Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
4485951 Water Research 2008 10 Pages PDF
Abstract

This paper investigates the removal of a broad range of pharmaceuticals during nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) applied in a full-scale drinking water treatment plant (DWTP) using groundwater. Pharmaceutical residues detected in groundwater used as feed water in all five sampling campaigns were analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs such as ketoprofen, diclofenac, acetaminophen and propyphenazone, β-blockers sotalol and metoprolol, an antiepileptic drug carbamazepine, the antibiotic sulfamethoxazole, a lipid regulator gemfibrozil and a diuretic hydrochlorothiazide. The highest concentrations in groundwater were recorded for hydrochlorothiazide (58.6–2548 ng L−1), ketoprofen (85%). Deteriorations in retentions on NF and RO membranes were observed for acetaminophen (44.8–73 %), gemfibrozil (50–70 %) and mefenamic acid (30–50%). Furthermore, since several pharmaceutical residues were detected in the brine stream of NF and RO processes at concentrations of several hundreds nanogram per litre, its disposal to a near-by river can represent a possible risk implication of this type of treatment.

Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering Earth and Planetary Sciences Earth-Surface Processes
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