School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China.
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China.
Chemosphere. 2023 Oct;339:139668. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.139668. Epub 2023 Jul 28.
Residues of illicit drugs are frequently detected in wastewater, but data on their removal efficiency by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and the ecological risks to the aquatic environment are lacking in this study. The research evaluates the residues, mass load, drug removal efficiency, and risk assessment of illicit drugs in WWTPs and aquatic environments (lakes) in Xinjiang, China. Initially, the concentration (incidence) and mass load of 10 selected illicit drugs were analyzed through wastewater analysis. The detected substances included methamphetamine (METH), morphine (MOR), 3,4-methylenedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA), methadone (MTD), cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE), ketamine (KET), and codeine (COD), with concentrations ranging from 0.11 ± 0.01 ng/L (methadone) to 48.26 ± 25.05 ng/L (morphine). Notably, morphine (59.74 ± 5.82 g/day) and methamphetamine (41.81 ± 4.91 g/day) contributed significantly to the WWTPs. Next, the drug removal efficiency by different sewage treatment processes was ranked as follows: Anaerobic-Oxic (A/O) combined Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) treatment process > Oxidation ditch treatment process > Anaerobic-Anoxic-Oxic (A2/O) treatment process > Anaerobic-Anoxic-Oxic combined Membrane Bio-Reactor treatment process. Finally, the research reviewed the concentration and toxicity assessments of these substances in the aquatic environment (lakes). The results indicated that Lake1 presented a medium risk level concerning the impact of illicit drugs on the aquatic environment, whereas the other lakes exhibited a low risk level. As a result, it is recommended to conduct long-term monitoring and source analysis of illicit drugs, specifically in Lake1, for further investigation. In conclusion, to enhance the understanding of the effects of illicit drugs on the environment, future research should expand the list of target analytes.
废水中经常检测到非法药物的残留，但本研究缺乏关于废水处理厂 (WWTP) 对其去除效率和对水生环境的生态风险的数据。本研究评估了中国新疆 WWTP 和水生环境（湖泊）中非法药物的残留、质量负荷、药物去除效率和风险评估。首先，通过废水分析对 10 种选定的非法药物的浓度（发生率）和质量负荷进行了分析。检测到的物质包括甲基苯丙胺（METH）、吗啡（MOR）、3,4-亚甲二氧基甲基苯丙胺（MDMA）、美沙酮（MTD）、可卡因（COC）、苯甲酰爱康宁（BE）、氯胺酮（KET）和可待因（COD），浓度范围从 0.11 ± 0.01ng/L（美沙酮）到 48.26 ± 25.05ng/L（吗啡）。值得注意的是，吗啡（59.74 ± 5.82g/天）和甲基苯丙胺（41.81 ± 4.91g/天）对 WWTP 有重要贡献。接下来，不同污水处理工艺的药物去除效率排序如下：厌氧-好氧（A/O）结合膜生物反应器（MBR）处理工艺>氧化沟处理工艺>厌氧-缺氧-好氧（A2/O）处理工艺>厌氧-缺氧-好氧结合膜生物反应器处理工艺。最后，研究回顾了这些物质在水生环境（湖泊）中的浓度和毒性评估。结果表明，对于非法药物对水生环境的影响，Lake1 呈现出中等风险水平，而其他湖泊则呈现出低风险水平。因此，建议对 Lake1 等进行非法药物的长期监测和源分析，以进行进一步调查。总之，为了提高对环境中非法药物影响的认识，未来的研究应扩大目标分析物的清单。
