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Water Quality Assessment—Methods and Surveys

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 December 2023) | Viewed by 9815

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Guest Editor
Agro-Environmental Research Centre, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Herman O. u. 15, H-1022 Budapest, Hungary
Interests: environmental and food safety; organic microcontaminants (pesticide residues and mycotoxins); environmental analysis; agricultural ecotoxicology; genetic safety
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water quality is an issue of utmost importance not only for environmental safety and health, but also for water security throughout the world. In turn, the rapid detection of water quality descriptors, the quality monitoring of surface and subsurface waters, and the assessment of reservoirs to ensure the availability of safe drinking water are of key importance.

Good water quality can be jeopardized by a range of indigenous substances and xenobiotics occurring as surface water contaminants.

Our Special Issue of Water aims to report recent developments in water quality assessment, including method development for detection, monitoring surveys, assessment strategies and evaluation reports. Thus, diverse aspects can be described, hopefully covering a wide range of applications, including (but not limited to):

- Monitoring the occurrence and composition of unicellular, filamentous and benthic microalgae as related to nutrient status, pollution, as well as meteorological conditions, including the assessment of potential effects of climate change trends on algae occurrence;

- Determination of general water quality parameters, including biological and chemical oxygen demand (BOD, COD), total organic carbon (TOC), and other related descriptors, as well as modelling trends observed in these factors;

- The occurrence of organic microcontaminants in water covering pollutants of industrial, agricultural or other origin, including residues of pharmaceuticals, pesticides, mycotoxins, chemical intermediates and by-products, etc.;

- Water pollutants of toxicological and ecotoxicological importance, including polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), phthalates and other water softeners with hormonal or other toxicological activity, per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFASs), dibenzodioxins, etc.;

- Environmental fate and decomposition of xenobiotics in water, including water microbiology and processes in drinking water production;

- Effect-based monitoring of contaminants in water;

- Local surveys of water quality and security;

- Novel or inventive methods for water quality monitoring and assessment;

- Methods of toxicological or ecotoxicological assessment, including cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, mutagenicity and endocrine disruption, combined with chemical analysis.

Dr. András Székács
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • surface and subsurface water
  • monitoring
  • water analysis
  • unicellular
  • filamentous and benthic microalgae
  • water pollutants
  • organic microcontaminants
  • decomposition
  • metabolism
  • decontamination
  • instrumental analysis
  • immunoanalysis
  • sensorics
  • ecotoxicological assessment
  • cytotoxicity
  • genotoxicity
  • mutagenicity
  • endocrine disruption

