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Microbial contamination and its associations with major ions in shallow groundwater along coastal Tamil Nadu

Vasudevan U, Gantayat RR, Chidambaram S, Prasanna MV, Venkatramanan S, Devaraj N, et al.

Environ Geochem Health, 2021 Feb;43(2):1069-1088.
PMID: 32940833 DOI: 10.1007/s10653-020-00712-1

Microbes in groundwater play a key role in determining the drinking water quality of the water. The study aims to interpret the sources of microbes in groundwater and its relationship to geochemistry. The study was carried out by collecting groundwater samples and analyzed to obtain various cations and anions, where HCO3-, Cl- and NO3- found to be higher than permissible limits in few samples. Microbial analysis, like total coliform (TC), total viable counts (TVC), fecal coliforms (FC), Vibrio cholera (V. cholerae) and total Streptococci (T. streptococci) were analyzed, and the observations reveal that most of the samples were found to be above the permissible limits adopted by EU, BIS, WHO and USEPA standards. Correlation analysis shows good correlation between Mg2+-HCO3-, K+-NO3-, TVC- V. cholerae and T. streptococci-FC. Major ions like Mg+, K+, NO3, Ca2+ and PO4 along with TS and FC were identified to control the geochemical and microbial activities in the region. The magnesium hardness in the groundwater is inferred to influence the TVC and V. cholerae. The mixing of effluents from different sources reflected the association of Cl with TC. Population of microbes T. streptococci and FC was mainly associated with Ca and Cl content in groundwater, depicting the role of electron acceptors and donors. The sources of the microbial population were observed with respect to the land use pattern and the spatial distribution of hydrogeochemical factors in the region. The study inferred that highest microbial activity in the observed in the residential areas, cultivated regions and around the landfill sites due to the leaching of sewage water and fertilizers runoff into groundwater. The concentrations of ions and microbes were found to be above the permissible limits of drinking water quality standards. This may lead to the deterioration in the health of particular coastal region.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/microbiology*; Groundwater/chemistry*
A review of the management of water resources in Malaysia facing climate change

Fulazzaky MA, Syafiuddin A, Muda K, Martin AY, Yusop Z, Ghani NHA

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2023 Dec;30(58):121865-121880.
PMID: 37962755 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-30967-x

This paper reviewed the impacts of climate change on the management of the water sector in Malaysia discussing the current status of water resources, water service, and water-related disasters. The implementation of engineering practices was discussed to provide the detailed assessment of climate change impacts, risks, and adaptation for sustainable development. The narrative methods of reviewing the literatures were used to get an understanding on the engineering practices of water infrastructures, implication of the government policies, and several models as the main motivation behind the concept of integrated water resource management to contribute as part of the sustainable development goals to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. The findings of this review highlighted the impacts of climate change on the rivers, sea, lakes, dams, and groundwater affecting the availability of water for domestic and industrial water supplies, irrigation, hydropower, and fisheries. The impacts of climate change on the water-related disasters have been indicated affecting drought-flood abrupt alternation and water pollution. Challenges of water management practices facing climate change should be aware of the updated intensity-duration-frequency curves, alternative sources of water, effective water demand management, efficiency of irrigation water, inter-basin water transfer, and nonrevenue water. The transferability of this review findings contribute to an engagement with the society and policy makers to mobilize for climate change adaptation in the water sector.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Non-nutritive artificial sweeteners as an emerging contaminant in environment: A global review and risks perspectives

Praveena SM, Cheema MS, Guo HR

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2019 Apr 15;170:699-707.
PMID: 30580164 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2018.12.048

