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Water Quality Examination: The Investigation of Heavy Metal Contamination, Nutrients,...
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Water Quality Examination: The Investigation of Heavy Metal Contamination, Nutrients, and Organic Pollutants in Aquatic Environments for an Enhanced Prevention and Purification Process

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Water Quality and Contamination".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 23 January 2025 | Viewed by 4327

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Thomas Dippong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Chemistry and Biology Department, Faculty of Sciences, Technical University, 430122 Baia Mare, Romania
Interests: nanomaterials; magnetic nanocomposites; sol-gel synthesis; ferrite preparations and characterization techniques; food thermal behavior; flavor analysis; volatile profile; applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The condition of both surface and groundwater echoes the human influence on the environment, with heavy metals, nutrients, and organic compounds altering water ecosystems. Environmental pollution stems from anthropogenic activities, industrial processes, and metal utilization. This Special Issue primarily focuses on the occurrence, distribution, migration, and transformation of emerging pollutants. It explores factors influencing their evolution in various media (e.g., sediment, water, aquatic organisms). The issue involves a monitoring and analyzing of heavy metals, nutrients, and organic pollutants in aquatic environments, identifying sources, assessing temporal and spatial distribution, speciation, and associated environmental risks. Evaluation includes pollution indices, exposure, bioaccumulation, toxic effects, and human health risk assessment linked to water-associated heavy metals pollution or water-associated organic pollutants. The core theme revolves around the development of advanced treatment technologies, combining physicochemical, membrane separation, advanced oxidation, and biological processes for sustainable water treatment. Contributions such as research papers, reviews, case reports, and conference papers are invited, especially those maintaining a high academic standard while addressing pollution sources, effects, control, and management in aquatic environments. Water pollution by heavy metals often coincides with contamination by nutrients and organic pollutants. Some, like antibiotics, drugs, steroids, endocrine disruptors, hormones, industrial additives, chemicals, and microplastics, are emerging pollutants identified as hazardous to the environment, ecosystems, and human health. Research on the levels of these pollutants in water, whether associated with heavy metals pollution or not, is highly encouraged. In summary, the presence of organic pollutants in water provides a favorable environment for bacterial growth. This interaction between bacteria and organic pollutants is a critical aspect of water quality, with implications for ecosystem health, human health, and the overall balance of aquatic environments. Hence, papers addressing the bacteriological contamination of water bodies in conjunction with organic pollutants are also encouraged for submission.

This Special Issue delves into a broad spectrum of subject, including but not limited to the following:

  • The exploration of groundwater resources and movement patterns;
  • Implementation of novel detection methods for emerging contaminants;
  • The impact of groundwater pollution on human health;
  • Strategies for preventing and restoring groundwater pollution in situ;
  • Measures to safeguard the quality of groundwater;
  • Assessment of human health risks linked to contaminated water, along with response strategies for both ground and surface water resources;
  • Pollution assessment tools (indices, diagrams, modeling);
  • Technologies for the prevention of groundwater pollution and restoration of groundwater quality, such as photocatalysis, adsorption, bio-degradation, and membrane separation;
  • Analysis of risks and response strategies for the sustainable management of both surface and groundwater sources;
  • Study of heavy metals and nutrients in drinking, surface and groundwater, and their effects on various living organisms;
  • Examination of the impact on biota in surface water and the transfer of pollutants from aquatic environments to biota;
  • An economic analysis of pollutant removal processes and technologies;
  • Application of innovative non-toxic materials (e.g. hydroxyapatite) in the decontamination of water;
  • Water decontamination through various techniques (e.g. photocatalysis, adsorption, etc.);
  • Computational and theoretical studies on reaction mechanisms, kinetics, and thermodynamics of water remediation pathways;
  • An evaluation of metal contents in different water bodies coupled with the effects on living organisms;
  • Environmental assessment concerning the trace metals content in water ecosystems coupled with a possible health influence in relation to drinking sources;
  • The evaluation of nutrients, organic pollutants, and microplastics in water;
  • A comprehensive evaluation of bacterial contamination, its monitoring and remediation;

