Affiliation:
1. Center for Environment and Water Resources, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
2. Key Laboratory of Hunan Province for Water Environment and Agriculture Product Safety, Changsha 410083, China
Abstract
The occurrence, distribution, removal, and mass loadings of common organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) in an advanced municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) were comprehensively investigated. The OPFRs were mainly partitioning in the dissolved phase, and the total concentrations ranged from 1364 to 1701 ng/L in influent, 678~1064 in effluent, and 177~470 ng/g dw in residual sludge. Tributoxyethyl phosphate and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate were the abundant compounds in both the dissolved phase and adsorbed phase. The removal frequencies and mechanisms of the OPFRs were highly associated with the properties of compounds. According to the mass balance analysis, 14.9%, 13.0%, and 11.2% of the total OPFR loads were removed in the traditional treatment, tertiary treatment, and to the sludge, respectively. The mass loadings and environmental emissions of the OPFRs were 0.67~291 μg/d/person and 0.57~107 μg/d/person, respectively. The effluent discharged from the WWTP posed ecological risks to the receiving river, which requires being paid more attention.
Funder
Special Fund for Agro-scientific Research in the Public Interest of China
the Hydraulic Science & Technology Project of Hunan Province