The Efficiency of Constructed Wetlands and Algae Tanks for the Removal of Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs): a Systematic Review Vinicius Malta Rabello & Lia Cardoso Rocha Saraiva Teixeira & Ana Paula Vasconcelos Gonçalves & André Luís de Sá Salomão Received: 2 July 2019 /Accepted: 26 September 2019 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 Abstract Constructed wetlands (CWs) and algae tanks are regarded as promising polishing steps to treat waste- waters for the removal of persistent organic pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). In this systematic review, we provide a syn- thesis of the relationship between the presence of the most widely studied PPCPs in domestic wastewater and the conformation of the CWs and algae tanks construct- ed to treat them. The six drugs most commonly found in the reviewed articles were caffeine, carbamazepine, diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and naproxen. Re- moval efficiency of the PPCPs was evaluated by means of the following selected parameters: hydraulic retention time (HRT), system flow rate, temperature, inflow con- centration, and average removal rate. The average re- moval rate of PPCPs in CWs showed a positive and moderate relationship with the HRT (r = 0.346). A dif- ferent flow configuration and plant species acted better for different target compounds. The average concentra- tion reduction ranged from 80% for caffeine to zero reduction levels in some conformations for carbamaze- pine, diclofenac, and ketoprofen. There was a wide variation in the concentration reduction of different plant genera or unplanted tanks, ranging from 81% (caffeine using Phragmites sp.) to no reduction in an unplanted tank for diclofenac. The algae tanks were more efficient in removing most of the six target com- pounds than the wetlands. Removal rates ranged from 50% for ketoprofen to 16% for naproxen. According to our results, a combination of CW systems and algae tanks might be an effective alternative for the removal of PPCPs from domestic wastewater. Keywords Constructed wetlands . Pharmaceuticals and personal care products . Micropollutants . Phycoremediation . Domestic sewage 1 Introduction New man-made chemicals (xenobiotics) are continually being released as a result of industrial and economic development. These products include pharmaceuticals and personal care products, disinfectants, laundry deter- gents, plasticizers, contrast media, dyes and paints, sur- factants, pesticides, food preservatives, and other addi- tives, to name just a few (Avila et al. 2014; Fatta- Kassinos et al. 2010). Hence, these xenobiotics are found in low concentrations (ng L -1 to μgL -1 ) in the environment especially in aquatic ecosystems, water supplies, and wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) (Luo et al. 2014). Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) represent a large group of chemicals with diverse Water Air Soil Pollut (2019) 230:236 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-019-4304-9 V. M. Rabello : L. C. R. S. Teixeira : A. L. de Sá Salomão (*) Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University – UERJ, Rua São Francisco Xavier, 524, 5024E, Rio de Janeiro, RJ CEP20550-900, Brazil e-mail: andre@andresalomao.com A. P. V. Gonçalves IESP Institute of Social and Political Studies, Rio de Janeiro State University – UERJ, R. da Matriz, 82 - Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 22260-100, Brazil