Impact of liming and drying municipal sewage sludge on the amount and availability of 14C-acetyl sulfamethoxazole and 14C-acetaminophen residues. (1st January 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Geng, Chunnu; Bergheaud, Valérie; Garnier, Patricia; Zhu, Yong-Guan; Haudin, Claire-Sophie
• Is Part Of: Water research. Volume 88(2016)
• Page Start: 156
• Page End: 163
• Publication Date: 2016-01-01
• Subjects: Activated sludge -- Sewage sludge treatment -- Sulfonamide antibiotics -- Paracetamol -- Extracellular polymeric substances -- Humic substances; Water -- Pollution -- Research -- Periodicals; 363.7394
• DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2015.09.053
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0043-1354

Abstract

Abstract: Acetyl Sulfamethoxazole (AC-SMX) and acetaminophen (ACM) can be found in municipal sewage sludge, and their content and availability may be influenced by sludge treatments, such as drying and liming. A sludge similarly centrifuged with/without a flocculant was spiked with 14 C-labelled AC-SMX or ACM. Then, it was either limed (20% CaO) or/and dried under different laboratory conditions (1 week at ambient temperature; and 48 h at 40 or 80 °C). The total amount and distribution of the 14 C-compounds among several chemical fractions, based on the sludge floc definition, were assessed at the end of the treatments. All the 14 C-activity brought initially was recovered in the limed and/or dried sludges for AC-SMX but only between 44.4 and 84.9% for ACM, with the highest rate obtained for the limed sludge. Drying at 80 °C or liming increased the percentage of the sludge total organic carbon recovered in the extracts containing soluble extracellular polymeric substances (S-EPS) and the percentage of the total 14 C-activity extracted simultaneously. The non-extractable residues represented only 3.9–11.6% of the total 14 C-activity measured in the treated sludges for AC-SMX and 16.9–21.8% for ACM. The presence of AC-SMX and ACM residues in the treated sludges, after liming and drying under different conditions, was shown using some 14 C-labelled molecules. At this time scale and according to the extraction method selected, most of the 14 C-residues remained soluble and easily extractable for both compounds. This result implies that certain precautions should be taken when storing sludges before being spread on the field. Sludge piles, particularly the limed sludge, should be protected from rain to limit the production of lixiviates, which may contain residues of AC-SMX and ACM. Graphical abstract: Highlights: Part of the 14 C-ACM residues were removed during drying under ambient conditions. Most of the 14 C-pharmaceutical residues were extractable from the treated sludges. Liming and drying at 80 °C increased the availability of AC-SMX and ACM residues in sludges.