Generally, non-nutritive artificial sweeteners are widely utilized as sugar substitute in various applications. With various applications, non-nutritive artificial sweeteners are now being recognized as emerging contaminants with high water persistence and are chemically stable in environment. Although non-nutritive artificial sweeteners were documented on their occurrence in environment, yet their potential impacts to environment and human health remain ambiguous. Therefore, this review was prepared to provide a more comprehensive insight of non-nutritive artificial sweeteners in environment matrixes by highlighting special concerns on human health and environmental risks. Precisely, this review monitors the exploration of non-nutritive artificial sweeteners occurrences as an emerging contaminants in environment worldwide and their associated risks to human as well as environment. At present, there are a total of 24 non-nutritive artificial sweeteners' studies with regards to their occurrence in the environment from 38 locations globally, spanning across Europe including United Kingdoms, Canada, United States and Asia. Overall, the quantitative findings suggested that the occurrence of non-nutritive artificial sweeteners is present in surface water, tap water, groundwater, seawater, lakes and atmosphere. Among these environmental matrixes, surface water was found as the most studied matrix involving non-nutritive artificial sweeteners. However, findings on non-nutritive artificial sweeteners impacts on human health and environment are limited to understanding its overall potential impacts and risks. Additionally, this review also serves as a framework for future monitoring plans and environmental legislative to better control these emerging contaminants in environment.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/chemistry*
Evaluation of quality and hydrogeochemistry of rock aquifers in Jurong Formation at Southern Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Rathinasamy V, Mohamad ET, Komoo I, Legiman MKA, Romanah NA, Hanapi MNB

Environ Monit Assess, 2023 Jun 16;195(7):850.
PMID: 37326879 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-023-11453-w

Jurong Formation underlies part of Southern Johor Bahru which comprises well cemented and consolidated volcanic-sedimentary rocks. The study aims to assess quality and hydrogeochemistry of rock aquifer in Jurong Formation at Southern Johor Bahru which is mainly overlain by rhyolitic tuff. It also evaluates the differences in quality and hydrogeochemistry of rhyolitic tuff aquifer found in source and floodplain zones of South-West Johor Rivers Basin. In this study, a total of nine samples from four wells, namely TW1-TW4, were collected at foothills of Gunung Pulai (TW1) and Iskandar Puteri (TW2-TW4) in Southern Johor Bahru. The samples were examined for physiochemical parameters. The groundwater in the study area is fresh and non-saline with hardness of soft to hard. The pH of groundwater in source zone is significantly higher than in floodplain zone. Meanwhile, the hardness of groundwater in source zone is significantly lower than in other deep wells in floodplain zone as more calcite mineral is present. The concentration of manganese, iron and zinc is lower at source zone than floodplain zone. Three facies of water types were encountered during the study such as CaNaHCO3 in TW2, CaHCO3 in TW1 and TW3 and CaCl2 in TW4. The deep wells in floodplain zone are susceptible to saline intrusion. Finally, the groundwater quality in the study area is found to control by rock weathering especially silicates and carbonates, rainfall and proximity to seawater. This suggests the major control on groundwater chemistry is due to leaching of volcanic rocks and dissolution on calcite infillings. In conclusion, the groundwater is clean and safe in general although pH value is slightly acidic closer to straits and magnesium's presence in higher concentration at TW2.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Beberapa Hasil Penyiasatan Geofizik di Kawasan Bachok, Kelantan (Results on Geophysical Survey of Areas in Bachok, Kelantan)

Abd. Rahim Samsudin, Umar Hamzah, Abd. Ghani Rafek, Haryono

Sains Malaysiana, 1996;25.

The whole Bachok area is covered by alluvial deposit. The alluvium has three aquifers at depth of 0 - 5, 15 - 30 and 40 - 60 meters below surface. Preliminary geophysical surveys including seismic refraction, reflection and resistivity techniques have been carried out to investigate thickness and depth of the aquifers, depth of bedrock and the salinity of the underground water. Results show that the position of first aquifer has been well determined by seismic refraction technique. Whereas the details of deeper aquifers and the bedrock have been determined by seismic reflection techniques. Geoelectrical resistivity low obtained for the first aquifer suggest that it could be due to either salt water intrusion or the presence of marine clay.
Keseluruhan kawasan Bachok merupakan endapan aluvium. Endapan ini mempunyai tiga akuifer pada kedalaman 0 - 5 meter, 15 - 30 meter dan 40 - 60 meter. Kajian geofizik pada tahap awal yang merangkumi aspek seismos biasan, seismos pantulan dan kerintangan geoelektrik telah dilakukan untuk menyiasat ketebalan dan kedalaman akuifer, kedalaman batu dasar dan kemasinan air tanah. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa teknik seismos biasan telah dapat menghasilkan maklumat mengenai kedudukan akuifer pertama. manakala teknik seismos pantulan menghasilkan maklumat terperinci mengenai akuifer kedua dan ketiga serta batu dasar. Nilai kerintangan geoelektrik rendah bagi akuifer pertama menunjukkan sama ada disebabkan oleh intrusi air masin atau kehadiran lempung samudera.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Environmental arsenic epidemiology in the Mekong river basin of Cambodia

Phan K, Kim KW, Hashim JH

Environ Res, 2014 Nov;135:37-41.
PMID: 25262072 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2014.07.031

We investigated relationship of arsenicosis symptoms with total blood arsenic (BAs) and serum albumin (SAlb) of residents in the Mekong River basin of Cambodia. We found that arsenicosis patients had significantly higher BAs and lower SAlb than asymptomatic villagers (Mann-Whitney U test, p<0.01). Arsenicosis symptoms were found to be 76.4% (1.764 times) more likely to develop among individuals having an SAlb≤44.3gL(-1) than among those who had an SAlb>44.3gL(-1) (OR=1.764, 95% CI=0.999-3.114) and 117.6% (2.176 times) as likely to occur among those with BAs>5.73µgL(-1) than for those having BAs≤5.73µgL(-1) (OR=2.176, 95% CI=1.223-3.872). Furthermore, a significant negative correlation was also found between BAs and SAlb (rs (199)=-0.354, p<0.0001). As such, this study suggests that people with low SAlb and/or high BAs are likely to rapidly develop arsenicosis symptoms.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/chemistry*
Current status of arsenic exposure and social implication in the Mekong River basin of Cambodia

Phan K, Kim KW, Huoy L, Phan S, Se S, Capon AG, et al.

Environ Geochem Health, 2016 Jun;38(3):763-72.
PMID: 26298061 DOI: 10.1007/s10653-015-9759-z

To evaluate the current status of arsenic exposure in the Mekong River basin of Cambodia, field interview along with urine sample collection was conducted in the arsenic-affected area of Kandal Province, Cambodia. Urine samples were analyzed for total arsenic concentrations by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. As a result, arsenicosis patients (n = 127) had As in urine (UAs) ranging from 3.76 to 373 µg L(-1) (mean = 78.7 ± 69.8 µg L(-1); median = 60.2 µg L(-1)). Asymptomatic villagers (n = 108) had UAs ranging from 5.93 to 312 µg L(-1) (mean = 73.0 ± 52.2 µg L(-1); median = 60.5 µg L(-1)). About 24.7 % of all participants had UAs greater than 100 µg L(-1) which indicated a recent arsenic exposure. A survey found that females and adults were more likely to be diagnosed with skin sign of arsenicosis than males and children, respectively. Education level, age, gender, groundwater drinking period, residence time in the village and amount of water drunk per day may influence the incidence of skin signs of arsenicosis. This study suggests that residents in Kandal study area are currently at risk of arsenic although some mitigation has been implemented. More commitment should be made to address this public health concern in rural Cambodia.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/chemistry
Fulltext Drinking water studies: a review on heavy metal, application of biomarker and health risk assessment (a special focus in Malaysia)

Ab Razak NH, Praveena SM, Aris AZ, Hashim Z

J Epidemiol Glob Health, 2015 Dec;5(4):297-310.
PMID: 25944153 DOI: 10.1016/j.jegh.2015.04.003

Malaysia has abundant sources of drinking water from river and groundwater. However, rapid developments have deteriorated quality of drinking water sources in Malaysia. Heavy metal studies in terms of drinking water, applications of health risk assessment and bio-monitoring in Malaysia were reviewed from 2003 to 2013. Studies on heavy metal in drinking water showed the levels are under the permissible limits as suggested by World Health Organization and Malaysian Ministry of Health. Future studies on the applications of health risk assessment are crucial in order to understand the risk of heavy metal exposure through drinking water to Malaysian population. Among the biomarkers that have been reviewed, toenail is the most useful tool to evaluate body burden of heavy metal. Toenails are easy to collect, store, transport and analysed. This review will give a clear guidance for future studies of Malaysian drinking water. In this way, it will help risk managers to minimize the exposure at optimum level as well as the government to formulate policies in safe guarding the population.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/chemistry
Fulltext Groundwater from fractured granite and metasedimentary rocks in the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia

Nasiman Sapari, Raja Zainariah Raja Azie, Hisyam Jusoh

Pertanika Journal of Science & Technology, 2012;20(2):371-379.
MyJurnal

Hard rock formations consisting of granite and metasedimentary rocks in Peninsular Malaysia, have beenconsidered to be of poor aquifers. The map of shows the area underlain by hard rock as having poorto moderate potential for groundwater production (

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Fulltext Chemical reaction and variable viscosity effect on mixed heat and mass transfer convection for Hiemenz flow over a porous wedge with heat radiation

Kandasamy, R., Azme, Hashim, I., Ismoen, M.

