[Critical Review on Environmental Occurrence and Photochemical Behavior of Substituted Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons].

Substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (SPAHs) are a type of emerging pollutant that widely exist in the environment, which also exhibit carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, and teratogenicity. These pollutants belong to toxic pollutants because of their similar structures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Their environmental behavior and ecological risk have attracted increasing attention. Based on a literature review, we found a new breakthrough in the source, distribution, behavior, and risk of SPAHs with comparison to traditional pollutants PAHs. This paper reviewed the current research progress on the environmental occurrence and photochemical behavior of SPAHs. Their sources, formation mechanisms, and distribution characteristics in the multimedia environment were highlighted, and the photochemical transformation kinetics, pathways, and affecting factors of SPAHs in water, ice, and other media were discussed. Furthermore, the research prospects about the environmental behavior and risk of SPAHs were proposed.

Selective diffusive gradients in thin-films with molecularly imprinted polymer for measuring fluoroquinolone antibiotics in waters.

Fluoroquinolones (FQs) have raised significant concerns due to their ubiquitous occurrence and promoting of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In this study, a molecularly imprinted polymer-diffusive gradient in thin-films (MIP-DGT) sampler is developed for selective measurement of FQs in waters by using a commercial available MIP material as the binding agent. The MIP-DGT shows selective adsorption of the FQs and linearly accumulates the FQs over the deployment time. MIP-DGT measurement is independent of pH (6-8) and ionic strength (IS) (0.01-0.5 M) but is affected by DOM at higher concentrations (~10 mg•L-1), which is due to the altered diffusion coefficients and reduced adsorption on the MIP binding gel. Significant interaction effects of DOM with pH or IS indicate that this is the predominant influence on the MIP-DGT performance, which results in a lower measurement by the MIP-DGT but this is curtailed to some extend with increasing IS or pH. The MIP-DGT measurements, however, correlate well with those by grab sampling in a wastewater treatment plant, suggesting it is reliable for measuring FQs in waters. For the first time, we demonstrate that key water chemistry parameters do have interaction effects on the DGT measurements, which should be considered for the data interpretation. The MIP-DGT is a promising tool to understand the interaction effects of the environmental parameters on the fate, behaviours and bioavailability/toxicity of organic contaminants and improve environmental risk assessments in the environment and modelling.

Using Monte Carlo simulation to assess uncertainty and variability of methamphetamine use and prevalence from wastewater analysis.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, methamphetamine (METH) has increased dramatically in China. However, little is known regarding the prevalence of METH use among the general population in China. METHODS: We provided a method to estimate the consumption and prevalence of METH in a city based on wastewater analysis. Monte Carlo simulations were employed to assess the uncertainty and variability of the consumption and prevalence rate in Beijing. RESULTS: METH consumption in Beijing based on Monte Carlo simulation varied between 1.3 and 5.2kg per day with a median of 2.6kg per day. In 2013, the 12-month prevalence of METH use was 0.58% (95% confidential interval 0.08-3.16) among the general population aged 15-64 years. A population-weight consumption map displayed the geographical differences in Beijing. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed method dramatically improved the accuracy and reliability and can be used as a useful complementary tool to official methodologies for drug use monitoring. This report describes the first comprehensive study concerning the prevalence of METH among the general population in mainland China.

Illicit drugs and their metabolites in 36 rivers that drain into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea, north China.

Illicit drugs and their metabolites have recently been recognized as an emerging group of contaminants due to their potential ecotoxicological impact in aquatic ecosystems. To date, information on the occurrence of these compounds in the aquatic environment of China remains limited. In this study, we collected surface water samples from 36 rivers in north China that discharge into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea and measured the concentrations of amphetamine-like compounds, ketamines, cocainics, and opioids. The occurrence and spatial patterns of these substances show significant differences between the rivers and regions. Two designer drugs, methamphetamine (METH) and ketamine (KET), were the most abundant compounds detected in the entire set of samples (detection frequency of 92 and 69 %). The concentrations of METH and KET ranged from <0.1 to 42.0 ng L(-1) (mean = 4.53 ng L(-1)) and <0.05 to 4.50 ng L(-1) (mean = 0.49 ng L(-1)), respectively. The high detection frequencies of METH and KET are consistent with the fact that they are the main illicit drugs consumed in China. The high concentrations of these illicit drugs and their metabolites were found in areas that have a high population density. The riverine input of total illicit drugs into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea was estimated to be in the range of 684 to 1160 kg per year.

[Photochemical reaction types of the azole fungicide fluconazole under UV-vis irradiation].

This study selected the azole fungicide fluconazole as a model compound, and investigated its photodegradation kinetics and photoreaction types in pure water. It was found that under UV-vis irradiation (lambda > 200 nm), the fluconazole photodegraded fast and followed the pseudo-first-order kinetics, whereas under simulated sunlight (lambda > 290 nm), photodegradation did not occur. The ROS scavenging experiments and competition kinetic examination indicated that the compound underwent both direct photolysis and self-sensitized photooxidation via *OH other than 1O2. The bimolecular rate constant for the reaction between fluconazole and *OH was (5.95 +/- 0.58) x 10(9) L x (mol x s)(-1), and the corresponding environmental half-life was calculated to be (32.41 +/- 3.16) h in surface waters. Furthermore, it was deduced from the photodegradation product identification that the UV-vis degradation pathways involved photoinduced defluorination, hydrolysis and photooxidation.

[Influences of pine needles physiological properties on the PAH accumulation].

The lipid contents, specific surface areas and stomata density of two kinds of pine (Cedrus deodar and Pinus thunbergii) needles were determined simultaneously with the levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The influences of the physiological properties of two species on the accumulation of PAHs in pine needles were investigated. The PAH concentrations in Cedrus deodar needles are higher than that in Pinus thunbergii needles, and the average total PAH concentrations (PAHs) in two species are (1 101 +/- 692) ng/g and (518 +/- 339) ng/g, respectively. The capabilities of accumulating PAHs for two species are different. The lipid content is the principal factor influencing the levels of pine needle PAHs. In Cedrus deodar and Pinus thunbergii needles, 3-ring (> 56%) and 4-ring (> 31%) PAHs make up large proportions of sigma PAHs. The accumulation capabilities of pine needles for 3-ring PAHs are greater than 4-ring PAHs, and the concentrations of 3-ring PAHs are about two times of those of 4-ring PAHs. There are no significant correlations between the levels of 5- and 6-ring PAHs and lipid contents for two species. For two species, the correlations between lipid contents and specific surface areas are different, which results in the contrary correlations between the PAH levels and specific surface areas for Cedrus deodar and Pinus thunbergii. Specific surface areas and stomata density affect the levels of 5- and 6-ring PAHs in pine needles significantly.