Occurrence of acidic pharmaceuticals in the Warta River in Poland

Abstract

The occurrence of five acidic pharmaceuticals (ibuprofen, naproxen, ketoprofen, diclofenac,
\nbezafibrate and clofibric acid) in the Warta River in Poland has been discussed. A significant
\neffect of the effluents of Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) on the quality of
\nrecipient water has been shown. Diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, and ketoprofen were
\nfound in all samples collected along the Warta River at average concentrations of several
\nng L�1.Average concentration of the above pharmaceuticals in raw sewage entering wastewater
\nplants was at the level of a few µg L�1. The efficiency of pharmaceuticals� removal
\nfrom the raw sewage was very high and reached 97�100%. Diclofenac was the only compound,
\nwhich exhibited a significant resistance towards the treatment (< 65%), and accordingly
\nits concentration in the recipient water was the highest. Solid phase extraction (SPE)
\nwas use for separation of pharmaceuticals from the water phase and HPLC�ESI�MS/MS
\nsystem was applied for the analysis.