Dr. Thomas Dippong
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • water pollution
  • contamination of groundwater
  • aquatic ecosystems
  • monitoring of water resources
  • management for sustainability
  • removal of heavy metals
  • eutrophication
  • bioremediation
  • chemical or biological technologies
  • aquatic environments
  • risk assessment
  • phytoremediation of water
  • microplastics in water
  • nutrients in water
  • heavy metal in water
  • organic pollutants in water
  • bacterial contamination of water

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

33 pages, 11680 KiB  
Article
A Spatial–Seasonal Study on the Danube River in the Adjacent Danube Delta Area: Case Study—Monitored Heavy Metals
by Catalina Topa, Gabriel Murariu, Valentina Calmuc, Madalina Calmuc, Maxim Arseni, Cecila Serban, Carmen Chitescu and Lucian Georgescu
Water 2024, 16(17), 2490; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16172490 - 2 Sep 2024
Viewed by 912
Abstract
Monitoring and protecting flowing watercourses is a complex and challenging task that requires the collaboration and coordination of various stakeholders such as governments, industries, farmers, consumers and environmental groups. The study of the dynamics of the concentration of polluting factors and especially the [...] Read more.
Monitoring and protecting flowing watercourses is a complex and challenging task that requires the collaboration and coordination of various stakeholders such as governments, industries, farmers, consumers and environmental groups. The study of the dynamics of the concentration of polluting factors and especially the concentrations of heavy metals and highlighting a seasonal variation is a necessary element from this point of view. In this article, we present the results of our analyses carried out in two measurement campaigns executed in 10 monitoring points along the Danube River, between Braila city and Isaccea city in the pre-deltaic area, during the summer season and autumn season 2022. The importance of this area is given by the fact that the Danube Delta is part of the UNESCO heritage, and the monitoring of polluting factors is a necessity in the desire to protect this area. The data measured during the July and August 2022 campaign cover a wide range of chemical species: Phosphate, CCO, CBO5, NH4+, N-NO2, N-NO3−, N-Total, P-PO4 3−, SO42−, Cl−, phenols, as well as metals with a harmful effect: Al, As, Cd, Cr, Fe. The study includes an evaluation based on the statistical approach of the results to highlight the significant correlations and differences identified between the two data sets. Next, to highlight the obtained results, a numerical model was considered using HEC-RAS and ESRI ArcGIS applications in a two-dimensional unsteady flow model in order to obtain the non-homogenous concentrations’ distributions in the studied area. These two-dimensional models have been less studied in the specialized literature. In this way, interesting results could be obtained, and prediction methods regarding the dynamics of metal concentrations could be structured. The data obtained were used for the terrain model from the USGS service, and the flows of the Danube and its two tributaries were simulated using the data provided by the national services. In this work, we present the results obtained for the dynamics of the concentrations of the metals Al, As, Cd, Cr and Fe and the evaluation of the specific absorption coefficients for the explanation and correlation with the results of the measurements. Except for the numerical model presented, we would like to highlight the existence of some contributions of the main tributaries of the Danube in the study area. Such a systematic study has not been carried out due to conditions imposed by the border authorities. From this point of view, this study has an element of originality. The study is part of a more complex project in which the spatio-temporal distribution of the polluting factors in the water was evaluated, and the habitats in the study area were inventoried—especially those of community interest. In this way, we were able to expose the self-purification capacity of the Danube and highlight the existence of a concentration reduction gradient along the course of the river. The aspects related to the influence of the distribution of polluting factors on the state of health will be the subject of another article. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Examination: The Investigation of Heavy Metal Contamination, Nutrients, and Organic Pollutants in Aquatic Environments for an Enhanced Prevention and Purification Process)
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17 pages, 2170 KiB  
Article
Investigation of Used Water Sediments from Ceramic Tile Fabrication
by Simona Elena Avram, Bianca Violeta Birle, Lucian Barbu Tudoran, Gheorghe Borodi and Ioan Petean
Water 2024, 16(7), 1027; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16071027 - 2 Apr 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1400
Abstract
Used water treatment is one of the most important aspects of environmental protection regarding industrial processes. Particulate matter dispersions affect water parameters; for example, increased pH values such as 10.21 are found for used floor tile water, and values of 10.84 are found [...] Read more.
