Cationic polyacrylamide copolymers (PAMs): environmental half life determination in sludge-treated soil.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Cationic polyacrylamide copolymers (PAMs) are used for sludge dewatering in municipal waste water treatment and might enter the environment by spreading of the sludge on agricultural land. Concern has been expressed since little is known about the degradation of PAMs in soils. To obtain detailed information on the polymer's fate in the soil compartment, the degradation of ¹⁴C-radiolabelled PAM in an outdoor lysimeter was studied.

Results

No plant uptake and leaching of radioactivity was observed. There was practically no vertical movement of polymer and no transformation products found at the end of the study. For the top 10 cm soil layer, a mass balance was established throughout the study. About 10% of applied radioactivity was not extractable from so

SUBMITTER: Hennecke D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5959997 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature