Date of Award
8-2023
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Geological and Environmental Sciences
First Advisor
Donald M. Reeves, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Daniel P. Cassidy, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Michael Jury, EGLE-MPART
Keywords
Land application, PFAA, PFAS, Sewage Sludge, sulfonamide, wastewater treatment
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Open Access
Abstract
Concentrations, compositions, and variability of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in sewage sludge are characterized using an extensive dataset of 350 samples from 190 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) across Michigan. All samples are comprised of final treated sewage sludge generated at the end of the wastewater treatment process. Concentrations of Σ24 PFAS are log normally distributed with a range of 1 to 3200 ng/g dry wt. and of average 108 ± 277 ng/g dry wt. Compounds with carboxyl and sulfonic functional groups comprised 29% and 71% of Σ24 PFAS concentrations, respectively, on average. Primary sample variability is associated with long-chain PFAS with higher tendency for partitioning to sewage sludge. Short-chain carboxylic compounds, most notably PFHxA, are responsible for secondary variability and are highly detected in 77% of the samples with average concentrations of 10 ± 30 ng/g dry wt. Sulfonamide precursor compounds, namely N-MeFOSAA, generally contribute more mass to total PFAS than PFOS on average, a well monitored and regulated compound. Trends in PFAS enrichment were found to generally increase with compound hydrophobicity; however, the partitioning of PFAS onto sewage sludge in WWTPs is a complex process not easily described nor constrained using experimentally derived partitioning coefficients.
Recommended Citation
Link, Garrett Wesley, "Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Treated Sewage Sludge from Michigan Wastewater Treatment Plants" (2023). Masters Theses. 5378.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/5378
Supplemental information
Supplementary Information_tableS4.xlsx (29 kB)
Supplemental table
Included in
Environmental Health and Protection Commons, Environmental Monitoring Commons, Hydrology Commons