The occurrence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in Malaysian urban domestic wastewater

The water stream has been reported to contain non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), released from households and premises through discharge from Sewage Treatment Plant (STP). This research identifies commonly consumed NSAIDs namely ibuprofen (IBU), diclofenac (DIC), ketoprofen (KET) and naproxen (NAP) in the influent wastewater from two urban catchments (i.e. 2 STPs). We expand our focus to assess the efficiency of monomer (C18) and dimer (HLB) types of sorbents in the solid phase extraction method followed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) analysis and optimize model prediction of NSAIDs in the influent wastewater using I-Optimal design. The ecological risk assessment of the NSAIDs was evaluated. The HLB produced reliable analysis for all NSAIDs under study (STP1: 6.7 x 10(-3) mg L-1 to 2.21 x 10(-1) mg L-1, STP2: 1.40 x 10(-4) mg L-1 to 9.72 x 10(-2) mg L-1). The C18 however, selective to NAP. Based on the Pearson proximity matrices, the DICHLB can be a good indicator for IBUHLB (0.565), NAP(C18) (0.721), NAP(HLB) (0.566), and KETHLB (0.747). The optimized model prediction for KET and NAP based on DIC are successfully validated. The risk quotients (RQ) values of NSAIDs were classified as high (RQ > 1), medium (RQ, 0.1-1) and low (RQ, 0.01-0.1) risks. The optimized models are beneficial for major NSAIDs (KET and NAP) monitoring in the influent waste-water of urban domestic area. An upgrade on the existing wastewater treatment infrastructure is recommended to counteract current water security situation.

Automated summary

The study identified various NSAIDs in urban wastewater, with HLB sorbents showing reliable analysis. C18 sorbents were selective to naproxen. Optimized models successfully validated the prediction of ketoprofen and naproxen, with NSAIDs risk assessment classified as high, medium, and low. Upgrading wastewater treatment infrastructure is recommended to address current water security issues.