title: Profiles and removal efficiency of polybrominated diphenyl ethers by two different types of sewage treatment work in Hong Kong.
abstract: This study was to investigate removal efficiencies and profiles of 14 polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners by two different types of sewage treatment work (STW) in Hong Kong: Stonecutters Island STW (SCISTW) which uses chemically enhanced primary treatment (CEPT) process and Sha Tin STW (STSTW) which adopts biological treatment. The results indicated that both SCISTW and STSTW had a high total removal efficiency for BDE-47, BDE-99 BDE-209 and total PBDEs (SCISTW: 71.6 ± 15.8, 84.7 ± 12.3, 96.0 ± 2.62 and 87.4 ± 8.02%, respectively; STSTW: 74.8 ± 9.5, 90.7 ± 9.14, 96.2 ± 2.41 and 89.3 ± 2.62%, respectively) and PBDEs were chiefly removed by sorption. However, the profile of PBDEs demonstrated that the relative proportions of BDE-28 and BDE-47 in total PBDEs markedly increased, while that of BDE-209 decreased in the effluent samples of the two sewage treatment works, especially in STSTW. The percentage of BDE-209 in total PBDEs in effluent (49.3%) of SCISTW was 21.2% lower than that in influent (70.5%), and the percentage of BDE-209 in total PBDEs in effluent (13.8%) of STSTW was 34.1% reduced from influent (47.9%). Despite overall removal, the percentage of BDE-47 in total PBDEs in effluent (17.6%) of SCISTW was 6.85% higher than that in influent (10.7%), and the percentage of BDE-47 in total PBDEs in effluent (33.5%) of STSTW was 18.1% increased from influent (16.8%). The increase in proportion of BDE-47 in the effluent might raise environmental and public health concerns. Our study is a first attempt in reporting the PBDE congener profiles in different phases of sewage treatment.
authors.affiliation: Consortium on Health, Environment, Education and Research (CHEER), and Department of Science and Environmental Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China; State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution - Croucher Institute for Environmental Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University and City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Yu Bon
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Man
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution - Croucher Institute for Environmental Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University and City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China; Department of Geography, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Ka Lai
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution - Croucher Institute for Environmental Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University and City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Man
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution and Research Centre for the Oceans and Human Health, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: James Chung Wah
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.affiliation: Drainage Services Department, The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Frankie Tat Kwong
authors.initials: FT
authors.lastname: Lau
authors.affiliation: Drainage Services Department, The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Wing Cheong
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Fung
authors.affiliation: Consortium on Health, Environment, Education and Research (CHEER), and Department of Science and Environmental Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China; State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution - Croucher Institute for Environmental Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University and City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: minghwong@ied.edu.hk.
authors.forename: Ming Hung
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Wong
mesh_terms: D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D006723:Hong Kong; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*; D062065:Wastewater / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D012722:Sewage; D062065:Wastewater; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: PBDEs; Profiles; Sewage; Sewage treatment work: removal efficiency; Sludge