Development and optimization of analytical methods for the analysis of drugs in wastewater samples and chronic aquatic toxicity assessment of the Crustacea Copepoda Tigriopus fulvus

Abstract

Pharmaceutical compounds constitute one of the most important emerging classes of environmental pollutants. Recent studies have discovered their occurrence in environmental samples investigated worldwide, including different types of aqueous matrices. Drugs may be released into water sources and in the effluents from poorly controlled manufacturing or production facilities. In addition, the ubiquitous use of drugs has resulted in their relatively continuous discharge into wastewater, but conventional urban wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are not able to efficiently remove most of these pollutants. Thus, pharmaceuticals in surface waters, groundwater and treated water have relatively low concentrations ranging from ng/L to μg/L. This work has the purpose of exploring electrochemical and liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric techniques for the analysis of several Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) and to assess the toxicological effects that some of these drugs have on aquatic organisms, such as Tigriopus fulvus (crustacea). First phase of this study (Part A) covered the development together with electrochemical and spectroscopic characterization of new modified electrodes, i.e. glassy carbon/graphene oxide/polyvinyl alcohol (GC/GO/PVA) and glassy carbon/Betaine/Platinum (GC/BE/Pt) electrodes... [edited by Author]