Removal of priority and emerging substances by wastewater treatment plants

Abstract

Sewage treatment plants were not designed for removing micropollutants. They do, however, remove a significant amount of them, mainly by adsorption on biological sludge associated with biological degradation for certain substances. This article presents the main recent findings concerning the behaviour of micropollutants through primary, secondary and tertiary treatment processes and the associated sludge systems. It also presents the research in progress for their optimization.