Quantification of anionic and nonionic surfactants in domestic wastewater samples collected from Romania

Abstract

Surfactants are substances that reduce surface tension and they are worldwide used in all branches of industry such as householder products, cosmeticals, pharmaceuticals, petroleum. The large utilization of surfactants is reflected in their accumulation in the domestic and industrial wastewaters and subsequently into the waste waster treatment plants (WWTP) and the environment. Once in the environment, the surfactants could harm it by inducing important changes in water quality which could directly affect the human life. This paper is a monitoring study of anionic and nonionic surfactants from domestic wastewaters during three seasons (winter 2018, spring 2018 and summer 2018). The samples were taken from specific sampling points along Romanian counties: Ilfov, Prahova, Giurgiu, Dambovita and Braila. The results showed that the concentration of the surfactants varied between 0.85 mg/L and 6.73 mg/L for anionic surfactants and 0.81 mg/L up to 6.48 mg/L for nonionic surfactants related to the accepted value of surfactants concentration (as sum of anionic and nonionic) of 25 mg/L (Romanian legislation, HG 352/2005, NTPA 002 and Annex 2/2005). Moreover, the study revealed that the highest concentration of both anionic and nonionic surfactants were detected in Dambovita County during summer.