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 2565 KiB  
Article
Application of a Fluorescence-Based Instrument Prototype for Chlorophyll Measurements and Its Utility in an Herbicide Algal Ecotoxicity Assay
by Diána Lázár, Eszter Takács, Mária Mörtl, Szandra Klátyik, Attila Barócsi, László Kocsányi, Sándor Lenk, László Domján, Gábor Szarvas, Edina Lengyel and András Székács
Water 2023, 15(10), 1866; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15101866 - 15 May 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2634
Abstract
Project Aquafluosense was designed to develop prototypes for a modular fluorescence-based instrumental setup for in situ measurement of major water quality parameters. A fluorometer was developed for algal density estimation based on the fluorescent excitation of chlorophyll. The appropriate type of sample holder [...] Read more.
Project Aquafluosense was designed to develop prototypes for a modular fluorescence-based instrumental setup for in situ measurement of major water quality parameters. A fluorometer was developed for algal density estimation based on the fluorescent excitation of chlorophyll. The appropriate type of sample holder microplate was determined, along with the need for dark acclimation, prior to the measurements during the instrument’s development. Model species of green (Raphidocelis subcapitata) and blue-green alga (Microcystis aeruginosa) were applied in forms of pure monocultures and their mixtures, and improved analytical limits of detection were achieved (3.70 × 103 cell/mL and 1.13 × 105 for R. subcapitata and M. aeruginosa, respectively). The fluorescence-based determination of algal density was validated by conventional methods, such as cell counting in a Bürker chamber, optical density measurement, and chlorophyll extraction with ethanol. The signals obtained by the fluorometer correlated well with the conventional methods. Pearson r coefficients (applied where the correlation was linear) were ≥0.988 and Spearman ρ coefficients (applied where the correlation was not linear) were >0.976, indicating a strong and positive correlation. The applicability of the developed fluorometer was demonstrated in a growth inhibition ecotoxicity assay on R. subcapitata using the herbicide active ingredient isoxaflutole. During the assay, light intensity (continuous, 104.9 ± 14.9 µE/m2/s), temperature (22 ± 2 °C), pH of algal media (pH = 6–7 for Zehnder and Allen media, as well), and intensity of stirring (continuous, 100 rpm) were controlled. The results indicated that the FluoroMeter Module is applicable for screening algal toxicity: the observed ratio of fluorescence decrease determined by fluorescence induction provided significantly lower toxicity values (EC50: 0.015 ± 0.001 µg/mL) compared to values determined by the optical density (EC50: 0.034 ± 0.004 µg/mL) and chlorophyll a content (EC50: 0.033 ± 0.000 µg/mL). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Assessment—Methods and Surveys)
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17 pages, 10217 KiB  
Article
Hydrochemical Assessment of the Kisköre Reservoir (Lake Tisza) and the Impacts of Water Quality on Tourism Development
by Tamás Mester, Borbála Benkhard, Mária Vasvári, Péter Csorba, Emőke Kiss, Dániel Balla, István Fazekas, Eduárd Csépes, Ayoub Barkat and György Szabó
Water 2023, 15(8), 1514; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15081514 - 12 Apr 2023
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2264
Abstract
Outdoor recreation has grown rapidly in recent years, with an increasing preference for areas in good ecological condition. Since lakes represent some of the most important wetlands, providing a wide variety of ecosystem services, they have become a very popular destination. The present [...] Read more.
Outdoor recreation has grown rapidly in recent years, with an increasing preference for areas in good ecological condition. Since lakes represent some of the most important wetlands, providing a wide variety of ecosystem services, they have become a very popular destination. The present study aimed to assess the water quality of the largest artificial lake in Hungary (Kisköre Reservoir—Lake Tisza), and the role of ecological status in tourism development. Monthly water sampling from the basins of the lake (Tiszavalk, Poroszló, Sarud and Abádszalók basins) took place from April–November 2021 and in 2022. The majority of samples from the river section and from the lake are classified as Ca2+-HCO3 type or mixed Ca2+-Na+-HCO3 type. According to the results, the water quality of each basin is considered excellent or good. Rapid warming of the shallow water of the basins was detected during the summer months, resulting in different hydrochemical characteristics (pH, NH4-N, NO2-N, NO3-N, PO4-P, CODcr BOI5) compared to the river section. Differences in the plant nutrient and oxygen balance component groups have been revealed with hierarchical and two-step cluster analysis as well. The results demonstrated that the hydrochemical properties of the lake’s water are substantially influenced by the filling of the lake in spring from the River Tisza and the significant lowering (1.2 m) of the water level in the autumn each year, allowing the drainage of stagnant water, the removal of accumulated sediments and the oxidation of organic matter. The number of tourists on Lake Tisza has increased rapidly over the last decade, confirming that a wide range of ecosystem services have a significant attractive impact on waterfront activities and ecotourism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Assessment—Methods and Surveys)
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28 pages, 8933 KiB  
Article
Integration of Geochemical Modeling, Multivariate Analysis, and Irrigation Indices for Assessing Groundwater Quality in the Al-Jawf Basin, Yemen
by Mohammed Hezam Al-Mashreki, Mohamed Hamdy Eid, Omar Saeed, András Székács, Péter Szűcs, Mohamed Gad, Mostafa R. Abukhadra, Ali A. AlHammadi, Mohammed Saleh Alrakhami, Mubarak Ali Alshabibi, Salah Elsayed, Mosaad Khadr, Mohamed Farouk and Hatem Saad Ramadan
Water 2023, 15(8), 1496; https://doi.org/10.3390/w15081496 - 11 Apr 2023
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 4345
Abstract
Water quality monitoring is crucial in managing water resources and ensuring their safety for human use and environmental health. In the Al-Jawf Basin, we conducted a study on the Quaternary aquifer, where various techniques were utilized to evaluate, simulate, and predict the groundwater [...] Read more.
Water quality monitoring is crucial in managing water resources and ensuring their safety for human use and environmental health. In the Al-Jawf Basin, we conducted a study on the Quaternary aquifer, where various techniques were utilized to evaluate, simulate, and predict the groundwater quality (GWQ) for irrigation. These techniques include water quality indices (IWQIs), geochemical modeling, multivariate statistical analysis, geographic information systems (GIS), and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference systems (ANFIS). Physicochemical analysis was conducted on the collected groundwater samples to determine their composition. The results showed that the order of abundance of ions was Ca2+ > Mg2+ > Na+ > K+ and SO42− > Cl > HCO3 > NO3. The assessment of groundwater quality for irrigation based on indices such as Irrigation water quality index (IWQI), sodium adsorption ratio(SAR), sodium percent (Na%), soluble sodium percentage (SSP), potential salinity (PS), and residual sodium carbonate RSC, which revealed moderate-to-severe restrictions in some samples. The Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) model was then used to predict the IWQIs with high accuracy during both the training and testing phases. Overall, these findings provide valuable information for decision-makers in water quality management and can aid in the sustainable development of water resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Assessment—Methods and Surveys)
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