Identification and quantification of emerging contaminants in sewage treatment plants

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that the most diseases that affect the world's population are associated with contaminated water. The worldwide scientific community has published articles that report the presence of micropollutants in aqueous matrices at concentration levels of ng.L-1 and μg.L-1. The aim of the present study was to assess the presence of emerging contaminants in raw and treated sanitary waste and to quantify them using liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. The results of the present study showed the inefficiency of conventional sewage treatment in terms of the degradation of emerging contaminants.