Concentrations, transport, fate, and releases of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in sewage treatment plants in the Pearl River Delta, South China.
Wastewater has proved to be a significant source of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the environment. Seventeen congeners from tri- to deca-BDEs were determined to characterize the occurrence, fate, and transport of PBDEs in two sewage treatment plants in the Pearl River Delta, South China. The PBDE concentrations varied substantially from 13.3 to 2496.4 ng L(-1) in the raw wastewater, depending on the wastewater types and contents of the suspended particulate matter (SPM). The concentrations declined to 0.9 to 4.4 ng L(-1) in the treated effluent and were closely associated with SPM contents. BDE-209 was the predominant congener in the wastewater and sewage sludge. Most of PBDEs might have ended up in the sewage sludge, with <4.7% being discharged with the treated effluent. The results revealed that PBDEs were not significantly degraded by biological treatment and chlorination in the STPs. An annual release of PBDEs was estimated at 2280 kg/year through wastewater from the Pearl River Delta.
Peng
Xianzhi
X
State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China. pengx@gig.ac.cn
Tang
Caiming
C
Yu
Yiyi
Y
Tan
Jianhua
J
Huang
Qiuxin
Q
Wu
Jiangping
J
Chen
Shejun
S
Mai
Bixian
B
D002681:China; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D018508:Water Purification
D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D012722:Sewage