Determination and risk assessment of UV filters and benzotriazole UV stabilizers in wastewater from a wastewater treatment plant in Lüneburg, Germany

• Published in: Environmental monitoring and assessment 2024-08, Vol.196 (8), p.725, Article 725
• Main Authors: Ajibola, Akinranti S., Reich, Marco, Kümmerer, Klaus
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acrylates - analysis; Algae; Aquatic invertebrates; Aquatic organisms; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Benzotriazole; Chromatography, Liquid; Contaminants; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Management; Environmental Monitoring; Filters; Fish; Fluid filters; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Germany; Influents; Invertebrates; Monitoring/Environmental Analysis; Octocrylene; para-Aminobenzoic acid; Plant extracts; Risk Assessment; Salicylic acid; Solid phases; Stabilizers; Sunscreening Agents - analysis; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Triazoles - analysis; Ultraviolet filters; Ultraviolet radiation; UV stabilizers; Waste Disposal, Fluid - methods; Wastewater - chemistry; Wastewater treatment; Wastewater treatment plants; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water treatment
• ISSN: 0167-6369; 1573-2959; 1573-2959
• DOI: 10.1007/s10661-024-12853-2

UV filters and benzotriazole UV stabilizers are considered emerging contaminants in the environment. LC–MS/MS and GC–MS methods, involving a single solid phase extraction protocol, were developed and validated to determine eight UV filters and seven UV stabilizers, respectively in wastewater from a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Lüneburg, Germany. The LC–MS/MS method exhibited extraction recoveries of ≥ 71% at six different fortification levels with limits of detection (LODs) range of 0.02 ng mL −1 – 0.09 ng mL −1 . Extraction recoveries of 47 to 119% at six different fortification levels were obtained for the GC–MS method with LODs range of 0.01 – 0.09 ng mL −1 . Among the UV filters, the highest mean concentration was determined for octocrylene (OCR) in influent (3.49 ng mL −1 ) while the highest mean concentration was measured for 2-hydroxy-4-octyloxybenzophenone (UV 531) in influent (0.44 ng mL −1 ) among the UV stabilizers. Potential risk to aquatic organisms was assessed by the risk quotient approach. Only OCR presented a high risk to aquatic invertebrates whereas 2-ethylhexyl 4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC) and 2-ethylhexyl salicylate (EHS) posed high risks to algae. Benzotriazole UV stabilizers presented negligible risks to aquatic invertebrates and fish. This work reports the detection of rarely studied 4-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) and UV 531 in WWTP influent and effluent. The occurrence and risk assessment of target benzotriazole UV stabilizers in wastewater from a German WWTP was demonstrated for the first time.