baseline data. The study also examines the influence of dietary patterns and toilet cleaners on faecal sludge properties.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Hazard Mater
December 2024
College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Institute of Carbon Neutrality, State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai 200092, China.
Anaerobic digestion (AD) reject water serves as a significant reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), underscoring the importance of understanding ARGs dynamics during treatment processes. Partial nitritation /anammox (PN/A) has become an increasingly adopted process, while comprehensive investigation on ARG behavior within this system, especially in full-scale, remains limited. This study explores the distribution of ARGs in a full-scale two-stage PN/A system, with an anaerobic/anoxic/oxic (AAO) system for comparison.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWater Res
December 2024
Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China. Electronic address:
Wastewater surveillance programs based at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been widely implemented, becoming a crucial measure for public health. Recently, the scope of monitoring has expanded from influent wastewater to include primary settled solids and activated sludge. The effectiveness of monitoring primary settled solids has been widely validated, but the suitability of activated sludge as a monitoring target remains unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Int
December 2024
CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China; Carbon Neutral Innovation Research Center, Fujian Key Laboratory of Marine Carbon Sequestration, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China. Electronic address:
Despite the emergence of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARBs), how biological inter-trophic interactions, modulated by watershed urbanization, shape the resistome remains unexplored. We collected water samples from the highly urbanized (western: 65 % built land, sewage-affected) and lesser-urbanized (northern: 25 % built land, drinking water source) downstream tributaries of the Jiulong River in southeast China over dry and wet seasons. We utilized metagenomic and amplicon (16S and 18S rDNA) sequencing to investigate the relationships among microeukaryotic algae, consumer protists, bacterial communities, and the resistome.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Int
December 2024
SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; School of Environment, South China Normal University, University Town, Guangzhou, China. Electronic address:
Municipal landfills are hotspot sources of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and are also important habitats of contaminant-degrading bacteria. However, high diversity of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in landfills hinders assessing AMR risks in the affected environment. More concerned, whether there is co-selection or enrichment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and contaminant-degrading bacteria in these extremely polluted environments is far less understood.
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