ASM Science Journal, 2008;2(1):23-33.
MyJurnal

The effect of chemical reaction and variable viscosity on mixed convection heat and mass transfer for Hiemenz flow over a porous wedge plate was studied in the presence of heat radiation. The wall of the wedge was embedded in a uniform Darcian porous medium to allow for possible fluid wall suction or injection and had a power-law variation of both the wall temperature and concentration. The fluid was assumed to be viscous and incompressible. Numerical calculations were carried out for different values of dimensionless parameters and an analysis of the results obtained showed that the flow field was influenced appreciably by the buoyancy ratio between species, thermal diffusion and suction/injection at wall surface. The effects of these major parameters on the transport behaviours were investigated methodically and typical results illustrated to reveal the tendency of the solutions. Representative results are presented for the velocity, temperature, and concentration distributions. Comparisons with previously published works were performed and excellent agreement between the results were obtained. It is predicted that this research might prove to be useful for study of the movement of oil or gas and water through the reservoir of an oil or gas field, in the migration of underground water, in filtration, and water purification processes.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Fulltext Association of Physicochemical Characteristics, Aggregate Indices, Major Ions, and Trace Elements in Developing Groundwater Quality Index (GWQI) in Agricultural Area

Harun HH, Kasim MRM, Nurhidayu S, Ash'aari ZH, Kusin FM, Karim MKA

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 04 25;18(9).
PMID: 33923119 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18094562

The aim of this study was to propose a groundwater quality index (GWQI) that presents water quality data as a single number and represents the water quality level. The development of the GWQI in agricultural areas is vital as the groundwater considered as an alternative water source for domestic purposes. The insufficiency of the groundwater quality standard in Malaysia revealed the importance of the GWQI development in determining the quality of groundwater. Groundwater samples were collected from thirteen groundwater wells in the Northern Kuala Langat and the Southern Kuala Langat regions from February 2018 to January 2019. Thirty-four parameters that embodied physicochemical characteristics, aggregate indicator, major ions, and trace elements were considered in the development of the GWQI. Multivariate analysis has been used to finalize the important parameters by using principal component analysis (PCA). Notably, seven parameters-electrical conductivity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), magnesium, calcium, potassium, sodium, and chloride were chosen to evaluate the quality of groundwater. The GWQI was then verified by comparing the groundwater quality in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. A sensitivity analysis was performed on this index to verify its reliability. The sensitivity GWQI has been analyzed and showed high sensitivity to any changes of the pollutant parameters. The development of GWQI should be beneficial to the public, practitioners, and industries. From another angle, this index can help to detect any form of pollution which ultimately could be minimized by controlling the sources of pollutants.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Enhancing nitrate and strontium concentration prediction in groundwater by using new data mining algorithm

Bui DT, Khosravi K, Karimi M, Busico G, Khozani ZS, Nguyen H, et al.

Sci Total Environ, 2020 May 01;715:136836.
PMID: 32007881 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.136836

Groundwater resources constitute the main source of clean fresh water for domestic use and it is essential for food production in the agricultural sector. Groundwater has a vital role for water supply in the Campanian Plain in Italy and hence a future sustainability of the resource is essential for the region. In the current paper novel data mining algorithms including Gaussian Process (GP) were used in a large groundwater quality database to predict nitrate (contaminant) and strontium (potential future increasing) concentrations in groundwater. The results were compared with M5P, random forest (RF) and random tree (RT) algorithms as a benchmark to test the robustness of the modeling process. The dataset includes 246 groundwater quality samples originating from different wells, municipals and agricultural. It was divided for the modeling process into two subgroups by using the 10-fold cross validation technique including 173 samples for model building (training dataset) and 73 samples for model validation (testing dataset). Different water quality variables including T, pH, EC, HCO3-, F-, Cl-, SO42-, Na+, K+, Mg2+, and Ca2+ have been used as an input to the models. At first stage, different input combinations have been constructed based on correlation coefficient and thus the optimal combination was chosen for the modeling phase. Different quantitative criteria alongside with visual comparison approach have been used for evaluating the modeling capability. Results revealed that to obtain reliable results also variables with low correlation should be considered as an input to the models together with those variables showing high correlation coefficients. According to the model evaluation criteria, GP algorithm outperforms all the other models in predicting both nitrate and strontium concentrations followed by RF, M5P and RT, respectively. Result also revealed that model's structure together with the accuracy and structure of the data can have a relevant impact on the model's results.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Detecting and predicting the impact of land use changes on groundwater quality, a case study in Northern Kelantan, Malaysia

Sheikhy Narany T, Aris AZ, Sefie A, Keesstra S

Sci Total Environ, 2017 Dec 01;599-600:844-853.
PMID: 28501010 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.04.171

The conversions of forests and grass land to urban and farmland has exerted significant changes on terrestrial ecosystems. However, quantifying how these changes can affect the quality of water resources is still a challenge for hydrologists. Nitrate concentrations can be applied as an indicator to trace the link between land use changes and groundwater quality due to their solubility and easy transport from their source to the groundwater. In this study, 25year records (from 1989 to 2014) of nitrate concentrations are applied to show the impact of land use changes on the quality of groundwater in Northern Kelantan, Malaysia, where large scale deforestation in recent decades has occurred. The results from the integration of time series analysis and geospatial modelling revealed that nitrate (NO3-N) concentrations significantly increased with approximately 8.1% and 3.89% annually in agricultural and residential wells, respectively, over 25years. In 1989 only 1% of the total area had a nitrate value greater than 10mg/L; and this value increased sharply to 48% by 2014. The significant increase in nitrate was only observed in a shallow aquifer with a 3.74% annual nitrate increase. Based on the result of the Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model the nitrate contamination is expected to continue to rise by about 2.64% and 3.9% annually until 2030 in agricultural and residential areas. The present study develops techniques for detecting and predicting the impact of land use changes on environmental parameters as an essential step in land and water resource management strategy development.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Optimization of fluoride removal by Al doped ZnO nanoparticles using response surface methodology from groundwater

Pillai P, Dharaskar S, Khalid M

Chemosphere, 2021 Dec;284:131317.
PMID: 34216929 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131317

The current novel work presents the optimization of factors affecting defluoridation by Al doped ZnO nanoparticles using response surface methodology (RSM). Al doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by the sol-gel method and validated by FTIR, XRD, TEM/EDS, TGA, BET, and particle size analysis. Moreover, a central composite design (CCD) was developed for the experimental study to know the interaction between Al doped ZnO adsorbent dosage, initial concentration of fluoride, and contact time on fluoride removal efficiency (response) and optimization of the process. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was achieved to discover the importance of the individual and the effect of variables on the response. The model predicted that the response significantly correlated with the experimental response (R2 = 0.97). Among the factors, the effect of adsorbent dose and contact time was considered to have more influence on the response than the concentration. The optimized process parameters by RSM presented the adsorbent dosage: 0.005 g, initial concentration of fluoride: 1.5 g/L, and contact time: 5 min, respectively. Kinetic, isotherm, and thermodynamic studies were also investigated. The co-existing ions were also studied. These results demonstrated that Al doped ZnO could be a promising adsorbent for effective defluoridation for water.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Assessment of groundwater nitrate contamination hazard in a semi-arid region by using integrated parametric IPNOA and data-driven logistic regression models

Rizeei HM, Azeez OS, Pradhan B, Khamees HH

Environ Monit Assess, 2018 Oct 04;190(11):633.
PMID: 30288624 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-018-7013-8

Groundwater hazard assessments involve many activities dealing with the impacts of pollution on groundwater, such as human health studies and environment modelling. Nitrate contamination is considered a hazard to human health, environment and ecosystem. In groundwater management, the hazard should be assessed before any action can be taken, particularly for groundwater pollution and water quality. Thus, pollution due to the presence of nitrate poses considerable hazard to drinking water, and excessive nutrient loads deteriorate the ecosystem. The parametric IPNOA model is one of the well-known methods used for evaluating nitrate content. However, it cannot predict the effect of soil and land use/land cover (LULC) types on calculations relying on parametric well samples. Therefore, in this study, the parametric model was trained and integrated with the multivariate data-driven model with different levels of information to assess groundwater nitrate contamination in Saladin, Iraq. The IPNOA model was developed with 185 different well samples and contributing parameters. Then, the IPNOA model was integrated with the logistic regression (LR) model to predict the nitrate contamination levels. Geographic information system techniques were also used to assess the spatial prediction of nitrate contamination. High-resolution SPOT-5 satellite images with 5 m spatial resolution were processed by object-based image analysis and support vector machine algorithm to extract LULC. Mapping of potential areas of nitrate contamination was examined using receiver operating characteristic assessment. Results indicated that the optimised LR-IPNOA model was more accurate in determining and analysing the nitrate hazard concentration than the standalone IPNOA model. This method can be easily replicated in other areas that have similar climatic condition. Therefore, stakeholders in planning and environmental decision makers could benefit immensely from the proposed method of this research, which can be potentially used for a sustainable management of urban, industrialised and agricultural sectors.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater/analysis; Groundwater/chemistry*
Identification of vulnerable regions to soil loss under the dynamic saturation process

Kok K, Kim JC

Sci Total Environ, 2019 Apr 01;659:1209-1223.
PMID: 31096334 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.398

This study presents a theoretical framework based on power law distribution to identify the vulnerable regions to soil loss in Susu river basin at Cameron Highlands, Malaysia by using the geomorphologic factors from Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Drainage area is used to describe the runoff aggregation structure of the watershed which represents the magnitude of discharge. Stream power is also used to describe the energy expenditure pattern of the watershed. They are fitted to power law distribution by means of the maximum likelihood to estimate the threshold for soil loss. The landscape stability condition is assessed through the mechanism of channel initiation. Two regions in the slope area plot are recognized as the regimes susceptible to soil loss, in that discharge, local slope and energy are sufficient for the initiation of soil movement. The result is further improved by incorporating the Topographic Wetness Index (TWI) aiming to locate vulnerable regions to soil loss under the dynamic saturation process. The final result indicates that the vulnerable regions expand from perennial reaches to ephemeral reaches as saturation process develops. It implies the transition of runoff generation from groundwater in perennial reaches to surface runoff in ephemeral reaches. Identification of soil loss vulnerable regions under the dynamic saturation process helps in planning of the mitigation measures for soil erosion.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Fulltext Spatial Analysis of Groundwater Hydrochemistry through Integrated Multivariate Analysis: A Case Study in the Urbanized Langat Basin, Malaysia

Zainol NFM, Zainuddin AH, Looi LJ, Aris AZ, Isa NM, Sefie A, et al.

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 05 27;18(11).
PMID: 34071804 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18115733

Rapid urbanization and industrial development in the Langat Basin has disturbed the groundwater quality. The populations' reliance on groundwater sources may induce possible risks to human health such as cancer and endocrine dysfunction. This study aims to determine the groundwater quality of an urbanized basin through 24 studied hydrochemical parameters from 45 groundwater samples obtained from 15 different sampling stations by employing integrated multivariate analysis. The abundance of the major ions was in the following order: bicarbonate (HCO3-) > chloride (Cl-) > sodium (Na+) > sulphate (SO42-) > calcium (Ca2+) > potassium (K+) > magnesium (Mg2+). Heavy metal dominance was in the following order: Fe > Mn > Zn > As > Hg > Pb > Ni > Cu > Cd > Se > Sr. Classification of the groundwater facies indicated that the studied groundwater belongs to the Na-Cl with saline water type and Na-HCO3 with mix water type characteristics. The saline water type characteristics are derived from agricultural activities, while the mixed water types occur from water-rock interaction. Multivariate analysis performance suggests that industrial, agricultural, and weathering activities have contributed to groundwater contamination. The study will help in the understanding of the groundwater quality issue and serve as a reference for other basins with similar characteristics.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Comparative Evaluation of Dental and Skeletal Fluorosis in an Endemic Fluorosed District, Salem, Tamil Nadu

Ramesh M, Malathi N, Ramesh K, Aruna RM, Kuruvilla S

J Pharm Bioallied Sci, 2017 Nov;9(Suppl 1):S88-S91.
PMID: 29284943 DOI: 10.4103/jpbs.JPBS_77_17

