Chabazite from Campanian Ignimbrite Tuff as a Potential and Sustainable Remediation Agent for the Removal of Emerging Contaminants from Water

The technological performance of a chabazite-rich rock belonging to the Campanian Ignimbrite formation, outcropping in the nearby of San Mango sul Calore (southern Italy), has been evaluated for the sorption and release of ibuprofen sodium salt after a surface modification of the starting geomaterial using two different chlorinated surfactants. Equilibrium sorption isotherms and in vitro loading tests demonstrated that the maximum sorption capacities of this geomaterial reach up to 24.5 and 13.5 mg/g, respectively, for zeolite modified with cetylpyridinium and benzalkonium. These results, obtained by non-linear mathematical modeling of the experimental curves, are definitely compatible with the concentrations of the most common non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (such as ibuprofen) in wastewaters, which have been recently considered as contaminants of emerging concern. This investigation also encourages a new possible sustainable exploitation of the lithified yellow facies of Campanian Ignimbrite, although future developments will be focused on using more stable and eco-friendlier two-tailed surfactants.

A Review on Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Environment: A Focus on Active Chemicals in Sub-Saharan Africa

Active chemicals are among the contaminants of emerging concern that are rarely covered in regulatory documents in sub-Saharan Africa. These substances are neither in the list of routinely monitored substances nor in the guidelines for routine environmental monitoring activities. This has been of concern to public health officials, toxicologists, communities, and governments, hence the need for risk assessment and regulation of these substances. In this review article, the presence of active chemicals in the sub-Saharan African environment was investigated. The results indicate the availability of few studies in some countries, while in other countries no reports of active chemicals were found, hence the need for further research targeting such countries. It was further observed that mixtures of active chemicals from different therapeutic categories—such as antibiotics and analgesics—were reported. The natural environment is increasingly at risk due to the presence of these substances, their metabolites, and their transformation byproducts. These substances are characterized by persistence as a result of their non-biodegradable nature; hence, they circulate from one environmental compartment to another through the food chain, causing harm along the way. Most studies that evaluated the toxicity of these substances considered the effects of a single drug, but observations indicated the presence of drug mixtures, hence the need for further evaluation of the effects of drug–drug interactions—including synergistic and additive effects—for environmental sustainability. The presence of ACs in several environmental compartments at quantifiable quantities was discovered in this investigation, indicating the potential for ecosystem injury as a result of bioaccumulation, bioconcentration, and biomagnification through the food chain. This necessitates further research on the subject in order to ensure a healthier environment.