Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Fate of 15 wastewater originated organic micropollutants in a sand column

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Sustainable Water Resources Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The present investigation was on the assessment of the fate of 15 organic micro-pollutants (OMPs) under abiotic (predominantly adsorption) and biotic (predominantly bio-sorption/bio-degradation) conditions in columns packed with the aquifer material. The motivation behind this work was to predict the fate of the OMPs during subsurface flow/riverbank filtration (RBF). Columns were packed with aquifer material that was taken out from the laterals of a RBF well, M-15 during its cleaning operation. OMPs that were selected for the study were frequently detected in the river Yamuna, M-15 and other nearby RBF wells. The list included pharmaceuticals and their raw materials, endocrine disruptors, OMPs found in hospital wastes, steroid and personal care products structurally belonging to acrylates, neutral organics, amines, phenols and fatty acids. Among different OMPs, dimethyl maleate, benzoic acid, guanine and lomustine were found to be more mobile than estriol, decanoic acid, 1-tridecanol, 1- eicosanol, triclosan, stearic acid and cetyl alcohol. The mobility depended on the polarity of the OMPs. The retardation factor of non-polar OMPs was more than the polar ones. However, the mobility of the OMPs was considerably restricted in the biotic column. Retardation factors (Rd) for OMPs varied widely in adsorption column from 3 to 772. In biosorption column, Rd ranged from 6 to 1692 showing better removal except for benzophenone. Although, non-polar OMPs may take several years to travel to wells through the sandy aquifer, however, earlier occurrence of some of the polar OMPs cannot be ruled out. Additional treatment for OMPs is must before public distribution.

Graphic abstract

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  • Al-Gheethi AAS, Norli I (2014) Biodegradation of pharmaceutical wastes in treated sewage effluents by Bacillus subtilis 1556WTNC. Environ Process 1:459–481

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Banzhaf S, Nӧdler K, Licha T, Krein A, Scheytt T (2012) Redox-sensitivity and mobility of selected pharmaceutical compounds in a low flow column experiment. Sci Total Environ 438:113–121

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benotti MJ, Song R, Wilson D, Snyder SA (2012) Removal of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds through pilot and full-scale riverbank filtration. Water Sci Technol Water Supply 12(1):11–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bertelkamp C, Reungoat J, Cornelissen ER, Singhal N, Reynisson J, Cabo AJ (2014) Sorption and biodegradation of organic micropollutants during river bank filtration: a laboratory column study. Water Res 52:231–241

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bertelkamp C, Schoutteten K, Vanhaecke L, Bussche-Vanden J, Callewaert C, Boon N, Singhal N, Hoek-Van-der JP, Verliefde ARD (2015) A laboratory-scale column study comparing organic micropollutant removal and microbial diversity for two soil types. Sci Total Environ 536:632–638

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boxall ABA (2008) Fate of veterinary medicines applied to soils. In: Kümmerer K (ed) Pharmaceuticals in the environment. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, pp 103–119. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-74664-5_8

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Burke V, Treumann S, Duennbier U, Greskowiak J, Massmann G (2013) Sorption behaviour of 20 wastewater originated micropollutants in groundwater—column experiments with pharmaceutical residues and industrial agents. J Cont Hydrol 154:29–41

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burket SR, Sapozhnikova Y, Zheng JS, Chung SS, Brooks BW (2018) At the intersection of urbanization, water, and food security: determination of select contaminants of emerging concern in mussels and oysters from Hong Kong. J Agric Food Chem 66(20):5009–5017

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calisto V, Esteves VI (2009) Psychiatric pharmaceuticals in the environment. Chemosphere 77(10):1257–1274

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carmody O, Frost R, Xi Y, Kokot S (2007) Surface characterization of selected sorbent materials for common hydrocarbon fuels. Surf Sci 601(9):2066–2076

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dash RR, Mehrotra I, Kumar P, Grischek T (2008) Lake bank filtration at Nainital, India: water-quality evaluation. Hydrol J 16(6):1089–1099

