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• Rúa-Gómez, P
• Guedez, A
• Ania, C
• Püttmann, W
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• Guedez, A
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• Guedez, A
• Ania, C
• Püttmann, W

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Water 2012, 4(3), 650-669; doi:10.3390/w4030650

Article

Upgrading of Wastewater Treatment Plants Through the Use of Unconventional Treatment Technologies: Removal of Lidocaine, Tramadol, Venlafaxine and Their Metabolites

Paola C. Rúa-Gómez ^1,* , Arlen A. Guedez ¹ , Conchi O. Ania ²  and Wilhelm Püttmann ¹

¹ Institute of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, Department of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, J.W. Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Altenhöferallee 1, Frankfurt am Main 60438, Germany ² Instituto Nacional del Carbon (INCAR-CSIC), Apartado 73, Oviedo 33080, Spain

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 1 June 2012; in revised form: 15 August 2012 / Accepted: 3 September 2012 / Published: 11 September 2012

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Wastewater Treatment and Pollution Control)

Download PDF Full-Text [439 KB, uploaded 11 September 2012 10:46 CEST]

Abstract: The occurrence and removal efficiencies of the pharmaceuticals lidocaine (LDC), tramadol (TRA) and venlafaxine (VEN), and their major active metabolites monoethylglycinexylidide (MEGX), O-desmethyltramadol (ODT) and O-desmethylvenlafaxine (ODV) were studied at four wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) equipped with activated sludge treatment technologies. In parallel to activated sludge treatment, the removal efficiency of the compounds in pilot- and full-scale projects installed at the WWTPs was investigated. Within these projects two different treatment methods were tested: adsorption onto powdered/granulated activated carbon (PAC/GAC) and ozonation. The metabolite MEGX was not detected in any sample. The concentrations of the target analytes in wastewater effluents resulting from activated sludge treatment ranged from 55 to 183 (LDC), 88 to 416 (TRA), 50 to 245 (ODT), 22 to 176 (VEN) and 77 to 520 ng L⁻¹ (ODV). In the pilot project with subsequent treatment with PAC/GAC, the mean concentrations of the analytes were between

Keywords: lidocaine; tramadol; venlafaxine; metabolites; ozonation; activated carbon adsorption

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