Treatment of a landfill leachate containing compounds of pharmaceutical origin.

Paper reports the results of landfill leachate treatment with membrane bioreactor, nanofiltration and ozonation. Investigated leachate encompasses a number of specific compounds of pharmaceutical origin, including a suite of by-products deriving from the production of vitamin C and propyphenazone. Low biodegradability was observed in MBR (16%) for propyphenazone, while the removal of intermediates from the vitamin C-synthesis was moderate, reaching 30% for diacetone sorbose (DAS) and 69% for diacetone alpha-keto-gulonic acid (DAG). Ozonation almost completely removed propyphenazone but failed to significantly oxidise intermediates from the vitamin C-synthesis. Nanofiltration of the leachate succeeded to remove 99% of DAG and 79% of propyphenazone which made it the most efficient among techniques used.

Elimination of aromatic surfactants from municipal wastewaters: comparison of conventional activated sludge treatment and membrane biological reactor.

Behaviour of anionic surfactants of linear alkylbenzene sulphonates (LAS) type and non-ionic surfactants of nonylphenol polyethoxylate (NPnEO) type was studied in the conventional mechanical/biological sewage treatment plant (STP) as well as using a membrane biological reactor (MBR). LAS and NPnEO were determined using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipped with spectrofluorimetric detection. Liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) was used for identification and quantification of stable metabolites, including nonylphenol (NP), nonylphenol monoethoxylate (NP1EO), nonylphenol diethoxylate (NP2EO) and nonylphenoxy carboxylic acids (NPnEC). The study showed that aromatic surfactants belong to the most prominent constituents in the examined municipal wastewaters with typical LAS and NPnEO concentrations of 2-10 mg/L and 0.1-0.5 mg/L, respectively. The removal of aromatic surfactants in conventional STP showed well-known features reported in the literature, including an efficient microbial transformation of the parent molecules and formation of stable metabolic products. The elimination efficiency of aromatic surfactants using the MBR unit was higher than that in the conventional STP, while the composition of recalcitrant nonylphenolic residues in the effluent seems to be ecotoxicologically more favourable due to the lower contributions of the lipophilic metabolites.

[The chemical war in Croatia]. / Kemijski rat protiv Hrvatske.

During the present war against the Republic of Croatia, chemical weapons have been used by the Yugoslav Federal Army (YFA) against both civilians and Croatian Army soldiers. The use of irritants was suspected (Vukovar, Bogdanovci and Vinkovci, October-November, 1991; Solin in the Split area, September, 1991) and proved (Velika Gorica in the Zagreb area, September, 1991; Cakovec, November, 1991) in many cases. The use of psychochemical incapacitating agents (Bilje near Osijek, July, 1991), as well as of psychostimulants in YFA own soldiers (Zadar, August, 1991) has been suspected on clinical findings or laboratory tests. The use of acetylcholnesterase inhibitors was proved in one aggressor's diversion (Zadar, Krusevo, July, 1991). Phosphorus from projectiles and fuming boxes caused poisoning and skin burns due to incineration (Vukovar, November, 1991). YFA used the civilian's fear of chemical and biological weapons, throwing untoxic substances all over the Croatian territory. Great ecocide problems have occurred with massive industry devastation (Sisak, Osijek, October, 1991-January, 1992), with enumerous amounts of toxic substances released into the soil and river aquatoria.