Background: High levels of fluoride in the drinking water, especially ground water, results in skeletal fluorosis which involves the bone and major joints. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence of skeletal fluorosis to compare with dental fluorosis in an endemically fluorosed population in the District of Salem, Tamil Nadu.
Materials and Methods: Institutional ethical clearance was obtained. A total of 206 patients who reported to the Department of Hematology for blood investigations were the participants in this study. Age, sex, place, weight, height, dental fluorosis, and skeletal complaints were noted down. Body mass index was calculated, and statistical analysis was performed.
Results: Dental fluorosis was present in 63.1% and absent in 36.9% of the samples reported. Skeletal fluorosis was present in 24.8% and was absent in 75.2%. A large number of the patients had knee pain and difficulty in bending. Chi-square test was used for statistical analysis. Skeletal fluorosis and age were compared and P value was 0.00 and was significant. Dental fluorosis and skeletal fluorosis were compared and P value was found to be 0.000 and significant.
Discussion and Conclusion: There is a need to take measures to prevent dental and skeletal fluorosis among the residents of Salem district. Calcium balance should be maintained, and fluoride intake should be minimized to reduce the symptoms. The government should provide water with low fluoride level for drinking and cooking. Once the symptoms develop, treatment largely remains symptomatic, using analgesics and physiotherapy.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater
Energy recovery and carbon/nitrogen removal from sewage and contaminated groundwater in a coupled hydrolytic-acidogenic sequencing batch reactor and denitrifying biocathode microbial fuel cell

Al-Mamun A, Jafary T, Baawain MS, Rahman S, Choudhury MR, Tabatabaei M, et al.

Environ Res, 2020 04;183:109273.
PMID: 32105886 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109273

Developing cost-effective technology for treatment of sewage and nitrogen-containing groundwater is one of the crucial challenges of global water industries. Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) oxidize organics from sewage by exoelectrogens on anode to produce electricity while denitrifiers on cathode utilize the generated electricity to reduce nitrogen from contaminated groundwater. As the exoelectrogens are incapable of oxidizing insoluble, polymeric, and complex organics, a novel integration of an anaerobic sequencing batch reactor (ASBR) prior to the MFC simultaneously achieve hydrolytic-acidogenic conversion of complex organics, boost power recovery, and remove Carbon/Nitrogen (C/N) from the sewage and groundwater. The results obtained revealed increases in the fractions of soluble organics and volatile fatty acids in pretreated sewage by 52 ± 19% and 120 ± 40%, respectively. The optimum power and current generation with the pretreated sewage were 7.1 W m-3 and 45.88 A m-3, respectively, corresponding to 8% and 10% improvements compared to untreated sewage. Moreover, the integration of the ASBR with the biocathode MFC led to 217% higher carbon and 136% higher nitrogen removal efficiencies compared to the similar system without ASBR. The outcomes of the present study represent the promising prospects of using ASBR pretreatment and successive utilization of solubilized organics in denitrifying biocathode MFCs for simultaneous energy recovery and C/N removal from both sewage and nitrate nitrogen-contaminated groundwater.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*
Resource utilization of rice straw to prepare biochar as peroxymonosulfate activator for naphthalene removal: Performances, mechanisms, environmental impact and applicability in groundwater

Zhang JB, Dai C, Wang Z, You X, Duan Y, Lai X, et al.

Water Res, 2023 Oct 01;244:120555.
PMID: 37666149 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120555

Herein, biochar was prepared using rice straw, and it served as the peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activator to degrade naphthalene (NAP). The results showed that pyrolysis temperature has played an important role in regulating biochar structure and properties. The biochar prepared at 900°C (BC900) had the best activation capacity and could remove NAP in a wide range of initial pH (5-11). In the system of BC900/PMS, multi-reactive species were produced, in which 1O2 and electron transfer mainly contributed to NAP degradation. In addition, the interference of complex groundwater components on the NAP removal rate must get attention. Cl- had a significant promotional effect but risked the formation of chlorinated disinfection by-products. HCO3-, CO32-, and humic acid (HA) had an inhibitory effect; surfactants had compatibility problems with the BC900/PMS system, which could lead to unproductive consumption of PMS. Significantly, the BC900/PMS system showed satisfactory remediation performance in spiked natural groundwater and soil, and it could solve the problem of persistent groundwater contamination caused by NAP desorption from the soil. Besides, the degradation pathway of NAP was proposed, and the BC900/PMS system could degrade NAP into low or nontoxic products. These suggest that the BC900/PMS system has promising applications in in-situ groundwater remediation.

Matched MeSH terms: Groundwater*

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