Analysis of pharmaceuticals in indirect potable reuse systems using solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
A solid-phase extraction (SPE) LC-MS/MS method for 18 commercial drugs in secondary wastewater and product water from water recycling plants using microfiltration (MF) and reverse osmosis (RO) has been developed, optimised and validated. The method incorporates a range of multi-class pharmaceuticals including lipid lowering agents, analgesics, antipyretics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antidepressants, anticoagulants, tranquilizers, cytostatic agents, and antiepileptics. Method limits of quantitation (MLQs) in secondary wastewater ranged from 15 to 250 ng/L, while MLQs in post-RO water ranged from 1 to 25 ng/L. Results from analysis of secondary wastewater from Western Australia are presented, and represent the largest survey of non-antibiotic pharmaceuticals within Australia to date. Analysis of post-RO water from two MF/RO water recycling facilities also demonstrate that MF/RO treatment removes most pharmaceuticals to below the analytical limits of detection, and more importantly, up to seven orders of magnitude below health-based guideline values.
Busetti
Francesco
F
Curtin Water Quality Research Centre, Department of Applied Chemistry, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia. f.busetti@exchange.curtin.edu.au
Linge
Kathryn L
KL
Heitz
Anna
A
D002853:Chromatography, Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D004345:Drug Industry; D007220:Industrial Waste / Q000032:analysis*; D016014:Linear Models; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000032:analysis*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D052616:Solid Phase Extraction / Q000379:methods*; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods
D007220:Industrial Waste; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical