Fate and behaviour of pharmaceutical and personal care products in wastewater

Abstract Nowadays, pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) are being used by almost every section of society and are classified as ‘emerging pollutants’ due to their adverse effects on human and environmental health. They consist of different chemical compounds, hormones, and human and veterinarian prescription drugs. These are discharged into wastewater and find their way to aquatic ecosystems and even drinking water. A rising environmental problem is the presence of pharmaceuticals, hormones, and personal care products in sources of drinking and surface water. These substances have been identified in samples of surface water, groundwater and even drinking water in quantities ranging from parts-per-trillion (ng/L) to parts-per-billion (μg/L). Traditional sewage treatment plants and industrial wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) can get rid of common pollutants like pathogens, nutrients, and organic matter but they fail to remove PPCPs which causes them to be released into the aquatic environment. Individual PPCPs can be successfully removed using a variety of treatment methods, such as membrane filtering, granular activated carbon, and advanced oxidation procedures. The use of a membrane bioreactor might also be an attractive means for dealing with pharmaceuticals. Due to their negative impacts on the ecosystem, information on their fate and interaction is essential for their management. Therefore, the present study focuses on the sources, types, effects, monitoring and suitable removal techniques for different PPCPs.