Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Evaluation of perfluorinated compounds in seven wastewater treatment plants in Beijing urban areas

  • Articles
  • Published:
Science China Chemistry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The presence of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in seven major wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Beijing was investigated in the current study. We detected nine PFCs in all the wastewater and sludge samples. Perfluorooctane acid (PFOA) is the dominant PFCs in influents and effluents, while perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is the major contaminant in sludge. The highest PFC concentration was found in plants at Qinghe and Jiuxianqiao WWTP, while the lowest was found at Fangzhuang WWTP. The total values of PFC range from 2.88 to 176 ng/L in influents, from 5.48 to 498 ng/L in effluents, and from 1.21 to 32.0 ng/g (dry wt) in sludge. The fact that effluents usually contain higher levels of PFCs than influents suggests that additional PFCs are produced during the wastewater treatment processes. However, PFOS decreases in effluents than in influents in 62% of the water samples. This may be due to the adsorption and removal of the sludge during the active process. Perfluoroalkyl carboxylates (PFCAs) were found significantly correlated with each other in the effluents, which may indicate their similar sources or the existence of their potential precursors in the wastewater or treatment processes. The mass flows of PFC discharges into WWTPs are 0.4–51.4 mg/day, and the mass flows of PFCs in effluents exceed those in influents by 127%. Domestic and commercial wastewaters are suggested to be the major sources of PFC pollution in WWTPs in Beijing.

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

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Jahnke A, Huber S, Temme C, Kylin H, Berger U. Development and application of a simplified sampling method for volatile polyfluorinated alkyl substances in indoor and environmental air. J Chromatogr A, 2007, 1164: 1–9

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Loewen M, Wania F, Wang F, Tomy G. Altitudinal transect of atmospheric and aqueous fluorinated organic compounds in Western Canada. Environ Sci Technol, 2008, 42: 2374–2379

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Ju XD, Jin YH, Sasaki K, Saito N. Perfluorinated surfactants in surface, subsurface water and microlayer from Dalian coastal waters in China. Environ Sci Technol, 2008, 42: 3538–3542

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Kim S-K, Kannan K. Perfluorinated Acids in Air, Rain, Snow, Surface runoff, and lakes: Relative importance of pathways to contamination of urban lakes. Environ Sci Technol, 2007, 41: 8328–8334

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Higgins CP, Field JA, Criddle CS, Luthy RG. Quantitative determination of perfluorochemicals in sediments and domestic sludge. Environ Sci Technol, 2005, 39: 3946–3956

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Nakata H, Kannan K, Nasu T, Cho HS, Sinclair E, Takemura A. Perfluorinated contaminants in sediments and aquatic organisms collected from shallow water and tidal flat areas of the Ariake Sea, Japan: Environmental fate of perfluorooctane sulfonate in aquatic ecosystems. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40: 4916–4921

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Kannan K, Corsolini S, Falandysz J, Oehme G, Focardi S, Giesy JP. Perfluorooctanesulfonate and related fluorinated hydrocarbons in marine mammals, fishes, and birds from coasts of the Baltic and the Mediterranean Seas. Environ Sci Technol, 2002, 36: 3210–3216

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Li XM, Yeung LWY, Taniyasu S, Li M, Zhang H, Liu D, Lam PKS, Yamashita N, Dai JY. Perfluorooctanesulfonate and related fluorochemicals in the Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) from China. Environ Sci Technol, 2008, 42: 7078–7083

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Stock NL, Furdui VI, Muir DCG, Mabury SA. Perfluoroalkyl contaminants in the Canadian Arctic: Evidence of atmospheric transport and local contamination. Environ Sci Technol, 2007, 41: 3529–3536

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Tao L, Kannan K, Kajiwara N, Costa MM, Fillmann G, Takahashi S, Tanabe S. Perfluorooctanesulfonate and related fluorochemicals in albatrosses, elephant seals, penguins, and Polar Skuas from the Southern Ocean. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40: 7642–7648

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Kannan K, Corsolini S, Falandysz J, Fillmann G, Kumar KS, Loganathan BG, Mohd MA, Olivero J, Wouwe NV, Yang JH, Aldous KM. Perfluorooctanesulfonate and related fluorochemicals in human blood from several countries. Environ Sci Technol, 2004, 38: 4489–4495

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Houde M, Czub G, Small JM, Backus S, Wang X, Alaee M, Muir DCG. Fractionation and bioaccumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) isomers in a Lake Ontario food web. Environ Sci Technol, 2008, 42: 9397–9403

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. UNEP-POPS-COP.4-SC-4-17. Stockholm Convention/WHO International Programme on Chemical Safety Middle East Workshop to Strengthen Capacity for Chemicals Assessment, 2009, Amman, Jordan

  14. 3M. Executive Summary: Environmental Monitorings Multi-City Study. Water, Sludge, Sediment, POTW Effluent and Landfill Leachate Samples. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC. Docket AR226-1030a, 2001

