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Fate and Ecological Risk of Phthalate Esters in Microplastics of Wastewater in the Wastewater Treatment Plant

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Abstract

Chemicals known as phthalate acid esters, which are present in many products we use every day, were identified as priority pollutants that have negative effects on living things. A source of phthalate acid esters discharged into receiving waterways and the environment is wastewater treatment plant effluent. This study measured the content of phthalate acid esters in wastewater’s liquid portion and microplastics throughout the wastewater treatment process, as well as evaluating the ecological risk of phthalate acid esters. The highest removal efficiency in wastewater, as well as microplastics of wastewater during the treatment process, was found for diethyl phthalate with 82.35% and 94% efficiency, respectively. The obtained data suggest that di-n-butyl phthalate and benzyl butyl phthalate in wastewater effluent have a high environmental risk at all three trophic levels (fish, invertebrates, and algae/cyanobacteria); the risk quotient value of di-n-butyl phthalate for algae/cyanobacteria was over 1000. Consequently, the health of fish and other aquatic life, as well as the local population, may be threatened by wastewater effluent discharged into receiving river (the Karun River).

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article.

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Funding

This article was financially supported by Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Iran (Grant no ETRC-9904).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lung Diseases Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran

    Maryam Hazrati Niari

  2. Environmental Technologies Research Center, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

    Maryam Hazrati Niari, Afshin Takdastan, Aliakbar Babaei, Sahand Jorfi & Mehdi Ahmadi

  3. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Health, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

    Afshin Takdastan, Aliakbar Babaei, Sahand Jorfi & Mehdi Ahmadi

  4. Systems Environmental Health and Energy Research Center, The Persian Gulf Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran

    Sina Dobaradaran

  5. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, Faculty of Health, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran

    Sina Dobaradaran

  6. Instrumental Analytical Chemistry and Centre for Water and Environmental Research (ZWU), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 5, Essen, Germany

    Sina Dobaradaran

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  1. Maryam Hazrati Niari
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Niari, M.H., Takdastan, A., Babaei, A. et al. Fate and Ecological Risk of Phthalate Esters in Microplastics of Wastewater in the Wastewater Treatment Plant. Water Air Soil Pollut 235, 106 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-024-06915-x

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