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Water
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Physical–Chemical Wastewater Treatment Technologies
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Physical–Chemical Wastewater Treatment Technologies

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 March 2025 | Viewed by 2444

Special Issue Editors

Dr. María Francisca Gómez-Rico

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Alicante, Ap. 99, E-03080 Alicante, Spain
Interests: sewage sludge; wastewater; waste management; composting; thermal treatments; persistent organic pollutants
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. María Dolores Saquete

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Alicante, Ap. 99, E-03080 Alicante, Spain
Interests: phase equilibrium; water quality; electromagnetic treatment; contamination of sediments and marine organisms; emerging contaminants; wastewater; microorganisms

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is well known that wastewater contains organic and inorganic pollutants, and they may pose hazards to human health and ecosystems. The current action plans regarding the circular economy call for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) to be turned into water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). In this scenario, treatment activities are focused on improving water and sewage sludge quality for recovery opportunities and minimizing environmental damage. Physical–chemical treatments are particularly important to remove water-insoluble substances or colloids. This is achieved through the addition of coagulants and flocculants. Conventional processes are focused on macropollutants including suspended solids, organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and pathogens from wastewater; however, they are not designed to effectively remove micropollutants, such as recalcitrant pharmaceuticals. Finding the proper technology to remove these compounds is still challenging.

In this Special Issue, we invite submissions studying recent advances in the field of physical–chemical treatments for wastewater, including theoretical and experimental analyses, as well as comprehensive review papers. They will undoubtedly contribute to the knowledge and development of the technology. The following topics are proposed, although other related topics are also welcome:

  • Development of new physical, chemical and hybrid treatments for wastewater containing micropollutants;
  • Improvement of existing methods to achieve higher removal of pollutants;
  • Development of cost-effective methods;
  • Analysis of emerging micropollutants in wastewater and sewage sludge;
  • Fate and transport of pollutants in water and sewage sludge.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. María Francisca Gómez-Rico
Dr. María Dolores Saquete
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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
  • emerging pollutants
  • persistent organic pollutants
  • advanced wastewater technologies
  • sewage sludge pollution
  • physical–chemical treatments

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1615 KiB  
Article
Modelling the Fate of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate in Agricultural Soil Columns during Inflow of Surfactant Pulses from Domestic Wastewaters
by María Dolores Saquete, Nuria Boluda-Botella, Vicente Cases and Ester Egea
Water 2024, 16(14), 2068; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16142068 - 22 Jul 2024
Viewed by 904
Abstract
Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), a widely used anionic surfactant, is present in wastewater and can be discharged, causing environmental damage. When biodegradation is negligible, adsorption and desorption reactions play an important role, depending on the media characteristics (organic matter and clays) and hydrodynamic [...] Read more.
Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), a widely used anionic surfactant, is present in wastewater and can be discharged, causing environmental damage. When biodegradation is negligible, adsorption and desorption reactions play an important role, depending on the media characteristics (organic matter and clays) and hydrodynamic parameters. Previously published laboratory column data are modelled with PHREEQC (version 2.18) in three scenarios of LAS input: spill (LAS pulse), continuous discharge (LAS adsorption step) and remediation (LAS desorption step). The distribution coefficients (0.1–4.9 × 10−3 L/g) in the sand columns are lower than those determined in this paper from batch tests and in columns of 25% and 50% agricultural soil mixtures (1–70 × 10−3 L/g). Considering the Freundlich constant parameters from the modelling, the results are similar to the distribution coefficients, but the linear isotherms are more consistent throughout. The mass transfer coefficient from the sand columns is lower than the agricultural soil columns (20–40 h−1), indicating longer elution times for the heavier homologues and a higher percentage of agricultural soil. For lighter homologues, fast migration could cause contamination of aquifers. The great persistence of LAS in the environment necessitates the development of mitigation strategies using reactive transport models, which predict longer times for the remediation of LAS homologues. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical–Chemical Wastewater Treatment Technologies)
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17 pages, 2305 KiB  
Article
Behavior of PCDD/Fs and PCBs from Wastewater Treatment Plants during Sewage Sludge Composting: Study of Semi-Anaerobic Conditions and Different Stages of the Process
by Maria Francisca Gomez-Rico, Teresa Hernandez, Maria Angeles Garrido and Rafael Font
Water 2024, 16(11), 1545; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16111545 - 27 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 838
Abstract
Composting is a common treatment for the high amounts of sewage sludge produced in wastewater treatment plants, and the product is used in agriculture. Composting reduces the levels of biodegradable organic pollutants, although other compounds present in wastewater and not eliminated previously by [...] Read more.
Composting is a common treatment for the high amounts of sewage sludge produced in wastewater treatment plants, and the product is used in agriculture. Composting reduces the levels of biodegradable organic pollutants, although other compounds present in wastewater and not eliminated previously by conventional physical–chemical and chemical treatments, such as polychorodibenzo-p-dioxins/furans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), have been found in the final compost at higher levels than those observed in the initial sludge. Their formation was studied during composting under unfavorable aeration conditions and paying attention to different stages of the process. Experiments were carried out in small vessels inside a controlled oven for three types of sewage sludge. Pentachlorophenol was previously added as a dioxin precursor. A clear formation of PCDD/Fs was found, especially during the maturation stage for two experiments. Mainly octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (OCDD) and 1234678-heptachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (1234678-HpCDD) to a lesser extent were formed. OCDD levels in the final samples were around 10 times higher than those of the initial mixture after removing the concentration effect. No clear formation nor degradation of PCBs was observed. The toxicity values due to PCDD/Fs and PCBs found in the initial mixtures were 1.20–2.46 ng WHO-TEQ/kg, and those from the final samples were 2.30–7.86 ng WHO-TEQ/kg. Although the toxicity values are below the most restrictive limits found in Europe in this case, toxicity could increase considerably with the presence and concentration of other precursors. Compost from sewage sludge is an ecological product, but the operating conditions must be controlled to avoid PCDD/F formation and facilitate degradation of persistent organic pollutants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical–Chemical Wastewater Treatment Technologies)
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