Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in industrial and municipal effluents: Concentrations, congener profiles, and partitioning onto particulates and organic carbon

Balasubramani, Aparna; Howell, Nathan; Rifai, Hanadi S.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.12.105

Cited by 30 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…PCB studies in the Houston Ship Channel (southeastern Texas) characterized all 209 PCB congeners and indicated higher concentrations of PCBs in outfall samples collected from wastewater treatment plant effluent (higher in industrial than municipal) compared to effluent samples representative of industrial facilities. The Texas study results were attributed to differences in treatment processes and the presence of suspended particles that PCBs sorbed to (Balasubramani et al, 2014). These cases demonstrate the magnitude of PCB distribution in waters across the U.S. attributed to the long history of industrialization of urban areas, similar to that found in the Basin.…”

Section: Toxic Pollutant Sources By Activitymentioning

confidence: 72%

“…Dissolved organic matter and suspended solids in water attract hydrophobic pollutants (i.e., PCBs, chlorinated pesticides, and some PAHs) but also some metals (iron, copper, mercury, and zinc). (Balasubramani et al, 2014;Bronner & Goss, 2011;Cortes et al, 1991;Hegeman et al, 1995;Jaffé, 1991;Karickhoff et al, 1979;Tülp et al, 2009;Y. Yang et al, 2013;Yu et al, 2017).…”

Section: Other Possible Sources Of Toxic Pollutantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Analysis of Toxic Pollutant Sources and Characteristics Contributing to Water Quality Impairments in the Willamette River Basin

Borgens¹

2019

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I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to my Community Partner and MEM Committee for all the support and guidance I received during the process of developing and completing my thesis. Thank you to Dr. Eugene Foster for providing me the opportunity and freedom to work on a project of great interest to me, providing invaluable mentoring and guidance on project management, and most importantly, keeping me on track to achieving my personal and Project goals. Thank you to Dr. Daniel Sobota for your technical guidance and for reminding me to keep the intent of my research focused on the Project goals and objectives, helping me understand the importance of scientific writing. Thank you to Dr. Yangdong Pan for your kind patience in helping me understand the complexity and joy of environmental statistical analysis. Thank you to Dr. Joseph Maser for the guidance at the start of my graduate program in developing my project and support during MEM lab group discussions. I would also like to express my appreciation to students and faculty of the ESM Department as well as to faculty of the College of Engineering at PSU. The knowledge I received from faculty during challenging and complex classwork, and support from fellow students, have been invaluable. Thank you also to my MEM lab group for their constructive criticism, feedback, and support. I would also like to thank my employer (AECOM) and undergraduate college sorority (Kappa Delta at Oregon State University). The completion of this thesis (and graduate degree) in a three-year period would not have been possible without their financial support. And last but not least, thank you to my family, friends, and colleagues for their emotional support as I managed graduate school while working full time. Cover photo: (Melinda Borgens, July 2018) Clackamas River at river mile 40.1. Oregon DEQ, Stream Location Identification Tool interactive map (DEQ, 2018b).

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Section: Toxic Pollutant Sources By Activitymentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Other Possible Sources Of Toxic Pollutantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Toxic Pollutant Sources and Characteristics Contributing to Water Quality Impairments in the Willamette River Basin

Borgens¹

2019

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“…Recent work continues to demonstrate the value of detailed congener‐level data for identifying contamination sources (Battelle Memorial Institute ; Praipipat et al ) and describing ecological processes (Balasubramani et al ). Site managers may choose to adopt new PCB analytical methods to gain the additional information these methods can provide.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A modeling approach to compare ΣPCB concentrations between congener-specific analyses

Gibson

Kraus

Walters

2016

Integr Environ Assess Manag

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Changes in analytical methods over time pose problems for assessing long-term trends in environmental contamination by PCBs. Congener-specific analyses vary widely in the number and identity of the 209 distinct PCB chemical configurations (congeners) that are quantified, leading to inconsistencies among summed PCB concentrations (ΣPCB) reported by different studies. Here, we present a modeling approach using linear regression to compare ΣPCB concentrations derived from different congener-specific analyses measuring different co-eluting groups. The approach can be used to develop a specific conversion model between any 2 sets of congener-specific analytical data from similar samples (similar matrix and geographic origin). We demonstrate the method by developing a conversion model for an example data set that includes data from 2 different analytical methods, a low resolution method quantifying 119 congeners and a high resolution method quantifying all 209 congeners. We used the model to show that the 119-congener set captured most (93%) of the total PCB concentration (i.e., Σ PCB) in sediment and biological samples. ΣPCB concentrations estimated using the model closely matched measured values (mean relative percent difference = 9.6). General applications of the modeling approach include 1) generating comparable ΣPCB concentrations for samples that were analyzed for different congener sets; and 2) estimating the proportional contribution of different congener sets to ΣPCB. This approach may be especially valuable for enabling comparison of long-term remediation monitoring results even as analytical methods change over time. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2017;13:227-232. Published 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

