Fate Of Steroid Estrogens Research Articles

Occurrence and Fate of Steroid Estrogens in a Chinese Typical Concentrated Dairy Farm and Slurry Irrigated Soil.

Animal husbandry is the second largest source of steroid estrogen (SE) pollutants in the environment, and it is significant to investigate the occurrence and fate of SEs discharged from concentrated animal feeding operations. In this research, with a Chinese typical concentrated dairy farm as the object, the concentrations of SEs (E1, 17α-E2, 17β-E2, E3, and E1-S3) in slurry, lagoon water, and slurry-irrigated soil samples in summer, autumn, and winter were determined. The total concentrations of SEs (mainly E1, 17α-E2, and 17β-E2) in slurry were very high in the range of 263.1-2475.08 ng·L-1. In the lagoon water, the removal efficiencies of the aerobic tank could reach up to 89.53%, with significant fluctuation in different seasons. In the slurry-irrigated soil, the maximum concentrations of SEs in the topsoil and subsoil were 21.54 ng·g-1 to 6.82 g·g-1, respectively. Most of the SEs tended to transport downward and accumulate in the soil accompanied with the complex mutual conversion. Correlations and hierarchical clustering analysis showed a variety of intertransformation among SEs, and the concentrations of SEs were correlated with various physicochemical indexes, such as TN and NO3--N of the slurry, chemical oxygen demand of the lagoon water, and the heavy metals of soil. In addition, 17β-estradiol equivalency assessment and risk quotients indicated that the slurry irrigation and discharge of the lagoon water would cause potential estrogenic risks to the environment. Consequently, reasonable slurry irrigation and lagoon water discharge are essential to efficiently control SE pollution in the environment.

Production, removal and fate of steroid estrogens under the background of total sewage interception in the Erhai Lake Basin, China

ABSTRACT The Erhai Lake basin dominated by agricultural production had a total sewage interception system and was selected as the study area. Survey data showed the total steroid estrogens (SEs) production was 55.97 kg/year (EEQ-E2β) in the whole basin and the main source of SEs was swine breeding (57%). The results indicated that unsatisfactory removal effect of SEs could be related to insufficient influent carbon sources as a result of the total sewage collection. The observed average concentrations of E1, E2α, E2β, E3 and EE2 in rivers/ditches were 25.9 ng/L, 43.5 ng/L, 14.4 ng/L, 49.4 ng/L and 24.5 ng/L, and SEs in ditches were significantly higher than that in rivers, proving the influence of the irrigation tailwater. Above, the annual SEs contribution for Erhai Lake was estimated, and the correlation coefficient of SEs and water quality of inflow rivers/ditches indicated that SEs had a certain correlation with nitrogen.

Sources, mechanisms, and fate of steroid estrogens in wastewater treatment plants: a mini review

Steroid estrogens, such as estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), are natural and synthetic hormones released into the environment through incomplete sewage discharge. This review focuses on the sources of steroid estrogens in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The mechanisms and fate of steroid estrogens throughout the entire wastewater treatment system are also discussed, and relevant information on regulatory aspects is given. Municipal, pharmaceutical industry, and hospitals are the main sources of steroid estrogens that enter WWTPs. A typical WWTP comprises primary, secondary, and tertiary treatment units. Sorption and biodegradation are the main mechanisms for removal of steroid estrogens from WWTPs. The fate of steroid estrogens in WWTPs depends on the types of wastewater treatment systems. Steroid estrogens in the primary treatment unit are removed by sorption onto primary sludge, followed by sorption onto micro-flocs and biodegradation by microbes in the secondary treatment unit. Tertiary treatment employs nitrification, chlorination, or UV disinfection to improve the quality of the secondary effluent. Activated sludge treatment systems for steroid estrogens exhibit a removal efficiency of up to 100%, which is higher than that of the trickling filter treatment system (up to 75%). Moreover, the removal efficiency of advance treatment systems exceeds 90%. Regulatory aspects related to steroid estrogens are established, especially in the European Union. Japan is the only Asian country that implements a screening program and is actively involved in endocrine disruptor testing and assessment. This review improves our understanding of steroid estrogens in WWTPs, proposes main areas to be improved, and provides current knowledge on steroid estrogens in WWTPs for sustainable development.

Occurrence and fate of steroid estrogens in the largest wastewater treatment plant in Beijing, China

Concern over steroid estrogens has increased rapidly in recent years due to their adverse health effects. Effluent discharge from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is the main pollutant source for environmental water. To understand the pollutant level and fate of steroid estrogens in WWTPs, the occurrence of estrone (E1), 17-β-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17-β-ethinylestradiol (EE2) was investigated in the Gaobeidian WWTP in Beijing, China. Water samples from influent as well as effluent from second sedimentation tanks and advanced treatment processes were taken monthly during 2006 to 2007. In influent, steroid estrogen concentrations varied from 11.6 to 1.1 × 10(2) ng/l, 3.7 to 1.4 × 10(2) ng/l, no detection (nd) to 7.6×10(2) ng/l and nd to 3.3 × 10(2) ng/l for E1, E2, E3, and EE2, respectively. Compared with documented values, the higher steroid estrogen concentrations in the WWTP influent may be due to higher population density, higher birthrate, less dilution, and different sampling time. Results revealed that a municipal WWTP with an activated sludge system incorporating anaerobic, anoxic, and aerobic processes could eliminate natural and synthetic estrogens effectively. The mean elimination efficiencies were 83.2%, 96.4%, 98.8%, and 93.0% for E1, E2, E3, and EE2, respectively. The major removal mechanism for natural estrogens and synthetic estrogen EE2 were biodegradation and sorption on the basis of mass balance in water, suspension particles, and sludge. In the WWTP effluent, however, the highest concentrations of E1, E2, E3, and EE2 attained were 74.2, 3.9, 5.1, and 4.6 ng/l, respectively. This is concerning as residual steroid estrogens in WWTP effluent could lead to pollution of the receiving water. Advanced flocculation treatment was applied in the WWTP and transformed the residual estrogen conjugates to free species, which were reduced further by filtration with removal shifting from 32% to 57% for natural estrogen, although no EE2 was removed.

The fate of steroid estrogens: partitioning during wastewater treatment and onto river sediments

The partitioning of steroid estrogens in wastewater treatment and receiving waters is likely to influence their discharge to, and persistence in, the environment. This study investigated the partitioning behaviour of steroid estrogens in both laboratory and field studies. Partitioning onto activated sludge from laboratory-scale Husmann units was rapid with equilibrium achieved after 1 h. Sorption isotherms and Kd values decreased in the order 17α-ethinyl estradiol>17α-estradiol>estrone>estriol without a sorption limit being achieved (1/n>1). Samples from a wastewater treatment works indicated no accumulation of steroid estrogens in solids from primary or secondary biological treatment, however, a range of steroid estrogens were identified in sediment samples from the River Thames. This would indicate that partitioning in the environment may play a role in the long-term fate of estrogens, with an indication that they will be recalcitrant in anaerobic conditions.

Transformation of 17α-Ethinylestradiol during Water Chlorination: Effects of Bromide on Kinetics, Products, and Transformation Pathways

Kinetics, products, and pathways of 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2) transformation during chlorination of water with and without bromide (Br(-)) were studied to evaluate the effect of chlorination on the fate of steroid estrogens. Br(-) can be important for the fate of EE2 during chlorination because of a rapid conversion of Br(-) to bromine by chlorine and a approximately 1000 times higher reactivity of bromine than chlorine toward EE2. Experimental data and model calculations for EE2 chlorination show that 4-chloro EE2 and 2,4-dichloro EE2 are the major initial transformation products in absence of Br(-). With increasing concentration of Br(-), the bromo-analogous of the chloro EE2s becomes significant as additional initial transformation products. Those initial transformation products of EE2 are generally quickly further transformed to products with a destroyed phenolic moiety. Transformation of EE2 during chlorination becomes considerably faster at Br(-) concentrations higher than 0.25 microM (20 microg L(-1)). However, in presence of model dissolved organic matter such as glycine or phenol, the accelerating effect of Br(-) diminishes due to a more rapid consumption of bromine than chlorine by these compounds. A kinetic model was developed which allows to predict EE2 transformation during chlorination of natural waters and wastewaters in presence of Br(-) and low concentrations of ammonia (<10 microM). It could be demonstrated in these systems that bromine produced from Br(-) is mainly responsible for EE2 transformation.

Fate of Steroid Estrogens in Australian Inland and Coastal Wastewater Treatment Plants

ADVERTISEMENT RETURN TO ISSUEPREVAddition/CorrectionNEXTORIGINAL ARTICLEThis notice is a correctionFate of Steroid Estrogens in Australian Inland and Coastal Wastewater Treatment PlantsOlga Braga, George A. Smythe, Andrea I. Schäfer, and Andrew J. FeitzCite this: Environ. Sci. Technol. 2005, 39, 18, 7344Publication Date (Web):August 16, 2005Publication History Published online16 August 2005Published inissue 1 September 2005https://doi.org/10.1021/es0514242Copyright © 2005 American Chemical SocietyRIGHTS & PERMISSIONSArticle Views386Altmetric-Citations4LEARN ABOUT THESE METRICSArticle Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated. Share Add toView InAdd Full Text with ReferenceAdd Description ExportRISCitationCitation and abstractCitation and referencesMore Options Share onFacebookTwitterWechatLinked InReddit PDF (26 KB) Get e-Alerts Get e-Alerts

Assessment of the importance of sorption for steroid estrogens removal during activated sludge treatment

Distribution coefficients ( K d) between water and activated sludge particles ( f oc = 27.7 ± 0.1%) were measured for the steroid estrogens (SE), estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2) and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2) in batch experiments. Experimental concentration levels ranged from environmentally realistic low ng/l to the high μg/l. In this range K ds were independent of their water concentration. The experimentally obtained K ds (with 95% confidence intervals) were 402 ± 126 l/kg, 476 ± 192 l/kg and 584 ± 136 l/kg for E1, E2 and EE2, respectively. K ds were used to estimate the fraction of the total SE concentration that is expected to be sorbed in the activated sludge treatment tanks of a typical STP assuming equilibrium conditions. Assuming a suspended solids concentration of 4 g/l dissolved solids (ds), it was estimated that 61 ± 9%, 66 ± 13% and 70 ± 6% of the total concentration of E1, E2 and EE2, respectively, would be sorbed during activated sludge treatment. The fraction of the SEs that was expected to be sorbed to suspended sludge particles in the effluents from a typical Danish STP was estimated to be only 0.20 ± 0.06%, 0.24 ± 0.10% and 0.29 ± 0.07% of the total concentration of E1, E2 and EE2, respectively, at a suspended solids concentration of 5 mg/l ds. For a typical STP the removal of steroid estrogens with excess sludge was estimated to be only 1.5–1.8% of the total loading if equilibrium conditions exists. Sorption is therefore not important for the fate of SEs in STPs compared to biodegradation.

Fate of Steroid Estrogens in Australian Inland and Coastal Wastewater Treatment Plants

A comparison of estrone (E1), 17beta-estradiol (E2), and 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2) removal at a coastal enhanced primary and inland advanced sewage treatment plant (STP) is reported. The average concentration of estrogens in the raw sewage is similar to that reported in other studies. The sequential batch reactor at the advanced STP removed on average 85% of the incoming E1 and 96% of the E2. Further removal was observed during later microfiltration with the estrogen concentration below detection (<0.1 ng x L(-1)) after reverse osmosis. Some 6% of the influent E1+E2 was removed in the waste activated sludge. The detection of EE2 in the waste activated sludge (0.42 ng x g(-1) solids dry weight), undetectable in the raw sewage, suggests that EE2 is resistant to biological treatment in the sequential batch reactor and is primarily removed due to sorption. Little estrogen removal was observed at the enhanced primary with only 7% of E1 and 0% of E2 removed. Low removal is expected based on the degree of estrogens partitioning in the organic fraction given the relatively low solids concentration, but surprisingly, some 43% of E2, 24% of E1, and 100% of EE2 remains associated with the solids fraction in the treated effluent. Further research is necessary to determine whether the low level of estrogen removal for the coastal treatment plant will adversely affect the receiving marine environment.