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Screening of indicator pharmaceuticals and personal care products in landfill leachates: a case study in Shanghai, China

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Abstract

Identifying potential sources of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the environment is critical for the effective control of PPCP contamination. Landfill leachate is an important source of PPCPs in water; however, it has barely been involved in source apportionment due to the lack of indicator-PPCPs (i-PPCPs) in landfill leachates. This study provides the first systematic framework for identifying i-PPCPs for landfill leachates based on the wide-scope target monitoring of PPCPs. The number of target PPCPs increased from < 20 in previous studies to 68 in the present study. Fifty-nine PPCPs were detected, with median concentrations in leachate samples ranging from below the method quantification limit (MQL) to 41 µg/L, and 19 of them were rarely reported previously. A total of 29 target compounds were determined to be PPCPs of high concern by principal component analysis according to multiple criteria, including occurrence, exposure potential, and ecological effect. Coupled with source-specificity and representativeness analysis, erythromycin, gemfibrozil, and albendazole showed a significant difference in their occurrence in leachate compared to other potential sources (untreated and treated municipal wastewater and livestock wastewater) and correlated with total PPCP concentrations; these were recommended as i-PPCPs for leachates. Indicator screening procedure can be used to develop a sophisticated source apportionment method to identify sources of PPCPs from adjacent landfills.

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Acknowledgements

This research was partly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21777042 and 22076045), the Open Research Fund of State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Ecological Effect and Risk Assessment of Chemicals (China) (No. 2022KFYB03), the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality’s Yangfan Special Project (China) (No. 23YF1408400), the project supported by Shanghai Talent Development Funding (China).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Risk Assessment and Control on Chemical Process, School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China

    Xiping Kan, Xia Yu, Shuguang Lyu, Shuying Sun & Qian Sui

  2. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Wentao Zhao

  3. Advanced Interdisciplinary Institute of Environment and Ecology, Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai, Zhuhai, 519087, China

    Gang Yu

  4. Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Shuguang Lyu & Qian Sui

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  1. Xiping Kan
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  2. Xia Yu
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  3. Wentao Zhao
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  4. Shuguang Lyu
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  5. Shuying Sun
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  6. Gang Yu
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  7. Qian Sui
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Correspondence to Xia Yu or Qian Sui.

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Highlights

• A systematic framework was developed to identify i-PPCPs for landfill leachate.

• The wide-scope target analysis offered a basis for comprehensive i-PPCP screening.

• Source-specificity and representativeness analysis helped to refine i-PPCPs.

• Erythromycin, gemfibrozil and albendazole were identified as i-PPCPs for leachate.

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Kan, X., Yu, X., Zhao, W. et al. Screening of indicator pharmaceuticals and personal care products in landfill leachates: a case study in Shanghai, China. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng. 17, 116 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-023-1716-y

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