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“…[7][8][9][10] Although these compounds have been banned by the 2001 Stockholm Convention, recently, 209 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners have been identified in sewage effluents. 11 The PCB congeners named 28, 52, 101, 138, 153 and 180 are known as indicators of environmental pollution due to their highly frequent detection in environmental and biological samples. [12][13][14] PCBs are quantified by gas chromatography and mass spectrometric detection (GC-MS) or electron capture detection (ECD).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Solid-Liquid Extraction with Low Temperature Purification Coupled with Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry for Determination of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Sewage Sludge

Maia¹,

Arcanjo²,

Pinho³

et al. 2016

Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society

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Sewage sludge is the residue produced by the wastewater treatment plants, which can be used as soil conditioner in agriculture. However, the current legislation recommends monitoring chemical contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In this study, solid-liquid extraction with low temperature purification (SLE-LTP) was optimized and validated for monitoring six PCBs. The analyses were performed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Sulfur interference was removed by 1.5 g of copper metal. The extraction was carried out using 6.50 mL isopropanol, 1.50 mL ethyl acetate, 0.1 g NaCl, 0.8 mL water and 15 min into ultrasound. Extraction percentages were between 82 and 94% and relative standard deviation ≤ 16% for low concentrations. Detection and quantification limits were 3.3 and 10 µg kg -1 , respectively. The method was applied to sludge samples collected monthly in the wastewater treatment plant and PCB 52 was detected in six samples. Keywords: PCB, sewage sludge, SLE-LTP, extraction method IntroductionSewage sludge is the solid residue produced by the wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). This residue can be used in agriculture as a fertilizer complement or soil conditioner. The sludge has a high content of organic matter and essential elements to plants such as nitrogen and phosphorus. 1,2 However, sewage sludge may contain chemical contaminants which can be transferred to soil, plants, animals, rivers and groundwater. [3][4][5][6] Among the contaminants, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) stand out for being highly persistent in soil, for their low biodegradability and high lipophilicity and the proven harmful effects on biota and carcinogenicity on humans.7-10 Although these compounds have been banned by the 2001 Stockholm Convention, recently, 209 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners have been identified in sewage effluents.11 The PCB congeners named 28, 52, 101, 138, 153 and 180 are known as indicators of environmental pollution due to their highly frequent detection in environmental and biological samples. [12][13][14] PCBs are quantified by gas chromatography and mass spectrometric detection (GC-MS) or electron capture detection (ECD).15 Traditional techniques such as shaker table, 16 soxhlet extraction 17 and ultrasound 18 are the most used ones for PCB studies on sewage sludge.19 Accelerated solvent extraction, a more sophisticated technique, has also been used. 20 Recently, solid-liquid extraction with low temperature purification (SLE-LTP) was used for quantification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and chlorobenzenes in sewage sludge. 21,22 The principle of SLE-LTP is based on the addition of a homogenous mixture composed of water and organic solvent to the sample. The system is homogenized and cooled to −20 °C to freeze the matrix components and the aqueous phase. The organic phase, typically acetonitrile, remains liquid and extracts the compounds of interest. The Solid-Liquid Extraction with Low Temperature Purification Coupled with Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry ...

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Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in industrial and municipal effluents: Concentrations, congener profiles, and partitioning onto particulates and organic carbon

Cited by 30 publications

References 25 publications

Analysis of Toxic Pollutant Sources and Characteristics Contributing to Water Quality Impairments in the Willamette River Basin

Analysis of Toxic Pollutant Sources and Characteristics Contributing to Water Quality Impairments in the Willamette River Basin

A modeling approach to compare ΣPCB concentrations between congener-specific analyses

Solid-Liquid Extraction with Low Temperature Purification Coupled with Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry for Determination of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Sewage Sludge

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