Occurrence and Risk of Organophosphate Flame Retardants in Multiple Urban Water of Beijing, China

Abstract

Investigating the organophosphate ame retardants (OPFRs) concentration and attenuation in multiple water of Beijing would provide valuable insight into OPFR management and reduction, thus, 6 OPFRs were determined by solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to explore the pollution characteristics, and ecological risk of OPFRs. The results showed that 5 OPFRs were detected with a concentration ranging from ND to 394.77 ng/L except for tris(2,3dibromopropyl) phosphate (PDBP). The chloroalkyl phosphate was the main compound and tris(chloropropyl) phosphate (TCPP) was the most abundant OPFRs with the highest concentration. The concentration of OPFRs in surface water was higher than that in groundwater, and the concentration of chlorinated OPFRs in e uent from sewage treatment plants (STPs) was higher than that in in uent. Ecological risk assessment showed that low risk of OPFRs for the organisms (algae, crustacean and sh).

Novel method for rapid monitoring of OPFRs by LLE and GC–MS as a tool for assessing biodegradation: validation and applicability

“…Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) encompass a wide range of esters of phosphoric acid characterized by their structural diversity—featuring either alkyl or haloalkyl substituents [ 1 , 2 ]—and physicochemical properties that make them effective fire-inhibiting agents [ 3 ]. As a result, halogenated OPFRs are used as additives in a variety of commercial products such as foams, textiles, plastics, electronics, and furniture, while non-halogenated OPFRs serve as plasticizers and antifoaming agents [ 4 , 5 ].…”

“…The main identified sources of contamination in water compartments stem from domestic and industrial wastewaters discharges [ 1 , 2 , 19 ]. This situation highlights a challenge: conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) struggle to effectively eliminate these compounds, which have been consistently identified as prevalent in WWTP effluents [ 1 , 2 , 20 , 21 ], especially the chlorinated ones [ 22 – 24 ]. The detection of these OPFRs also in drinking water samples [ 1 , 2 , 9 , 24 , 25 ] underscores a straight pathway for human exposure.…”

“…This situation highlights a challenge: conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) struggle to effectively eliminate these compounds, which have been consistently identified as prevalent in WWTP effluents [ 1 , 2 , 20 , 21 ], especially the chlorinated ones [ 22 – 24 ]. The detection of these OPFRs also in drinking water samples [ 1 , 2 , 9 , 24 , 25 ] underscores a straight pathway for human exposure.…”

OPFR removal by white rot fungi: screening of removers and approach to the removal mechanism

“…Since they lack chemical bonds with their host materials, OPFRs can readily diffuse into water compartments during production, usage, and end-of-life stages (Gbadamosi et al, 2023;Li et al, 2023), domestic and industrial wastewater (WW) discharges being the primary sources of contamination (Xu et al, 2019;Zhang et al, 2023). Among the prevalent compounds found in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents are five OPFRs: tri-n-butyl phosphate (TnBP), tris (2-butoxy ethyl) phosphate (TBEP), tris (2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), tris (2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCPP), and triethyl phosphate (TEP) (Lao et al, 2023;Zhang et al, 2023), proving that they are not completely removed by conventional treatment processes.…”