Survey of polar organic micropollutants in German tap waters.

Tap waters from 91 locations across Germany were analysed for organic persistent and mobile (PM) substances, covering a range of sources and substance classes, e.g. the sweetener saccharine (SAC), antibiotic drug sulfamethoxazole (SMX), pharmaceutical transformation product valsartanic acid (VSA), industrial chemicals as cyanoguanidine (CG) or ultra-short-chain PFAS trifluoroacetic acid and trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TFA and TFMSA).

Biodegradation pathways and products of tire-related phenylenediamines and phenylenediamine quinones in solution - a laboratory study.

Para-phenylenediamines (PPDs) are antioxidants added to tires to protect the rubber. They are released from tire and road wear particles (TRWP) but the extent of their aerobic microbial degradation and the transformation products (TPs) formed are not known. Therefore, aerobic microbial degradation of seven tire-related PPDs, parent compounds as well as known transformation products, was studied for up to 28 days.

Uptake of chemicals from tire wear particles into aquatic organisms - search for biomarkers of exposure in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis).

Little is known about the exposure of aquatic biota to tire and road wear particles (TRWP) washed away from roads. Mussels were exposed for 7 days to model TRWP (m-TRWP), produced by milling tire tread particles with pure sand, and analyzed for 21 tire-related compounds by liquid chromatography-high resolution-mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS). Upon exposure to 0.

Retrospective Identification of Novel and Legacy Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in German Archived Fish Livers Using a Combined High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry Approach.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent environmental pollutants with many unknown variants, posing potential ecosystem and human health risks. To comprehensively assess PFAS contamination and overcome the challenge of unknown PFAS identification, we combined Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) and liquid chromatography─quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF MS) to identify novel and PFAS in archived bream liver samples collected in Germany between 1996 and 2020. By leveraging the ultrahigh resolution and mass accuracy of FT-ICR MS, we generated a mass list for cross-comparison with common precursor ion features from LC-QTOF MS.

Settling Velocities of Tire and Road Wear Particles: Analyzing Finely Graded Density Fractions of Samples from a Road Simulator and a Highway Tunnel.

The terminal settling velocity is considered the most critical parameter determining the transport of tire and road wear particles (TRWP) in aquatic environments. Nonetheless, no respective empirical data has been reported so far. In this study, particle samples from a road simulator and a highway tunnel were investigated with a validated imaging method.

Long term trends of legacy per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), their substitutes and precursors in archived wildlife samples from the German Environmental Specimen Bank.

Systematic, up-to-date environmental monitoring data and temporal trends on PFAS are urgently needed to inform about their exposure from a rapidly changing PFAS market. The present study analysed long-term PFAS trends in three wildlife species in Germany: herring gull (Larus argentatus, eggs, 1988-2020) in a coastal food web, zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha, 1995-2018) as a filter feeder and common bream (Abramis brama, livers, 1996-2020) as a higher order consumer, the latter two in mainly benthic food webs. Retrospective trend analyses of 58 PFAS were carried out in about 60 archived samples of the German Environmental Specimen Bank (ESB) and complemented by the total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assay to quantify the formation potential from precursors of perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs) over time.

Plant Uptake of Persistent and Mobile Chemicals in Rocket ()─A Greenhouse Study on Agricultural Wastewater Reuse.

With increasing water stress, agricultural wastewater reuse is becoming more prevalent worldwide. In this context, persistent and mobile (PM) chemicals may be especially relevant, yet data on their uptake by plants are still scarce. This study investigates the uptake of 61 PM chemicals by and distribution in rocket () in pot experiments from spiked water and treated municipal wastewater.

Long term biodegradation study on tire and road wear particles and chemicals thereof.

Tire and road wear particles (TRWP) are continuously formed by automotive traffic on roads. This study reports effects of long-term degradation over 2 years in water and in soil in the presence of microbes on TRWP and on cryo-milled tire tread (CMTT). Degradation in water had little measurable effect on physical properties of TRWP; a shift towards larger particle sizes was mainly due to the mechanical stress from stirring.

Particle-bound mercury in Saharan dust-loaded particulate matter in Cabo Verde.

Particle-bound mercury (PBM) concentrations in particulate matter (PM), PM10 and PM2.5, were investigated during dust and non-dust events at urban and rural sites in Cabo Verde, Africa. During dust events, PBM averaged 35.

Molecular-Level Insights into Recalcitrant Ozonation Products from Effluent Organic Matter.

Wastewater ozonation is commonly employed to enhance the subsequent biodegradation of effluent organic matter (EfOM) and contaminants of concern. However, there is evidence suggesting the formation of recalcitrant ozonation products (OPs) from EfOM. To investigate the biodegradability of OPs we conducted batch biodegradation experiments using wastewater effluent ozonated with mass-labeled (O) ozone.

Calibration of a Tube Passive Sampler in Wastewater Effluent with Adjustable Volumetric Flow for the Assessment of Micropollutants with Fluctuating Concentrations.

We present a versatile flow-through tube passive sampling device (TPS), with a controllable feedwater volumetric flow, that can be calibrated against the feedwater load of organic micropollutants (OMPs). This semipassive approach has the advantage of a determinable water load feeding the sampling device. The design of the TPS allows for new sampling scenarios in closed piping while providing stable and controlled sampling conditions.

Quantification and occurrence of 39 tire-related chemicals in urban and rural aerosol from Saxony, Germany.