Used water treatment is one of the most important aspects of environmental protection regarding industrial processes. Particulate matter dispersions affect water parameters; for example, increased pH values such as 10.21 are found for used floor tile water, and values of 10.84 are found for used wall tile water. However, pH decreases to about 9.42 after the sediment filtration process. This influences water turbidity, which is higher for used wall tile water due to its finer suspensions, and it is considerably decreased after the filtration process. Thus, the main aim of the present research is to investigate particulate matter dispersion into the water flows that are involved in ceramic tile technological processes before and after treatment at used water treatment facilities. X-ray diffraction (XRD) coupled with mineralogical optical microscopy (MOM) reveals that waters from wall tiles and floor tiles have similar mineral dispersions, containing mineral particles of quartz (5–50 μm), kaolinite (1–30 μm), and mullite (5–125 μm). Glass particles (having a dark appearance at MOM investigation) were also found in both samples in a size range of 20–55 μm. High-resolution SEM imaging coupled with the EDS elemental analysis confirms the XRD and MOM observations. Water samples collected after treatment at the treatment facility reveal a significant reduction in the particulate matter MOM, evidencing only small traces of quartz, kaolinite, and mullite in a size range of 1–15 μm, with most of the particles being attached to the filters, as confirmed by XRD. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) effectuated on this sample reveals the presence of kaolinite nanoparticles with a tabular–lamellar aspect and sizes ranging from 40 to 90 nm. The obtained results prove the efficacy of the filtering system regarding targeted particulate matters, ensuring water recirculation into the technological processes. The sludge resulting from the filtration process presents with a dense grainy structure of sediment particles containing quartz, mullite, and kaolinite, along with traces of iron hydroxide crystallized as goethite. Therefore, it cannot be reused in the technological flux, as the iron causes glaze staining; but the observed microstructure, along with the mineralogical composition, indicates that it could be used for other applications, such as ecological bricks or plasters, which will be further investigated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Examination: The Investigation of Heavy Metal Contamination, Nutrients, and Organic Pollutants in Aquatic Environments for an Enhanced Prevention and Purification Process)
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21 pages, 2063 KiB  
Article
Evaluating Groundwater Metal and Arsenic Content in Piatra, North-West of Romania
by Thomas Dippong, Cristina Mihali and Alexandra Avram
Water 2024, 16(4), 539; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16040539 - 9 Feb 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1433
Abstract
The present study introduces a monitoring initiative focused on the quality of groundwater in the Piatra locality, situated in the North-West region of Romania. This paper employs an evaluation of 21 physico-chemical parameters, encompassing factors such as electrical conductivity, pH, chemical oxygen demand, [...] Read more.
The present study introduces a monitoring initiative focused on the quality of groundwater in the Piatra locality, situated in the North-West region of Romania. This paper employs an evaluation of 21 physico-chemical parameters, encompassing factors such as electrical conductivity, pH, chemical oxygen demand, turbidity, total hardness, NH4+, NO3−, Cl−, PO43−, Li, Na, K, Ca, Mg, Ba, Sr, Al, Fe, Mn, Sn, and Ti. Additionally, it examines five heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and arsenic in water sourced from six distinct private wells. Each well, with its characteristics, serves as a unique drinking water source. The assessment encompassed the evaluation of pollution levels, quality status, and risk factors for all drinking water sources, utilizing pollution, quality, and risk indices. The aim of this study was to establish the level of toxicity in water, assess its impact on human health, and disseminate information to the public about the appropriate utilization of individual water sources. The results indicated a general contamination with chloride, ammonium, manganese, chromium, and iron. Human health risk assessment indices revealed that the consumption of studied waters presented non-carcinogenic risks associated with Cr for adults and with Cr, As, Pb, and Cu for children for some of the groundwater sources. The water quality index (WQI) categorizes the samples as possessing excellent and good quality. This research represents one of the initial endeavors to assess the groundwater source quality in connection with the potential human health risks posed by the metals studied within the protected area of the Tisa River Basin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Quality Examination: The Investigation of Heavy Metal Contamination, Nutrients, and Organic Pollutants in Aquatic Environments for an Enhanced Prevention and Purification Process)
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