Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Contaminants of emerging concern in the urban aquifers of Barcelona: Do they hamper the use of groundwater?

Researchers compiled data on contaminants of emerging concern — including pharmaceuticals, benzotriazoles, and pesticides — in Barcelona's urban aquifers, finding that several compounds including azithromycin, lamotrigine, and gabapentin pose intermediate to very high health risks, particularly for young children, challenging the viability of this groundwater as a drinking source.

2023 Chemosphere 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification of biomarkers in wastewater-based epidemiology: Main approaches and analytical methods

This review covers biomarker identification in wastewater-based epidemiology, examining how emerging contaminants including microplastics and pharmaceuticals in wastewater can serve as population-level indicators of disease, health behaviors, and chemical exposures in cities.

2021 TrAC Trends in Analytical Chemistry 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Contaminants in Urban Stormwater: Barcelona case study

Researchers analyzed contaminants in urban stormwater runoff in Barcelona, examining dissolved organics, metals, nutrients, and microplastics to assess risks to environmental and public health as cities consider stormwater as a potential groundwater recharge source.

2023 Advances in geosciences 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding the impacts of human wastewater effluent pollution on karst springs using chemical contamination fingerprinting techniques

Researchers used multi-tracer chemical fingerprinting to trace human wastewater contamination into karst spring systems, finding that these highly permeable aquifers rapidly transmit pollutants including pharmaceuticals and potentially microplastics from surface sources to drinking water springs.

2024
Article Tier 2

Detecting Emerging Contaminants in Groundwater: Risks to Ecosystems and Human Health

This review examines how emerging contaminants including pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and microplastics infiltrate groundwater through landfill leaching, septic systems, and agricultural runoff. Researchers highlight the challenges of detecting these pollutants at low concentrations and their ability to persist and spread through groundwater systems. The study emphasizes the urgent need for advanced detection technologies and stronger regulatory frameworks to protect groundwater resources.

2025 Asian Journal of Environment & Ecology 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Statistical modeling of groundwater geochemistry in northeastern Brazil

Researchers characterized the hydrochemical composition and spatial variability of groundwater in the Beberibe aquifer in northeastern Brazil using geostatistical analysis, Piper diagrams, and principal component analysis of data from 34 georeferenced wells, finding that proximity to the coast and depth influenced ionic composition and identifying key geochemical processes controlling water quality.

2022
Article Tier 2

GLOBAL-FATE: A GIS-based model for assessing contaminantsfate in the global river network

A global computational model was developed to trace how pharmaceutical compounds consumed by people flow through rivers worldwide after passing through wastewater treatment. The model framework is adaptable to other contaminants, including microplastics, for global pollution mapping.

2019 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Medical Household Waste as a Potential Environmental Hazard: An Ecological and Epidemiological Approach

Researchers investigated household pharmaceutical waste disposal practices and analyzed drug residues in water bodies near Mexico's largest urban population, identifying frequently detected medications and assessing associated environmental and health risks.

2023 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Purpose-Designed Hydrogeological Maps in Wide Interconnected Surface-Groundwater Systems: The Test Example of Parma Alluvial Aquifer and Taro River Basin (Northern Italy)

Not relevant to microplastics — this paper presents a methodology for designing hydrogeological maps of surface water and groundwater systems in northern Italy.

2023 Preprints.org 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Green Analytical Chemistry Strategies for Urban Wastewater Monitoring of Emerging Contaminants: a Machine Learning and Multi-technique Strategy

This study developed a green analytical chemistry strategy combining machine learning and multiple spectroscopic techniques to monitor emerging contaminants including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals in urban wastewater from Nigerian cities. The approach reduced toxic reagent use while improving detection accuracy for a wide range of contaminants.

2025 International Journal of Built Environment and Earth Science
Article Tier 2

Environmental chemistry, toxicity and health risk assessment of groundwater: Environmental persistence and management strategies

This review examines groundwater contamination from heavy metals, pesticides, microplastics, and emerging pollutants, assessing health risks and highlighting the need for integrated management strategies to protect this critical freshwater resource.

2022 Environmental Research 33 citations
Article Tier 2

Determination of the pharmaceuticals–nano/microplastics in aquatic systems by analytical and instrumental methods

Researchers reviewed analytical and instrumental methods for detecting pharmaceutical compounds associated with nano- and microplastic particles in aquatic systems. They examined how pharmaceuticals bind to plastic particles and the combined environmental risks these mixtures pose to water sources and marine life. The study identifies gaps in current detection capabilities and calls for improved methods to assess the combined impact of these co-occurring pollutants.

2022 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of the groundwater recharge processes of a shallow and deep aquifer system (Maggiore Valley, Northwest Italy): a hydrogeochemical and isotopic approach

Researchers analyzed water chemistry and isotopes across shallow and deep groundwater systems in northwest Italy, tracing how water from distant mountain recharge zones mixes before reaching a heavily used drinking water well field. The study clarifies potential pathways for pollutants to reach drinking water supplies, providing critical information for protecting this major regional water resource.

2023 Hydrogeology Journal 16 citations
Article Tier 2

High Spatiotemporal Model-Based Tracking and Environmental Risk-Exposure of Wastewater-Derived Pharmaceuticals across River Networks in Saxony, Germany

This is an environmental engineering study modeling how pharmaceuticals from wastewater treatment plants travel through river networks in Saxony, Germany; it is not a microplastics research paper.

2023 Water 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Drinking Water Systems as a Cocktail of Emerging Organic Contaminants: Occurrence, Public Health Risks, and Research Needs

This review synthesized the occurrence of emerging organic contaminants in drinking water systems worldwide, highlighting the public health risks of pharmaceuticals, personal care products, pesticides, and industrial chemicals in treated drinking water and calling for improved monitoring.

2023 Preprints.org 5 citations
Article Tier 2

(Bio)monitoring of pharmaceuticals in the Mediterranean aquatic environment and interactive effect with microplastics. Insights from field and laboratory studies

This biomonitoring study surveyed the presence of pharmaceutical compounds in Mediterranean aquatic environments, measuring concentrations in water, sediment, and biota across multiple sampling sites. Several drugs were detected at levels of potential concern for aquatic organisms.

2024 Tesis Doctorals en Xarxa (Consorci de Serveis Universitaris de Catalunya)
Article Tier 2

Identification of surface water quality pollution areas and pollution sources based on spatial clustering and random forest in Henan, China

This study used spatial cluster analysis to identify surface water quality pollution areas and trace pollution sources across Henan Province, China. Spatial dependence analysis revealed distinct contaminated zones and their likely sources, enabling targeted remediation strategies for different pollution types.

2024 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Current Status of Emerging Contaminant Models and Their Applications Concerning the Aquatic Environment: A Review

This review categorizes the various computer models used to predict how emerging contaminants, including microplastics and pharmaceuticals, behave in aquatic environments. Researchers compared conventional water quality models, multimedia fugacity models, and machine learning approaches, finding that machine learning models offer the most versatility for tasks like contaminant identification and risk assessment. The study highlights that while modeling capabilities have advanced rapidly, gaps remain in applying these tools to real-world water pollution scenarios.

2025 Water 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Analysis of psychoactive substances and metabolites in sludges, soils, sediments and biota: a review

Researchers reviewed analytical methods for detecting psychoactive drugs and pharmaceuticals in sewage sludge, soils, sediments, and wildlife, comparing extraction techniques like solid-liquid extraction and QuEChERS for their effectiveness with complex environmental samples. This work helps improve monitoring of pharmaceutical pollution that threatens aquatic ecosystems and water supplies.

2023 Environmental Chemistry Letters 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Source-related smart suspect screening in the aqueous environment: search for tire-derived persistent and mobile trace organic contaminants in surface waters

Researchers developed a targeted screening method to trace chemical contaminants leaching from tire rubber into urban waterways, identifying 41 compounds — including persistent benzothiazoles and glycols — at high rates in both urban creeks and wastewater treatment plant inflows, showing tire wear particles are a major pollution source.

2020 Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 115 citations
Article Tier 2

Seabed Pollution Near Industrialized Seaports: An Enhanced Multivariate Technique to Explore Trace Element Dynamics

Researchers analyzed sediments from the industrialized port of Gijón Bay in Spain, finding elevated concentrations of toxic elements like mercury, lead, and zinc near the port mouth using advanced statistical and geostatistical techniques, revealing how industrial shipping activity leaves lasting chemical signatures in coastal seabeds.

2025 Water Air & Soil Pollution
Article Tier 2

Occurrence of specific pollutants in a mixture of sewage and rainwater from an urbanized area

Researchers characterized specific pollutants in combined sewage and rainwater from an urban mixed drainage system, identifying microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and other contaminants and assessing their concentrations relative to environmental quality standards.

2024 Scientific Reports 9 citations
Article Tier 2

A continuation-dynamic constitution analysis approach based on digital stable marker tracing and study on simulation of ecological tidal water diversion

Researchers developed a digital water-tracing method to track how diverted river water mixes and moves through a local canal network in China, quantifying each water source's contribution over time to help engineers optimize water diversion projects that improve water quality in urban waterways.

2023 Scientific Reports 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Multi-residue ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry method for comprehensive multi-class anthropogenic compounds of emerging concern analysis in a catchment-based exposure-driven study

Researchers developed a multi-residue analytical method capable of simultaneously quantifying more than 142 anthropogenic compounds of emerging concern, including pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and plastic additives, in catchment water samples. This comprehensive method enables broad environmental screening to understand the co-occurrence of diverse chemical pollutants in freshwater systems.

2019 Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 45 citations