Remediation of Persistent Organic Pollutants Using Advanced Techniques

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have adverse effects on the environment as they accumulate in the fatty acids and have a half-life on the scale of years to decades. These pollutants are contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) owing to their biological concerns related to health impacts and also economic benefits. In the US, UK, and Asia about 20% of the food is reported to be contaminated with low levels of POPs and there is no scientific accord on whether these low-level POPs are a matter of concern for humans. The treatment and removal of these organic pollutants are difficult as they travel to far areas through different mediums such as food, air, water, and soil. Remediation of POPs from air, water, soil, and other environmental compartments is crucial and a fundamental concern. For the remediation of POPs conventional treatments such as physio-chemical methods, i.e., coagulation, flocculation, oxidation, and adsorption have been utilized extensively in past decades. However, one of the useful methods of remediating POP pollution in the environment is bioremediation. Biological methods are expected to be a tremendous accomplishment in the cleanup of POPs by having advantages over conventional process. There are different methods that are used to remove these pollutants such as bioremediation, osmosis, adsorption process, membrane technology, and AOPs. For the implementation of these techniques there is a need to consider other factors such as economy, potential, and technical feasibility. Different research projects have been carried out and attempts have been made to find alternatives that are more cost effective. POPs are of great importance for some industries; thus, they are not totally avoidable. The only solution to this problem is to adapt techniques that can degrade the POPs effectively.