Water Treatment and Emerging Contaminants

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 8032

Special Issue Editors

School of Civil Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai 519082, China
Interests: wastewater treatment and reuse; emerging contaminants; granular sludge; extracellular polymeric substances; resource recovery
Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
Interests: emerging contaminants; occurrence; environmental fate; transformation pathway; wastewater treatment
School of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China
Interests: environmental remediation; environmental catalysis; reaction mechanism; emerging contaminants; hydrogen; photoelectrochemical catalysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Trace contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs), present in various aquatic ecosystems, are critical issues to water ecology and security. CECs belong to a large variety of chemicals (e.g., pesticides, pharmaceuticals, personal care products (PPCPs), flame retardants, polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), and microplastics), which are typically characterized by their toxicity to humans and the environment. The main sources of CECs include wastewater treatment plants, industries, and hospitals.

Environmental catalysis techniques (including photo- , Fenton-, electro-Fenton, electro-, and photo-electro catalysis) have been widely studied as environmentally friendly methods for the degradation of organic pollutants in water and soil, and are regarded as being a green and effective way of treating wastewater as a result of their low cost, easy operability, and environmental compatibility. To mitigate and remediate CEC pollution and to reduce its impacts on water safety and ecosystem health, contributions to pollutant tracking, treatment measures, modelling development, as well as risk assessment are an immediate priority. This Special Issue of Water aims to focus on water treatment and emerging contaminants, including:

  • The occurrence, monitoring, fate, and risk assessment of CECs in aquatic systems;
  • Technique development for the analysis and detection of different types of CECs;
  • Model and prediction of emerging pollutants in various water systems;
  • Advanced wastewater treatment technologies for micropollutant removal;
  • Environmental catalysis and novel materials for pollutant removal;
  • Impact of emerging pollutants on urban water management.

Dr. Cuijie Feng
Prof. Dr. Qian Sun
Prof. Dr. Qizhao Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • emerging contaminants
  • control measures
  • risk assessment
  • model
  • new materials
  • environmental catalysis
  • water management
  • ecosystem health
  • wastewater treatment

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 2092 KiB  
Article
Influence of Temperature on the Removal Efficiency of Organic Matter and Ammonia from Micro-Polluted Source Water
by Lichao Nengzi, Haitao Li, Dan Ke, Xiaofeng Wu, Lin Meng, Yin Fang and Qiyuan Hu
Water 2023, 15(15), 2695; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15152695 - 26 Jul 2023
Viewed by 942
Abstract
Temperature is an important factor influencing the treatment effect of biological aerated filters (BAFs). In this study, BAFs incorporating biological manganese oxides (BMOs) were used to treat micro-polluted source water containing organic masses and ammonia, and the influence of temperature on the removal [...] Read more.
Temperature is an important factor influencing the treatment effect of biological aerated filters (BAFs). In this study, BAFs incorporating biological manganese oxides (BMOs) were used to treat micro-polluted source water containing organic masses and ammonia, and the influence of temperature on the removal efficiency of the pollutants was investigated. The results showed that after the formation of biogenic manganese oxides (BMOs) in the filter layer, the removal efficiency of CODMn significantly improved. When the water temperature was approximately 24 °C, 16 °C, and 6~8 °C, the removal rates of CODMn, ammonia, and manganese were 60.64, 42.55, and 20.48; 98.40, 95.58, and 85.04; and 98.70, 97.63, and 96.38%, respectively. The influence of water temperature on the removal efficiency of the pollutants was hierarchically structured as follows: CODMn > ammonia > manganese. Analysis of the removal efficiencies of the pollutants along the filter layer showed that CODMn had been eliminated in every filtration layer, and ammonia and manganese were mainly removed in the 0~0.4 m and 0~0.8 m regions of the filter layer, respectively. With a decreasing water temperature, the concentrations of CODMn, ammonia, and manganese along the filter layer increased. The biological CODMn, manganese, and ammonia removal processes were all first-order kinetic reactions. With a decreasing water temperature, the kinetic constant k gradually decreased, and the reaction half-life (t1/2) gradually increased. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Treatment and Emerging Contaminants)
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12 pages, 1824 KiB  
Article
Fate and Spatial–Temporal Variation of 23 Elements at 7 Wastewater Treatment Plants in Southeast City of China
by Shanshan Guo, François Nkinahamira, Bob Adyari, Yiqing Zhang, Anyi Hu and Qian Sun
Water 2023, 15(6), 1226; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15061226 - 21 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1519
Abstract
Rapid urbanization has caused an increase in the discharge of inorganic elements into the environment; however, the knowledge about the fate and annual variations of multiple elements in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is limited. To understand the distribution and change of those elements, [...] Read more.
Rapid urbanization has caused an increase in the discharge of inorganic elements into the environment; however, the knowledge about the fate and annual variations of multiple elements in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is limited. To understand the distribution and change of those elements, we collected and analyzed wastewater and sludge samples from seven WWTPs in a southeast city of China. Results revealed the elemental concentration ranging from 0.06 μg·L−1 (Tl) to 221.90 μg·L−1 (Mn) in the influent, below the detection limit (Er), to 206.40 μg·L−1 (Mn) in the effluent, and 0.58 mg·kg−1 (Tl) to 309.30 mg·kg−1 (Zn) in the sludge. The removal analysis revealed that rare earth elements (REEs) were removed well from the wastewater with removal efficiencies ranging from 88.03% (Tm) to 97.37% (Sm), while heavy metals were poor, with removal efficiencies ranging from 10.71% (Mn) to 89.17% (Pb). The elemental flux analysis highlighted that activated sludge served as a major temporary storage site for 23 elements, while excess sludge acted as the major sink for REEs. Significant spatial variations were detected among different WWTPs. On the contrary, the temporal variations were insignificant based on the monitoring data from 2010 to 2020, indicating the satisfactory implementation of current environmental regulations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Treatment and Emerging Contaminants)
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14 pages, 2951 KiB  
Article
Microplastics Removal from a Plastic Recycling Industrial Wastewater Using Sand Filtration
by Muhammad Umar, Cecilie Singdahl-Larsen and Sissel Brit Ranneklev
Water 2023, 15(5), 896; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15050896 - 26 Feb 2023
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3791
Abstract
The removal of microplastic from wastewater collected from a plastic recycling facility was investigated, using a laboratory scale sand-filter. Wastewater samples were collected before and after the onsite sand-filter, for characterization for different polymer types, sizes, and shapes. A considerable difference in the [...] Read more.
The removal of microplastic from wastewater collected from a plastic recycling facility was investigated, using a laboratory scale sand-filter. Wastewater samples were collected before and after the onsite sand-filter, for characterization for different polymer types, sizes, and shapes. A considerable difference in the characteristics and concentrations of microplastics was observed before and after onsite sand-filtration, demonstrating differences in the source of microplastics and/or potential contamination of the sand-filter operated at the facility. The distribution of different polymers showed polyethylene and polypropylene to be the main microplastics present in the wastewater samples. In the next stage, the samples were passed through a laboratory scale sand-filter column, to investigate the removal of microplastics. The laboratory scale sand-filter showed high efficiency (up to 100%) in removing microplastics of all polymer types, shapes, and sizes, demonstrating the effectiveness of this well-developed, and widely adopted, method for the removal of microplastics from wastewater. As the green shift and circular economy will result in more plastics being recycled, this study demonstrates the need for quantification of microplastic in effluents from plastic recycling facilities. This is important for devising appropriate microplastic removal strategies, and meeting potential discharge regulations that may come into effect in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Treatment and Emerging Contaminants)
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15 pages, 3718 KiB  
Article
Characterizing Aqueous Cd2+ Removal by Plant Biochars from Qinghai–Tibet Plateau
by Wenxuan Li, Xueli Wang, Haizhen Kong and Dan Zhang
Water 2022, 14(24), 4085; https://doi.org/10.3390/w14244085 - 14 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1066
Abstract
Increased anthropogenic activities have caused cadmium pollution in Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, which is harmful to human health. This paper investigated aqueous Cd2+ adsorption using biochar of three typical vegetation types in cold and arid areas of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau: (i) Chinese wolfberry (GBB), [...] Read more.
Increased anthropogenic activities have caused cadmium pollution in Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, which is harmful to human health. This paper investigated aqueous Cd2+ adsorption using biochar of three typical vegetation types in cold and arid areas of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau: (i) Chinese wolfberry (GBB), (ii) highland barley (QBB), and (iii) seabuckthorn (SBB). In order to investigate the effect of pyrolysis temperature on the performance of biochar for cadmium adsorption, three types of biochar were prepared at 350 °C, 500 °C, and 650 °C. The as-prepared biochar was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Thermogravimetric (TG), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Brauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. The results showed that the biochar prepared at 650 °C had the best adsorption capacity. Compared with QBB and SBB, the GBB had a higher Cd2+ adsorption capacity of 19.48 mg/g. Moreover, the effects of biochar dosage, experimental temperature, and biochar preparation temperature on the adsorption of Cd2+ by biochar and the interaction between the factors were investigated using Box–Behnken Design (BBD). As a result, the amount of biochar dosage showed the most obvious influence on Cd2+ adsorption capacity, followed by sample preparation temperature and experimental adsorption temperature. This study paves the way for the design of biochar for Cd2+ adsorption in wastewater. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Treatment and Emerging Contaminants)
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