Removal of 17 Beta-Estradiol from Wastewater Using Fe3+-Saturated Montmorillonite.

Among endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), steroidal estrogens are of particular environmental concern due to their disruptive effect on biological function of humans and animals even at extremely low concentrations. Effluent discharge from wastewater treatment plants is a significant source for estrogens entering into the environment, resulting in their frequent detection in surface water. Estrogens cannot be completely removed by conventional wastewater treatment processes and remain in effluent discharged into receiving aquatic environment, contributing to feminization effect on the aquatic wildlife in the downstream of discharge point. Our previous study has shown that 17β-estradiol (E2), the most potent natural estrogens, can be rapidly removed by polymerization that is catalyzed by Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite in pure water system. It is unknown if Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite can be used to effectively polymerize E2 in wastewater which contains many other substances such as dissolved organic matter. Therefore, the effects of organic matter, pH, temperature, and common cations on Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite catalyzed E2 polymerization were tested in this study. Further more, the effectiveness of Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite in catalysis of E2 polymerization was tested in secondary wastewater effluents collected from three local wastewater treatment plants. Results shown that variation in pH, temperature, and presence of humic acid and cations had minimum impact on the effectiveness of Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite in catalysis of E2 polymerization. This study suggests that Fe3+-saturated montmorillonite can be effectively used in removal of phenolic estrogen compounds from domestic wastewater effluents.