title: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in a conventional wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) from Shanghai, the Yangtze River Delta: implication for input source and mass loading.
abstract: The concentrations of 19 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) congeners in a conventional wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) were determined to investigate the occurrence and fate of PBDEs during wastewater treatment processes. The level of total PBDEs ranged from 1.68 to 4.64 ng/L in wastewater, with BDE209 accounting for the largest proportion, followed by penta- and octa-BDE congeners. PBDEs were found to mainly exist in the particulate phase of wastewater, which rendered sedimentation efficient for the removal of PBDEs, while the removal efficiencies might be varied for congeners with different Br atom numbers. Because of similar congener profiles, in-house dust was considered to be an important source for PBDEs in the WWTP. According to the mass loading estimation, over 60% of total PBDEs entering the WWTP accumulated in the dewatered sludge, resulting in the total PBDE release of 43.8 kg/year via sewage sludge in Shanghai. And the annual release via effluent was estimated to be 5.5 kg, less but shouldn't be neglected.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Xiang
authors.forename: Xiaohua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Xiang-Zhou
authors.initials: XZ
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D002681:China; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D004391:Dust / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D012722:Sewage / Q000032:analysis; D062065:Wastewater / Q000032:analysis*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D004391:Dust; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D012722:Sewage; D062065:Wastewater; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Distribution; Mass loading; Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs); Source; Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs)