Journal of Environmental Management最新文献

{"title":"Enhanced denitrification efficiency and utilization characteristics of released carbon from low-lignin woody biomass.","authors":"Riyue Huang, Rongting Hu, Zhuolin Yang, Xin Li, Yuxin Li, Lingyue Ma","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127475","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127475","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Woody biomass is a popular natural carbon source for eliminating nitrate when used in denitrifying bioreactors, exhibiting a slow denitrification rate due to its high lignin content and complexity of released carbon products. Herein, woodchips with lower lignin contents were placed in denitrification columns for 485 days, followed by sampling to simulate the carbon-release and denitrification utilization steps. The results showed that low-lignin woodchips could maintain a high denitrification efficiency for 485 days. The average rate of nitrate removal from low-lignin woodchips increased 2.5-6.0 times compared with that of natural woodchips, where the rate was 11.6 mg N/(d·L) during days 297-351 at 20-25 °C. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC), nitrite, and ammonium content in the effluent increased with gradual decrease in lignin content of woodchips. Low-lignin woodchips showed significant decrease in extractives, hemicellulose, and volume density. The lifespan of low-lignin woodchips was less than half that of natural woodchip. Denitrification of low-lignin woodchips led to weakening of specific infrared peaks, including peaks attributed to C=O, C-O, and C=C bonds. Around 36.8 %-38.0 % of released DOC from low-lignin woodchips was consumed during denitrification, while only 24.5 % of released DOC from natural woodchips was consumed. Both the volatile fatty acid and reducing sugar contents from the woodchips were exhausted, while most total phenols and humic acid-like substances remained after denitrification. For application, removal of lignin from woodchips could markedly improve the nitrate removal efficiency when used in a bioreactor, and control of lignin removal could be used to decrease the concentrations of by-products such as residual DOC and ammonium. The residual DOC could be further treated as well with chemical coagulation, absorption, or biological oxidation. The excess nitrite produced with the low-lignin woodchips would be eliminated through the extended hydraulic retention time in the woodchip bioreactor.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127475"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145205182","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Gallium and germanium leaching from jarosite cake by organic acid: a combined experimental and DFT approach.","authors":"Partha Pratim Mondal, Christian Hintersatz, Soniya Dhiman, Bradley Martin Guy, Sabine Matys, Shaikh Ziauddin Ahammad, Rohan Jain","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127375","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127375","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Hydrometallurgical zinc plant residues are recognized as a significant environmental hazard due to the potential for heavy metals and acids to dissolve upon exposure to rainwater. This process allows contaminants to infiltrate soil and groundwater, posing a threat to aquatic systems and ecosystems. To address these environmental concerns, a hydrometallurgical leaching process has been developed for the non-toxic co-treatment of jarosite cake (JC), to prevent pollution while enabling the efficient extraction of valuable metals. In this study, an innovative approach for the leaching of gallium (Ga) and germanium (Ge) from JC was developed using organic acids, specifically oxalic and citric acid. The effects of various process parameters, including operating temperature, solid-to-liquid ratio, acid concentration, and leaching duration, were examined and optimized. Under optimal conditions, extraction efficiencies of 96.0 ± 0.6 % for Ga and 79.0 ± 3.8 % for Ge were achieved. To further understand the leaching mechanism, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to investigate the interactions of Ga and Ge with organic acids and water molecules. Geometric structure and electrostatic potential were considered in these calculations, and the crucial role of pH in the leaching process was identified. Both experimental analysis and DFT calculations confirmed that the leaching of Ga and Ge occurred through acidolysis and complexolysis mechanisms. Prior to leaching, mineral liberation analysis (MLA) was conducted, which indicated the presence of these metals in sulfate, silicate, and oxide phases within the JC. The results obtained in this study demonstrate that organic acid leaching can serve as an effective and environmentally sustainable method for the extraction of Ga and Ge from JC. This approach not only facilitates the recovery of valuable metals but also contributes to the mitigation of environmental risks associated with hydrometallurgical zinc plant residues.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127375"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145205130","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A blockchain-based approach to enhance transparency and sustainability in a joint pricing and closed-loop supply chain network design problem.","authors":"Shayan Firouzian-Haji, S Emran Eshghollahi, Matineh Ziari, Reza Tavakkoli-Moghaddam, Parsa Rezaei","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127463","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127463","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This paper explores how blockchain technology (BCT) and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) can effectively address challenges in supply chain management (SCM) by enhancing transparency, improving traceability, and reducing fraud. To this aim, a closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) model is introduced, integrating DAOs and smart contracts to promote environmental responsibility, economic viability, and social sustainability. The approach begins with developing a novel bi-objective sustainable joint pricing and closed-loop network design model, prioritizing profitability while ensuring compliance with environmental regulations and social responsibilities. Then, an integrated framework is created that combines smart contracts and DAOs to tackle transparency issues in product pricing and CO2 emission taxes. This framework empowers stakeholders to make real-time collective decisions, enhancing agility and flexibility through various strategies, including adopting green machinery, minimizing production lines, and utilizing off-chain processing. For optimizing the developed model was solved with the NSGA-III algorithm. The approach is applied to a real-world industrial case, the Hamedan Glass Industry, where a balanced environmentally-aware solution with off-chain processing yields net profit $237,659 and -0.0366 rate of incidences per person for social aspect of sustainability, with a final price of $2.88 for product. Profit-only optimization raises net profit by approximately 1 % with regard to the balanced solution, and by approximately 4.3 % against strongly social-weighted solutions. Implementing off-chain emission checks then enabling carbon-neutralization, followed by a reduction in production capacity in over-threshold centers results in a balanced outcome of higher profits but at the cost of a higher incidence rate. These results showcased the proposed framework's practical benefits and providing valuable insights applicable to various sectors.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127463"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145205201","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Why do different lake types exist in the same climatic zone? A case study from the arid region of northern China.","authors":"Xingyao Chen, Qi Liu, Yifan Fan, Delin Xu, Zenglong Wang, Yi Tong, YuTong Tian, Qianyong Wang, Muren Bao, Feng Wen, Nan Shan, Wenlin Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127452","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127452","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Understanding the mechanisms of intra-climatic zonation ecological differentiation (\"co-climatic ecological divergence\") in lake ecosystems represents a pivotal scientific challenge in limnology. While climatic homogeneity is often presumed to drive uniform ecosystem functioning, our study demonstrates that under identical arid/semi-arid climatic regimes, divergent C-N nutrient cycling pathways may emerge due to heterogeneous lake morphometry, hydrological connectivity gradients, and anthropogenic pressures within coupled socio-ecological systems. This study investigated two typical lakes in northern China-algae-dominated Hulun Lake and macrophyte-dominated Ulan Nur Lake-by integrating stable isotopes (δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N), multi-parameter water quality data, and structural equation modeling (SEM). Our results highlight distinct nutrient pathways in two representative lakes: (1) Hulun Lake is dominated by allochthonous inputs, characterized by depleted δ¹³C in suspended particulates (-25.31 ± 2.49 ‰) and δ¹⁵N in sediments (5.42 ± 3.27 ‰), reflecting external nitrogen retention and hypoxia. (2) Ulan Nur Lake is regulated by internal metabolism, indicated by stable δ¹³C signatures (-24.94 ± 1.24 ‰) from macrophyte cycling and enriched δ¹⁵N in sediments (8.27 ± 1.94 ‰), consistent with long-term nitrogen recycling and low Total Nitrogen (TN) concentrations (1.94 ± 0.76 mg/L). (3) Structural equation modeling (SEM) demonstrates that temperature (β = 1.131) and external nitrogen input (β = 0.444) are the dominant drivers of C-N pathway divergence through thermodynamic regulation and trophic cascade effects. Collectively, these findings reveal lake-type-dependent nutrient partitioning and support dual-pathway restoration strategies. By uncovering mechanisms of co-climatic ecological divergence, this study provides a proof-of-concept framework in arid and semi-arid lake ecosystems.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127452"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145204961","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluating the influence of hydrodynamics on the biological efficiency of Floating Treatment Wetland-retrofitted stormwater ponds.","authors":"Lander Gomez-De la Cruz, Ricardo Blanco-Aguilera, Gontzal Lopez-Ruiz","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127435","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127435","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Constructed wetlands incorporating floating treatment islands are a type of Nature-Based Solution that is gaining recognition as a promising approach for managing, treating, and reusing urban runoff. However, the hydrodynamics within these systems are highly complex and interfere in their treatment efficiency, requiring advanced simulation tools for effective analysis and design. At this aim, this work focuses on the bio-hydrodynamic analysis and optimisation of Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTW) using a validated, open-source, three-dimensional numerical model based on Computational Fluid Dynamics. This work addresses some key limitations observed in prior studies: (i) on one hand, it assesses the influence of a new set of geometric parameters, i.e. the FTW's submergence depth ratio and coverage area and, (ii) on the other hand, this study explores and quantifies the influence of hydrodynamics on the biological performance of FTWs. The research has shown that the depth of the floating treatment islands is the geometric parameter with the greatest influence on the system's hydrodynamics, while the length of the islands plays a more significant role in determining treatment performance. This apparent paradox highlights that, to enhance the purification efficiency of these systems, it is not the overall hydrodynamics of the wetland that must be optimised, but rather the fluid dynamics occurring within the floating islands themselves.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127435"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145197473","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Rare earth elements as emerging contaminants in marine ecosystems: Bioaccumulation and ecological implications.","authors":"Gonzalez Jeric B, Ming-Huang Wang, Chih-Feng Chen, Chiu-Wen Chen, Cheng-Di Dong","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127465","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127465","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Rare earth elements (REEs) are increasingly recognized as environmental contaminants due to their widespread industrial use and release into marine ecosystems. This review synthesizes current knowledge on REE bioaccumulation across marine taxa, highlighting interspecies differences and regional variability. Primary producers such as macroalgae exhibit the highest ∑REE levels (up to 2,975,705 μg kg^-1, with yttrium 2,647,050 μg kg^-1 and europium 23,872 μg kg^-1), while bivalves also accumulate substantially (mean ∑REE ≈ 391,283 μg kg^-1; maxima exceeding 4.3 million μg kg^-1 in Mytilus galloprovincialis). In contrast, secondary consumers show reduced concentrations, with fish (6018 μg kg^-1), crabs (13,271 μg kg^-1), shrimp (1951 μg kg^-1), birds (940 μg kg^-1), and mammals (4428 μg kg^-1), reflecting limited biomagnification. Regionally, Japan (11.4 million μg kg^-1) and the Black Sea (9.8 million μg kg^-1) exhibit extreme REE enrichment, whereas the North Atlantic (29 μg kg^-1) shows minimal accumulation. Toxicological evidence indicates oxidative stress and reproductive impairments in marine species, raising concerns for ecosystem health and seafood safety. Addressing current knowledge gaps through standardized monitoring is critical for assessing REE pollution's ecological and human health risks.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127465"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145197661","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nonlinear impact of artificial intelligence on clean energy transformation: The asymmetric role of heterogeneous environment regulations.","authors":"Xiaoyue Huang, Jian Tang, Yadi Chen, Sen Qiao","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127457","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127457","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>During the critical period of the global clean energy transformation (CET), the mechanism by which artificial intelligence (AI) and environmental regulations jointly drive the CET is still unclear. Using panel data from Chinese prefecture-level cities spanning 2006 to 2022, and linear interpolation is used to process some missing data. This study employs the two-way fixed effects model and Spatial Durbin Model to examine the impact of AI on CET and spatial spillover effects, as well as the role of heterogeneous environmental regulations. The findings reveal that a \"U-shaped\" relationship exists between AI and CET, which is more significant in central and northeastern regions, large cities, non-resource-based and non-low-carbon pilot cities in China, further verifying Porter's hypothesis. Importantly, there is an asymmetric nonlinear moderating effect. Formal environmental regulation (FER) has a positive moderating effect. Initially, it exacerbates the weak inhibition of AI due to cost effect, but in maturity, it strengthens the promotion of AI by technical synergy. However, informal environmental regulation (IER) is opposite. It is insignificant initially due to flexible constraints, but in maturity, the positive effect of AI is weakened due to the false compliance. In addition, AI in neighboring areas has a positive spillover effect on local CET. These findings provide key decision-making basis for the government to maximize the role of AI in enabling CET by formulating differentiated environmental regulation policies in stages.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127457"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145204925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring urban expansion pattern associations with flood Vulnerability: Spatial heterogeneity in multidimensional linkages across China's Min Delta urban agglomeration.","authors":"Danning Huang, Guirong Xiao","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127449","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127449","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Coastal cities globally face escalating flood events under climate change and rapid urbanization, threatening sustainable development. While urbanization amplifies flood vulnerability (FV), inconsistent relationships between urban expansion patterns (UEPs) and FV persist. To address this gap, this study resolves UEP-multidimensional FV relationships while examining inter-city developmental disparities through an integrated assessment of China's Min Delta Urban Agglomeration (1990-2020), combining Landscape Expansion Index with entropy-weighted multidimensional FV metrics validated by Geographically Weighted Regression and correlation comparisons. Results reveal regional expansion peaked during 2000-2010 before declining, except Zhangzhou, where delayed urbanization sustained growth. Edge expansion (EE) dominated, infilling expansion (IE) intensified, and leapfrog expansion (LE) remained minimal. Due to persistent urban expansion, natural vulnerability (NV) increased inland-to-coastal and intensified continuously, and social vulnerability (SV) shifted toward moderate dominance as regional integration policies balanced regional development, while comprehensive vulnerability (CV) underwent polarization-concentration-repolarization dynamics under dual natural-social influences. UEPs exhibited significant positive FV correlations, strongest for EE (R = 0.536, p < 0.01) due to flood exposure and facility deficiencies, and weakest for LE (R = 0.387, P < 0.01) with natural drainage advantages. SV correlations remained minimal as social drivers of urban expansion both increased and decreased vulnerability impacts, while NV correlations matched or exceeded CV links. Small expansion patches showed higher vulnerability links than large developments, necessitating prioritized construction of natural flood control infrastructure in small patches. It is necessary to implement drainage retrofits in EE, nature-based water retention in LE, confining IE to flood-protected urban cores, and phasing regional upgrades according to city development stages under integration frameworks, providing transferable solutions for flood-adaptive planning. Future research should refine FV assessment indicators and investigate the lagged effects between UEPs and FV.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127449"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145197499","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biocontrol in action: Assessing the impact of a biocontrol agent on invasive plant seed dynamics.","authors":"Liliana Neto Duarte, Hélia Marchante, Francisco A López-Núñez, Fiona Impson, Francisco M Moreira, Elizabete Marchante","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127196","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127196","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The management of extensive areas invaded by alien plants using only physical and chemical control methods is challenging as it frequently only provides short-term suppression. Additionally, success depends on thorough follow-up, which can be prohibitively expensive and, as such, neglected. More successful and sustainable management of widespread invasive alien plants may be achieved with biological control (biocontrol), either alone or integrated with other methods. Acacia longifolia was introduced into Portugal in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for dune stabilization and has become one of the most widespread invasive alien plants in the coastal areas, promoting significant negative impacts. To decrease A. longifolia seed production, the Australian bud-galling wasp Trichilogaster acaciaelongifoliae was introduced as a biocontrol agent in 2015. This study reports the effect of T. acaciaelongifoliae on A. longifolia seed production for over five to six years and seed bank replenishment since its introduction. Galls have significantly increased five years after the biocontrol agent release, followed by major pod reduction and consequently seed rain decline. By monitoring the same trees for several years, we have confirmed that seed rain is higher in non-galled A. longifolia stands, peaking in mid-summer. Our results further support that both the number of pods and seeds progressively decline to zero, demonstrating a 98,1 % reduction in seed rain. Additionally, the increase of the biocontrol agent induces stress on galled plants leading to phyllode abscission and, eventually, plant mortality. On the other hand, the A. longifolia seed bank continued to increase gradually between 2015 and 2024, except at one dune site, where a major wildfire in 2017, followed by tree planting, contributed to its depletion. Mechanical control reduced seed bank numbers, and this result was enhanced in areas where T. acaciaelongifoliae helped to maintain low seed input. Where the biocontrol agent has been established for more than six years, and/or has a high establishment rate, seed banks are now stabilizing. These results are encouraging for the recovery of coastal dunes invaded by A. longifolia, emphasizing the pressing need for establishing an integrated strategy and increasing investment in biocontrol to enhance invasive plant management in Europe.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127196"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145197521","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Identification and prioritization of organophosphate esters and related compounds in offshore sediments across China.","authors":"Shu Wang, Xiangfei Deng, Rui Deng, Shufeng Liu, Ehui Tan, Moge Du, Jin Wang, Jian Ma","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127450","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127450","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are prevalent pollutants that are widely detected in offshore sediments worldwide, posing a threat to the health of humans and aquatic ecosystems. However, few studies have comprehensively characterized and risk-assessed the diverse mixtures of traditional and emerging OPEs in these environments. This provincial-scale survey applied suspect and non-target screening to surface sediments and sediment cores across five major offshore regions of China. A total of 22 OPEs were identified, including ten traditional OPEs, ten emerging OPEs (EOPEs), and two organothiophosphate esters (OTPEs), with total concentrations (Σ₂₂OPEs) in surface sediments ranging from 21.6 to 261 ng/g. Tris(2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl) phosphate (AO168=O) emerged as the dominant EOPE, exceeding 50 % of Σ₂₂OPEs in all regions, while other OPE distributions displayed pronounced regional heterogeneity. Sediment core profiles revealed a significant temporal increase in OPE burdens over recent decades, characterized by rising proportions of EOPEs and OTPEs towards shallower depths. Ecological risk assessment using risk quotients indicated that nearly all OPEs posed potential risks in at least one location. Based on combined acute and chronic toxicity data, AO168=O, O-butyl O-(butylmethylphenyl) O-(di-butylphenyl) phosphorothioate (BBMDBPt) and O,O,O-tris(2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl) phosphorothioate (AO168=S) were prioritized as high-risk contaminants. This nationally representative assessment provides critical data on OPE contamination and risks essential for developing targeted monitoring and mitigation strategies in coastal marine environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":356,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Environmental Management","volume":"394 ","pages":"127450"},"PeriodicalIF":8.4,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145197619","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}