Tire and road wear particles (TRWP) are a major contributor to non-exhaust traffic emissions, but their contribution to and dynamics in urban aerosol is not well known. Urban particulate matter (PM) in the size fraction below 10 µm (PM) from two German cities was collected over 2 weeks and analysed for 39 tire-related chemicals, including amines, guanidines, ureas, benzothiazoles, p-phenylenediamines, quinolines and several transformation products (TPs). Of these, 37 compounds were determined in PM at median concentrations of 212 pg/m for 1,3-diphenylguanidine (DPG) and 132 pg/m for benzothiazole-2-sulfonic acid (BTSA); 10 of the compounds have not been reported in urban aerosol before.

Oxidative purification of microplastics in riverine suspended matter samples - Solving the challenge of plant debris removal for microplastic analysis.

Riverine suspended matter (river-SPM) contains large amounts of natural particles consisting of cellulose and lignin, posing a challenge for microplastic (MPs) analysis. Additionally, organic matter composition under seasonal and discharge-related dynamics varies for each river. Therefore, this study attempted to identify a universally applicable clean-up procedure to remove matrix particles with high organic matter content, mainly plant debris, from the river-SPM samples.

The identification and quantification of tire and road wear particles in Osaka Bay, Japan, by two analytical methods.

Tire and road wear particles (TRWP) are generated at the frictional interface between tires and the road surface. This mixture of tire tread and road pavement materials can migrate from roads into nearby water bodies during precipitation events. The absence of mass-based measurements in marine environments introduces uncertainty in environmental risk assessments and fate and transport models.

Teabag-derived micro/nanoplastics (true-to-life MNPLs) as a surrogate for real-life exposure scenarios.

The potential health implications of environmental micro/nanoplastics (MNPLs) are increasingly concerning. Beyond environmental exposure, other sources such as food packaging, including herbal/teabags, may also be significant. This study investigates the release of MNPLs from three commercially available teabags.

Impact of Biotransformation on Internal Concentrations and Specificity Classification of Organic Chemicals in the Zebrafish Embryo ().

Internal concentrations (ICs) are crucial for linking exposure to effects in the development of New Approach Methodologies. ICs of chemicals in aquatic organisms are primarily driven by hydrophobicity and modulated by biotransformation and efflux. Comparing the predicted baseline to observed toxicity enables the estimation of effect specificity, but biological processes can lead to overestimating ICs and bias the specificity assessment.

Fate of persistent and mobile chemicals in the water cycle: From municipal wastewater discharges to river bank filtrate.

Persistent and mobile (PM) chemicals are considered detrimental for drinking water resources as they may pass through all barriers protecting these resources against pollution. However, knowledge on the occurrence of PM chemicals in the water cycle, that make their way into drinking water resources, is still limited. The effluents of six municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs, n = 38), surface water of two rivers (n = 32) and bank filtrate of one site (n = 15) were analyzed for 127 suspected PM chemicals.

Combining Advanced Analytical Methodologies to Uncover Suspect PFAS and Fluorinated Pharmaceutical Contributions to Extractable Organic Fluorine in Human Serum (Tromsø Study).

A growing number of studies have reported that routinely monitored per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are not sufficient to explain the extractable organic fluorine (EOF) measured in human blood. In this study, we address this gap by screening pooled human serum collected over 3 decades (1986-2015) in Tromsø (Norway) for >5000 PFAS and >300 fluorinated pharmaceuticals. We combined multiple analytical techniques (direct infusion Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry, liquid chromatography-Orbitrap-high-resolution mass spectrometry, and total oxidizable precursors assay) in a three-step suspect screening process which aimed at unequivocal suspect identification.

The genes and are involved in zinc tolerance of .

Unlabelled: Metals are essential for all living organisms, but the type of metal and its concentration determines its action. Even low concentrations of metals may have toxic effects on organisms and therefore exhibit antimicrobial activities. In this study, we investigate the evolutionary adaptation processes of to metals and common genes for metal tolerance.

Post column infusion of an internal standard into LC-FT-ICR MS enables semi-quantitative comparison of dissolved organic matter in original samples.

Ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry hyphenated with liquid chromatography (LC) is an emerging tool to explore the isomeric composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM). However, matrix effects limit the potential for semi-quantitative comparison of DOM molecule abundances across samples. We introduce a post-column infused internal standard (PCI-IS) for reversed-phase LC-FT-ICR MS measurements of DOM and systematically evaluate matrix effects, detector linearity and the precision of mass peak intensities.

Should Transformation Products Change the Way We Manage Chemicals?

When chemical pollutants enter the environment, they can undergo diverse transformation processes, forming a wide range of transformation products (TPs), some of them benign and others more harmful than their precursors. To date, the majority of TPs remain largely unrecognized and unregulated, particularly as TPs are generally not part of routine chemical risk or hazard assessment. Since many TPs formed from oxidative processes are more polar than their precursors, they may be especially relevant in the context of persistent, mobile, and toxic (PMT) and very persistent and very mobile (vPvM) substances, which are two new hazard classes that have recently been established on a European level.

Sources of persistent and mobile chemicals in municipal wastewater: a sewer perspective in Leipzig, Germany.

Persistent and mobile (PM) chemicals spread in the water cycle and have been widely detected, yet information about their sources is still scarce. In this study, 67 PM chemicals were analyzed in 19 wastewater samples taken in the sewer system of the city of Leipzig, Germany, covering different industrial, clinical, and domestic discharges. A total of 37 of these analytes could be detected, with highly variable median concentrations between substances (median: 0.

Hotspots of Floating Plastic Particles across the North Pacific Ocean.

The pollution of the marine environment with plastic debris is expected to increase, where ocean currents and winds cause their accumulation in convergence zones like the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (NPSG). Surface-floating plastic (>330 μm) was collected in the North Pacific Ocean between Vancouver (Canada) and Singapore using a neuston catamaran and identified by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Baseline concentrations of 41,600-102,700 items km were found, dominated by polyethylene and polypropylene.