    Google Scholar 

  • Daughton CG, Ternes TA (1999) Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment: agents of subtle change? Environ Health Perspect 107:907–938

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dsikowitzky L, van der Wulp SA, Dwiyitno D, Ariyani F, Hesse KJ, Damar A, Schwarzbauer J (2018) Transport of pollution from the megacity Jakarta into the ocean: insights from organic pollutant mass fluxes along the Ciliwung River. Estuarine Coastal Shelf Sci 215:219–228

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flemming H-C (1995) Sorption sites in biofilms. Water Sci Technol 32(8):27–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grünheid S, Jekel M (2005) Fate of trace organic pollutants during bank filtration and groundwater recharge. In: Proceeding of the 5th international symposium on management of aquifer recharge. ISMAR5, Berlin, Germany

  • Heberer T, Mechlinski A, Fanck B, Knappe A, Massmann G, Pekdeger A, Fritz B (2004) Field studies on the fate and transport of pharmaceutical residues in bank filtration. Ground Water Monit Remediat 24(2):70–77

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herberer T, Feldmann D, Redderse K, Altmann H-J, Zimmermann T (2002) Production of drinking water from highly contaminated surface waters: removal of organic, inorganic and microbial contaminants applying mobile membrane filtration units. Acta Hydroch Hydrob 30(1):24–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kenaga E, Goring CAI (1980) Relationship between water solubility, soil sorption, octanol-water partitioning, and concentration of chemicals in biota. Aquat Toxicol 707(9):78–115

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kieck A, Breuer F, Stumpp C (2019) Column experiments on sorption coefficients and biodegradation rates of selected pharmaceuticals in three aquifer sediments. Water 2020(12):14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim SD, Cho J, Kim IS, Vanderford BJ, Snyder SA (2007) Occurrence and removal of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disruptors in South Korean surface, drinking, and waste waters. Water Res 41(5):1013–1021

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kümmerer K (2009) The presence of pharmaceuticals in the environment due to human use—present knowledge and future challenges. J Environ Manag 90(8):2354–2366

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Madden JC, Enoch SJ, Hewitt M, Cronin MTD (2009) Pharmaceuticals in the environment: good practice in predicting acute ecotoxicological effects. Toxicol Lett 185(2):85–101

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maeng SK, Ameda E, Sharma SK, Grützmacher G, Amy G (2010) Organic micropollutant removal from wastewater effluent-impacted drinking water sources during bank filtration and artificial recharge. Water Res 44(14):4003–4014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maeng SK, Sharma SK, Abel CDT, Magic-Knezev A, Amy GL (2011a) Role of biodegradation in the removal of pharmaceutically active compounds with different bulk organic matter characteristics through managed aquifer recharge: batch and column studies. Water Res 45:4722–4736

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maeng SK, Sharma SK, Lekkerkerker-Teunissen K, Amy GL (2011b) Occurrence and fate of bulk organic matter and pharmaceutically active compounds in managed aquifer recharge: a review. Water Res 45(10):3015–3033

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Massmann G, Dunnbier U, Heberer T, Taute T (2008) Behaviour and redox sensitivity of pharmaceutical residues during bank filtration—investigation of residues of phenazone-type analgesics. Chemosphere 71(8):1476–1485

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagy-Kovács Z, László B, Fleit E, Czichat-Mártonné K, Till G, Börnick H, Grischek T (2018) Behaviour of organic micropollutants during river bank filtration in Budapest, Hungary. Water 10(12):1861

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noman E, Al-Gheethi A, Mohamed RMSR, Talip BA (2019) Myco-remediation of xenobiotic organic compounds for a sustainable environment: a critical review. Top Curr Chem 377:17

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Onesios KM, Bouwer EJ (2012) Biological removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products during laboratory soil aquifer treatment simulation with different primary substrate concentrations. Water Res 46:2365–2375

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson BM, Shackleton M, Furness AJ, Bekele E, Pearce J, Linge KL, Busetti F, Spadek T, Toze S (2011) Behaviour and fate of nine recycled water trace organics during managed aquifer recharge in an aerobic aquifer. J Contam Hydrol 122:53–62

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pradhan S, Kumar P, Mehrotra I (2015) River pollution: assessment of hydro-philic and phobic nature of persistent organic contaminants. J Env Nano Monit Manag 3:47–54

    Google Scholar 

  • Qureshi FM, Badar U, Ahmed N (2001) Biosorption of copper by a bacterial biofilm on a flexible polyvinyl chloride conduit. Appl Environ Microbial 67:4349–4352

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Royal Society of Chemistry (2015) http://www.chemspider.com/Chemical-Structure.4436352.html. Accessed 4 Feb 2015

  • Schaffer M, Börnick H, Nödler K, Licha T, Worch E (2012a) Role of cation exchange processes on the sorption influenced transport of cationic β-blockers in aquifer sediments. Water Res 46:5472–5482

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaffer M, Boxberger N, Börnick H, Licha T, Worch E (2012b) Sorption influenced transport of ionisable pharmaceuticals onto a natural sandy aquifer sediment at different pH. Chemosphere 87:513–520

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt CK, Lange FT, Brauch HJ (2007) Characteristics and evaluation of natural attenuation processes for organic micro pollutant removal during riverbank filtration. http://www.iwaponline.com/ws/00703/0001/007030001.pdf

  • Seders Dietrich LA, McInnis DP, Bolster D, Maurice PA (2013) Effect of polydispersity on natural organic matter transport. Water Res 47:2231–2240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tang Y, Yin M, Yang W, Li H, Zhong Y, Mo L, Liang Y, Ma X, Sun X (2019) Emerging pollutants in water environment: Occurrence, monitoring, fate, and risk assessment. Water Environ Res 91(10):984–991

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trček B, Žigon D, Zidar VK, Auersperger P (2018) The fate of benzotriazole pollutants in an urban oxic intergranular aquifer. Water Res 131:264–273

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ullberg M, Lavonen E, Köhler SJ, Golovko O, Wiberg K (2021) Pilot-scale removal of organic micropollutants and natural organic matter from drinking water using ozonation followed by granular activated carbon. Environ Sci Water Res Technol 7:535–548

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Worch E (2004) Modelling the solute transport under non equilibrium conditions on the basis of mass transfer equations. J Cont Hydrol 68(1–2):97–120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Worch E, Grischek T, Börnick H, Eppinger P (2002) Laboratory tests for simulating attenuation processes of aromatic amines in riverbank filtration. J Hydrol 266:259–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wunder DB, Bosscher VA, Cok RC, Hozalski RM (2011) Sorption of antibiotics to biofilm. Water Res 45:2270–2280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ying GG, Kookana RS, Kolpin DW (2009) Occurrence and removal of pharmaceutically active compounds in sewage treatment plants with different technologies. J Environ Monit 11:1498–1505

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The first author would like to thank the Ministry of Human Resources and Development, Government of India for providing research assistantship. She would also like to acknowledge German Academic Exchange Service for providing an opportunity to work in the research project ‘Nachhaltige Trinkwasserversorgung in Uttarakhand’ (no. 56040107) at the University of Applied Sciences Dresden (HTWD), Dresden, Germany. Financial support to carry out field and lab work provided by European Commission in the form of the research project ‘Saph Pani: Enhancement of natural water systems and treatment methods for safe and sustainable water supply in India' (grant agreement no. 282911) is thankfully acknowledged. Authors would also like to thank Dr Ankush Gupta for fruitful discussions during the preparation of the manuscript.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Pradeep Kumar

    Present address: Department of Civil Engineering, SET, Sharda University, Greater Noida, 201310, India

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, 247667, India

    Soma Mishra, Pradeep Kumar & Indu Mehrotra

Authors
  1. Soma Mishra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Pradeep Kumar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Indu Mehrotra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Soma Mishra.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Mishra, S., Kumar, P. & Mehrotra, I. Fate of 15 wastewater originated organic micropollutants in a sand column. Sustain. Water Resour. Manag. 7, 54 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-021-00535-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-021-00535-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation