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In this preliminary experimental study wheat seed samples were treated with AEF (in the frequency range up to 1 MHz). Obtained results suggest that AEF used in this research may enhance seed germination and its growth. Besides this catalytic-like effect, statistically significant differences were observed in important photosynthetic pigments such as chlorophyll a and b as well as in total chlorophyll content in wheat lives, while carotenoid pigments showed statistically insignificant differencies between control and AEF treated samples. Also some of the most commonly used vegetation indices used to monitor plant health, such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index and Greenness Index also showed statistical significant differences between control and seeds treated with AEF. Even though future experimental research is needed to optimize the experimental conditions as well as to confirm observed effects, we believe that AEF effects in pre-sowing seed treatment may have a great potential for agricultural production in future or even to potentially improve phytoremediation processes.

Per- i polifluoroalkil supstance (PFAS - per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) su grupa jedinjenja koja su široko korišćena zbog svojih hidrofobnih i lipofilnih svojstava, što ih čini otpornim na vodu, ulje i toplotu. Ove supstance su korišćene u proizvodnji različitih proizvoda kao što su teflonski premazi, vodootporni tekstilni materijali i sredstva za gašenje požara i mnogi drugi. Međutim, zbog njihove perzistentnosti i sposobnosti da se akumuliraju u životinjama i životnom okruženju, PFAS su postali predmet zabrinutosti za životnu sredinu i zdravlje ljudi. PFAS u otpadne vode mogu dospeti direktnom emisijom kao posledica proizvodnih i industrijskih procesa ili naknadno, upotrebom proizvoda koje sadrže ove štetne hemikalije, kao i neobazrivim odlaganjem istih. Nakon dospevanja u otpadne vode, PFAS se mogu širiti i kontaminirati vodne sisteme, što može ugroziti zdravlje ljudi i životinja koje konzumiraju tu vodu. Usled rastuće zabrinutosti od potencijalnih štetnih efekata PFAS, mnoge zemlje su počele da uvode strože regulative i mere kontrole kako bi smanjile izloženost ovim supstancama i ograničile njihovo širenje u životnoj sredini. Uz osvrt na probleme sa kojima se suočavamo prilikom otkrivanja ove grupe jedinjenja u otpadnim vodama, kao i pri samoj remedijaciji, u radu su prikazane i metode uklanjanja PFAS iz otpadnih voda., Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of chemicals that are widely used due to their hydrophobic and lipophilic properties, which make them resistant to water, oil and heat. These substances have been used in the production of various products such as Teflon coatings, waterproof textile materials, fire extinguishing agents, and many others. However, due to their persistence and ability to accumulate in animals and the environment, PFAS have become a concern for the environment and human health. PFAS get into waste water through direct emission as a consequence of production and industrial processes or subsequently, through the use of products containing these harmful chemicals, as well as their careless disposal. After reaching wastewater, PFAS can spread and contaminate water systems, which can endanger the health of humans and animals that consume that water. Due to growing concern about the potential harmful effects of PFAS, many countries have begun to introduce strict regulation and control measures to reduce exposure to these substances and limit their spread in the environment. With reference to the problems we face when detecting this group of compounds in wastewater, as well as during the remediation itself, PFAS removal methods from waste water are described.

In this study, eight different Ti and Al based catalyst were employed for the investigation of photocatalytic PFOS degradation. The maximum PFOS concentration used was 50 ppm. The experiments were conducted at 20 °C in an open cylindrical polypropylene reactor, and a simulated solar radiation lamp (Solimed BH Quarzlampen) was used as a light source. Photocatalysis was monitored up to 8 hours. The range of degradation was 50-78%. Analysis of degradation products indicated that the dominant method of transformation is oxidation. Additionaly, ecotoxicity to Allivibrio fischeri of both PFOS and photocatalytic degradation products was assessed. The obtained results confirmed the possibility of remediation of PFOS and related compounds in aquatic environment.