    Google Scholar 

  15. Boulanger B, Peck AM, Schnoor JL, Hornbuckle KC. Mass budget of perfluorooctane surfactants in Lake Ontario. Environ Sci Technol, 2005, 39: 74–79

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Murakami M, Imamura E, Shinohara H, Kiri K, Muramatsu Y, Harada A, Takada H. Occurrence and sources of perfluorinated surfactants in rivers in Japan. Environ Sci Technol, 2008, 42: 6566–6572

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Schultz MM, Barofsky DF, Field JA. Quantitative determination of fluorinated alkyl substances by large-volume-injection liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry characterization of municipal wastewaters. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40: 289–295

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Schultz MM, Higgins CP, Huset CA, Luthy RG, Barofsky DF, Field JA. Fluorochemical mass flows in a municipal wastewater treatment facility. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40: 7350–7357

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Sinclair E, Kannan K. Mass loading and fate of perfluoroalkyl surfactants in wastewater treatment plants. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40: 1408–1414

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Dinglasan MJA, Ye Y, Edwards EA, Mabury SA. Fluorotelomer alcohol biodegradation yields poly- and perfluorinated acids. Environ Sci Technol, 2004, 38: 2857–2864

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Wang N, Szostek B, Buck RC, Folsom PW, Sulecki LM, Capka V, Berti WR, Gannon JT. Fluorotelomer alcohol biodegradation direct evidence that perfluorinated carbon chains breakdown. Environ Sci Technol, 2005, 39: 7516–7528

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Becker AM, Gerstmann S, Frank H. Perfluorooctane surfactants in waste waters, the major source of river pollution. Chemosphere, 2008, 72: 115–121

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Pan YY, Shi YL, Wang YW, Cai YQ, Jiang GB. Investigation of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in mollusks from coastal waters in the Bohai Sea of China. J Environ Monit, 2010, 12: 508–513

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Loganathan BG, Sajwan KS, Sinclair E, Senthil Kumar K, Kannan K. Perfluoroalkyl sulfonates and perfluorocarboxylates in two wastewater treatment facilities in Kentucky and Georgia. Water Res, 2007, 41: 4611–4620

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Bossi R, Strand J, Sortkjær O, Larsen MM. Perfluoroalkyl compounds in Danish wastewater treatment plants and aquatic environments. Environ Int, 2008, 34: 443–450

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Hoff PT, Van de Vijver K, Van Dongen W, Esmans EL, Blust R, De Coen WM. Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid in bib (Trisopterus luscus) and plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) from the Western Scheldt and the Belgian North Sea: Distribution and biochemical effects. Environ Toxicol Chem, 2003, 22: 608–614

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Nakayama S, Strynar MJ, Helfant L, Egeghy P, Ye X, Lindstrom AB. Perfluorinated compounds in the cape fear drainage basin in North Carolina. Environ Sci Technol, 2007, 41: 5271–5276

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Murakami M, Shinohara H, Takada H. Evaluation of wastewater and street runoff as sources of perfluorinated surfactants (PFSs). Chemosphere, 2009, 74: 487–493

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Boulanger B, Vargo JD, Schnoor JL, Hornbuckle KC. Evaluation of perfluorooctane surfactants in a wastewater treatment system and in a commercial surface protection product. Environ Sci Technol, 2005, 39: 5524–5530

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Ellis DA, Martin JW, De Silva AO, Mabury SA, Hurley MD, Andersen MPS, Wallington TJ. Degradation of fluorotelomer alcohols: A likely atmospheric source of perfluorinated carboxylic acids. Environ Sci Technol, 2004, 38: 3316–3321

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Hagen DF, Belisle J, Johnson JD, Venkateswarlu P. Characterization of fluorinated metabolites by a gas chromatographic-helium microwave plasma detector — the biotransformation of 1h,1h,2h,2h-perfluorodecanol to perfluorooctanoate. Anal Biochem, 1981, 118: 336–343

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Wang N, Szostek B, Folsom PW, Sulecki LM, Capka V, Buck RC, Berti WR, Gannon JT. Aerobic biotransformation of 14C-labeled 8-2 telomer B alcohol by activated sludge from a domestic sewage treatment plant. Environ Sci Technol, 2005, 39: 531–538

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Yu J, Hu JY, Tanaka S, Fujii S. Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in sewage treatment plants. Water Res, 2009, 43: 2399–2408

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology; Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China

    YuanYuan Pan, YaLi Shi, JieMing Wang & YaQi Cai

Authors
  1. YuanYuan Pan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. YaLi Shi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. JieMing Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. YaQi Cai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to YaQi Cai.

Electronic supplementary material

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Pan, Y., Shi, Y., Wang, J. et al. Evaluation of perfluorinated compounds in seven wastewater treatment plants in Beijing urban areas. Sci. China Chem. 54, 552–558 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-010-4093-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-010-4093-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation