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Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition
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Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Water Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 September 2026 | Viewed by 3393

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Bingdang Wu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Environment, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, China
Interests: urban water pollution control; coagulation; adsorption; advanced oxidation; ecological restoration; environmental functional materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Yonghai Gan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Nanjing Institute of Environmental Science, Nanjing, China
Interests: water and wastewater treatment; coagulation; flocculation; adsorption; membrane technology; advanced oxidation; ecological restoration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jingjing Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Environment, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, China
Interests: advanced oxidation process; water purification; algal dewatering and resource utilization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Continuous urbanization and industrialization have led to an increase in stormwater runoff, which has resulted in the discharge of heavy metals, nutrients, and organic chemicals. Transporting pollutants into water systems can harm both human health and aquatic species. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the theory and technology of pollutant control in urban water.

The purpose of this Special Issue “Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition” is to review the properties, transport, and fate of pollutants in urban aquatic systems, list and discuss occurrence and treatment efficiencies, develop new ways to control conventional pollutants and micropollutants, i.e., low-impact development and sponge city, and provide a report on the status and research needs of aquatic and multimedia models.

Papers on topics including but not limited to the following are welcome:

  • Theory of fate and transport of pollutants in urban water;
  • Control strategies and theory;
  • Emerging pollutants in water;
  • Low-impact development and sponge city;
  • Physical–chemical remediation;
  • Microbial remediation;
  • Ecological restoration;
  • Emergency restoration method;
  • Climate change and resource recovery;
  • Water quality monitoring.

In this field, research papers, reviews, and short communications will be accepted. Regarding original articles, only studies concerning the evaluation of environmental concentrations or, in general, with a high ecological impact, will be considered. This Special Issue will aim to collect articles that contribute to filling the knowledge gap related to the fate and transport of pollutants in urban water.

Dr. Bingdang Wu
Dr. Yonghai Gan
Dr. Jingjing Yang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • micropollutants
  • urban water
  • remediation
  • low-impact development
  • sponge city
  • constructed wetland

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 3857 KB  
Article
Enhanced Stormwater Treatment via Thermally Modified Steel Slag-Based Bioretention System: Performance Evaluation and Mechanistic Insights
by Lei Yu, Yiming Nie, Wenen Chai, Jiayi Sha, Tianyin Huang and Bingdang Wu
Water 2026, 18(4), 441; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18040441 - 7 Feb 2026
Viewed by 483
Abstract
Conventional bioretention systems face challenges in effectively removing dissolved nutrients, heavy metals, and emerging contaminants from stormwater runoff. This study investigates the application of thermally modified steel slag (700 °C) as a functional bioretention matrix for comprehensive stormwater purification. Three pilot-scale systems were [...] Read more.
Conventional bioretention systems face challenges in effectively removing dissolved nutrients, heavy metals, and emerging contaminants from stormwater runoff. This study investigates the application of thermally modified steel slag (700 °C) as a functional bioretention matrix for comprehensive stormwater purification. Three pilot-scale systems were evaluated over 120 days: Control (biochar-zeolite), Unmodified (raw steel slag-biochar-zeolite), and Modified (thermally modified steel slag-biochar-zeolite). The modified system demonstrated superior and stable removal efficiencies for NH4+-N (95.3 ± 1.3%), TN (85.7 ± 1.8%), TP (90.5 ± 1.5%), Cu2+ (96.1 ± 0.7%), Cr6+ (90.5 ± 1.2%), Pb2+ (92.2 ± 1.1%), enrofloxacin (65.6 ± 2.1%), and norfloxacin (62.6 ± 2.4%). Performance remained robust under varying hydraulic conditions, with high removal maintained across rainfall return periods (0.5–2 years) and antecedent dry periods (2–8 days). Mechanistic investigations revealed synergistic effects: (1) Enhanced physical adsorption through increased surface area (2.338 m2/g) and pore volume (0.109 cm3/g); (2) Chemical precipitation via Ca2+/Fe3+ release at alkaline pH (8.2–8.5); (3) Enriched microbial communities with 35% higher Shannon diversity, particularly Hydrogenophaga (12.3%) for autotrophic denitrification using Fe2+ as electron donor. The modified slag matrix creates a “triple-barrier” removal mechanism combining physical, chemical, and biological processes, offering an efficient solution for multi-pollutant stormwater treatment. This study demonstrates that thermally modified steel slag represents a high-performance, cost-effective bioretention matrix for comprehensive stormwater treatment while promoting industrial byproduct utilization and aligning with circular economy principles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition)
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17 pages, 298 KB  
Article
From Quality to Purpose: Rethinking Groundwater Microbiological Standards for Emergency Urban Water Use
by Pedro Teixeira, Sílvia Costa, João Brandão and Elisabete Valério
Water 2025, 17(22), 3329; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17223329 - 20 Nov 2025
Viewed by 948
Abstract
Climate change and increasing water scarcity are driving the need for resilient and fit-for-purpose urban water management. This study presents a case from Lisbon, Portugal, where twenty-one groundwater sources were evaluated as potential alternative supplies for emergency drinking and non-potable uses. Between 2018 [...] Read more.
Climate change and increasing water scarcity are driving the need for resilient and fit-for-purpose urban water management. This study presents a case from Lisbon, Portugal, where twenty-one groundwater sources were evaluated as potential alternative supplies for emergency drinking and non-potable uses. Between 2018 and 2022, 127 samples were analyzed for microbiological (Escherichia coli, enterococci, fecal coliforms, heterotrophic plate count, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Legionella pneumophila, physicochemical and fungal parameters (filamentous and yeast), alongside with microbial source tracking (MST) to determine contamination origins. Most sites showed exceedances of fecal indicators and heterotrophic bacteria, making water unsuitable for direct consumption without treatment, while fungi were ubiquitous and often above proposed guidance levels, highlighting a major regulatory gap. MST results indicated that human-derived contamination was rare and highly localized. Physicochemical parameters generally met legal thresholds, although occasional nitrate or salinity elevations reflected agricultural or coastal influences. Several sources were considered suitable for irrigation (EF, CC, AB, VF, and BS) whilst a subset met the criteria for potable supply with minimal treatment for risk management (CG, MM, CC, QC, EB, GR, PO, and MS). The findings of this study demonstrate that systematic, multiparametric assessment supports adaptive water allocation and emergency planning, aligning with EU regulations and advancing Sustainable Development Goal 6. The study argues for reconsideration of current microbiological standards, to improve public health protection in urban water reuse and emergency supply strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition)
22 pages, 4399 KB  
Article
Coupled Model Validation and Characterization on Rainfall-Driven Runoff and Non-Point Source Pollution Processes in an Urban Watershed System
by Hantao Wang, Genyu Yuan, Yang Ping, Peng Wei, Fangze Shang, Wei Luo, Zhiqiang Hou, Kairong Lin, Zhenzhou Zhang and Cuijie Feng
Water 2025, 17(21), 3049; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17213049 - 24 Oct 2025
Viewed by 1280
Abstract
Rainfall-driven non-point source (NPS) pollution has become a critical issue for water environment management in urban watershed systems. However, single-model use is limited to fully represent the intricate processes of rainfall-correlated NPS pollution generation and dispersion for effective decision-making. This study develops a [...] Read more.
Rainfall-driven non-point source (NPS) pollution has become a critical issue for water environment management in urban watershed systems. However, single-model use is limited to fully represent the intricate processes of rainfall-correlated NPS pollution generation and dispersion for effective decision-making. This study develops a novel cross-scale, multi-factor coupled model framework to characterize hydrologic and NPS pollution responses to different rainfall events in Shenzhen, China, a representative worldwide metropolis facing challenges from rapid urbanization. The calibrated and validated coupled model achieved remarkable agreements with observed hydrologic (Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency, NSE > 0.81) and water quality (NSE > 0.85) data in different rainfall events and demonstrated high-resolution dynamic changes in flow and pollutant transfer within the studied watershed. In an individual rainfall event, heterogeneous spatial distributions of discharge and pollutant loads were found, highly correlated with land use types. The temporal change pattern and risk of flooding and NPS pollution differed significantly with rainfall intensity, and the increase in the pollutants (mean 322% and 596%, respectively) was much larger than the discharge (207% and 302%, respectively) under intense rainfall conditions. Based on these findings, a decision-support framework was established, featuring land-use-driven spatial prioritization of industrial hotspots, rainfall-intensity-stratified management protocols with event-triggered operational rules, and integrated source-pathway-receiving end intervention strategies. The validated model framework provides quantitative guidance for optimizing infrastructure design parameters, establishing performance-based regulatory standards, and enabling real-time operational decision-making in urban watershed management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition)
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Review

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15 pages, 1059 KB  
Review
Review of Progress on Application of Functional Ceramic Membranes in Maricultural Wastewater Treatment
by Haican Yang, Qinghao Li, Xinglong Wu, Keyan Zhang, Zhipeng Li, Guoyu Zhang, Haiquan Dong, Haili Tan, Yuhong Jia and Binghan Xie
Water 2026, 18(11), 1266; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18111266 - 23 May 2026
Viewed by 263
Abstract
The rapid development of the aquaculture industry has led to increasing discharges of hypersaline and nutrient-enriched maricultural wastewater. Functional ceramic membranes have garnered significant advantages due to their exceptional chemical stability and high tailorability through surface and interface engineering. This research reviewed recent [...] Read more.
The rapid development of the aquaculture industry has led to increasing discharges of hypersaline and nutrient-enriched maricultural wastewater. Functional ceramic membranes have garnered significant advantages due to their exceptional chemical stability and high tailorability through surface and interface engineering. This research reviewed recent advances including the functionalization of ceramic membranes and hybrid systems coupled with advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) for enhancing degradations of nutrients and organics in maricultural wastewater treatment. Catalytic ceramic membranes enhanced removal of micropollutants including antibiotics and heavy metals. This review further systematically classified categorization of established functional ceramic membranes and synthesizes cutting-edge modification approaches for membrane fouling mitigation. Finally, this review evaluated the application prospects, challenges for scaled implementation, and proposed future research directions of functional ceramic membranes in the treatment of maricultural wastewater. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Water Pollution Control: Theory and Technology, 2nd Edition)
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