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are very resistant to degradation and pose a serious environmental threat, especially the short-chain PFAS, which bioaccumulate and readily translocate in plants. They enter soils and crops by using contaminated biosolids and compost as fertilizers, irrigation with contaminated water sources, or the application of pesticides containing PFAS. Soil and water contamination with PFAS has become a significant issue with negative effects on both the environment and public health. Removing PFAS from the environment is challenging due to their complex chemical structure and interactions with soil and water and therefore, they cannot be eliminated by traditional physical or chemical treatments. Many effective remediation technologies for PFAS removal are currently in use, including adsorption through granular activated carbon or resins, photocatalysis, electrochemical oxidation, thermolysis, and biological treatment. However, most of these techniques are energy-intensive and have considerable operating costs. Phytoremediation uses nature to treat soils and water that have been contaminated with hazardous compounds including PFAS. This technique involves the bioaccumulation and dispersion of PFAS inside plant compartments, which is a very promising technology. Plant communities play a vital role in immobilizing and reducing PFAS bioavailability through root absorption. Phytoremediation has the potential as a low-cost, long-term green solution, and can be employed on a wide scale as an in situ remediation strategy. However, there is still a significant lack of knowledge regarding the selection of plant species and methods to enhance their performance.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have emerged as significant environmental pollutants with far-reaching implications for both the environment and public health. These synthetic chemicals have been in use since the 1940s, finding applications in both industry and consumer products. Consequently, they have become pervasive in the environment, contaminating water sources, soil, and even the human body.

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are synthetic chemicals, which are introduced to the environment through anthropogenic activities. Remediation of PFAS contaminated soil and aqueous media is challenging, which is attributed to the chemical and thermal stability of PFAS and the complexity of PFAS mixtures. Plants absorb water and nutrients through their roots to maintain their continuous healthy growth. Phytoremediation is a method that uses the ability of plants to remove and stabilize contaminants from the environment. The aim of this study was to investigate the plant growth in the presence of high concentrations of PFOA using the germination test, and further investigate their potential to degrade PFOA in soil. The accumulation of PFOA in plants was monitored using target LC/MS/MS analysis.

Razvoj hemijske industrije u prošlom veku pozitivno je uticao na životni standard, ali je za sobom ostavio značajne količine toksičnih supstanci u životnoj sredini. Dugotrajne organske zagađujuće supstance (Persistant Organic Pollutants - POPs) su antropogene hemikalije koje se zadržavaju, akumuliraju u lancu ishrane i imaju štetne posledice po zdravlje ljudi i životnu sredinu [1]. Per- i polifluoralkil supstance (PFAS) kao što su perfluorooktanska kiselina (PFOA), perfluorooktan sulfonska kiselina (PFOS) i od 2022. godine perfluoroheksan sulfonska kiselina (PFHxS) se nalaze na listi POPs hemikalija [2]. Publikacije proistekle iz istraživanja na temu PFAS supstanci ukazuju da mikroorganizmi koji su izolovani iz životne sredine zagađene ovim jedinjenjima mogu smanjiti količinu istih usled biosorpcije, ali i potencijalne biotransformacije i biodegradacije [3,4].

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of synthetic chemicals with extremely strong C-F bonds. Due to their thermal stability, acid resistance, and high surface activity, they have been widely used for several decades in various consumer products. PFAS has been detected in water, soil, sediment, air, food, and biota samples on all continents and due to this are recognized as environmental and human health risk (Carlson et al. 2022). In the last decade, several available technologies were tested for the remediation of PFAS-polluted environments, such as adsorption, filtration, thermal destruction, oxidation/reduction, and soil washing, but several disadvantages were reported (Bolan et al., 2021). We hypothesize that by using advanced oxidation techniques followed by microbial treatment decrease in the concentration of PFOA as a PFAS model compound will occur. In the beginning, we tested separately abiotic and biotic degradation of PFOA. Target LC-MS/MS was used for quantitative analysis of PFOA decrease, and for detecting degradation products, nontargeted LC-MS/MS analysis was used. In the photocatalysis study, we used selected Ti and Al-based photocatalysts. The experiments were conducted at 20 °C in an open cylindrical polypropylene reactor, and a simulated solar radiation lamp (Solimed BH Quarzlampen) was used as a light source. Microbial communities were isolated from the locations in Serbia, Japan, and Italy known for their pollution with PFAS, and enrichment was conducted on the media supplemented with ppm values of PFOA (Beskoski et al., 2018). Microbial communities were used as inoculum in the PFOA biodegradation study.

Danas se u životnoj sredini mogu pronaći brojna hemijska jedinjenja koja je stvorio čovek u svojim laboratorijama. Ideja vodilja sredinom dvadesetog veka je bila kreirati jedinjenja kvalitetnih osobina koja će dugo imati upotrebnu vrednost a samim tim i dugo trajati. Neka od tih jedinjenja su danas prepoznata i kao „večne hemikalije”. Per- i polifluorovana jedinjenja (PFAS) su grupa sintetičkih hemijskih jedinjenja koja poseduju C- F, najjaču kovalentnu vezu. Zbog hemijske strukture koja im omogućava stabilnost na povišenim temperaturama, otpornost na niske pH vrednosti kao i visoku površinsku aktivnost, ova jedinjenja su u vidu različitih formulacija već nekoliko decenija našla široku primenu u brojnim potrošačkim proizvodima. Međutim, PFAS su poslednje dve decenije otkriveni u vodi, zemljištu, sedimentu, vazduhu, hrani i uzorcima biote na svim kontinentima, što prepoznato kao rizik za životnu sredinu i zdravlje ljudi. Zbog ovoga su u poslednjoj deceniji intenzivno testirane postojeće tehnologije za sanaciju i remedijaciju poput adsorpcije, filtracije, termalne destrukcije, oksidacije/redukcije kao i pranje zemljišta. Ipak, opisani su i brojni nedostaci ovih tehnologija.

Razvoj hemijske industrije u prošlom veku pozitivno je uticao na životni standard, ali je za sobom ostavio značajne količine toksičnih supstanci u životnoj sredini. Dugotrajne organske zagađujuće supstance (Persistant Organic Pollutants - POPs) su antropogene hemikalije koje se zadržavaju, akumuliraju u lancu ishrane i imaju štetne posledice po zdravlje ljudi i životnu sredinu. Cilj ovog rada je izolovanje bakterijskih sojeva sa zagađenih lokaliteta i njihova potencijalna primena u biodegradaciji perfluorovanih jedinjenja.

Poster presented at: 58th Meeting of the Serbian Chemical Society, Belgrade, Serbia, June 9-10, 2022

Vodeni rastvor boje (100 mL) RB5 od 25 mg/L i 1 mM H2O2 elektrohemijski je tretiran, koristeći Pt i Fe elektrodu. MFC ćelija se koristila kao izvor struje za degradaciju. Ekotoksikološka analiza pomoću bakterije Vibrio fisheri je pokazala da najveću toksičnost ima polazna boja RB5 (EC20 8,17%), dok nastali degradacioni proizvod nakon 6 h tretiranja strujom dobijenom preko MFC sistema ima najmanju toksičnost na spomenutu bakteriju (EC20 33,05%)., Aqueous dye solution (100 mL) RB5 of 25 mg / L and 1 mM H2O2 was electrochemically treated, using Pt and Fe electrode. The MFC cell was used as a current source for degradation. Ecotoxicological analysis using Vibrio fisheri showed that the highest toxicity is the RB5 dye (EC20 8.17%), while the resulting degradation product after 6 h of treatment with electricity obtained through the MFC system has the lowest toxicity to this bacterium (EC20 33.05%)