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Environmental Interfaces & Micropollutant Dynamics Research Group


The research group is dedicated to the thorough examination of the behaviour, interactions, and environmental impacts of organic micropollutants in soil and sediment, including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and pesticides

Main Research Areas

  Analytical method development
  • Detection of microplastics in soil and sediment through granulometry-based techniques
  • Development of HPLC/UHPLC methods with fluorescence-based assessments for analysing compounds of soil organic matter origin, such as amino sugars and dissolved organic matter (DOM)

  Laboratory model experiments
  • Investigation of micropollutant interactions, with particular emphasis on adsorption and desorption processes in soil systems (fixed-bed and batch studies)

    Statistical analysis and modelling
  • Application of machine learning approaches based on experimental data for predictive modelling of the fate and transport processes of environmental contaminants
  • Comprehensive geostatistical and chemometric analysis of research data, including multivariate data analysis, pattern recognition, and model validation
  • Development of novel chemometric methods for describing and predicting interactions between micropollutants and environmental interfaces (e.g., solid phases, dissolved organic matter, microplastic surfaces)
  • Thermodynamic modelling of sorption processes using advanced chemometric tools

  Applied and International research
  • The research group participates in several national and international projects, in close collaboration with the Adsorption of micropollutants and development of new water treatment technology
  • Development and application of cost-effective bioadsorbents for the removal of organic micropollutants from various water types (e.g., treated wastewater, surface waters)






Related project:

https://hungarian-geography.hu/micropharm/

 

Members

  Dr Lili Szabó, senior research fellow
  Dr Fruzsina Holman-Gresina , research fellow
  László Bauer , junior research fellow, PhD student
  Péter Szávai , Environmental Engineer
  Zoltán Dévény , junior research fellow, PhD student
  Dr Zoltán Szalai , Research Professor

External collaborators:
  Dr Attila Kondor, Project Leader
  Anna Viktória Vancsik , junior research fellow, PhD candidate

Main publications

Kondor, A. C., Bauer, L., Vancsik, A., Szávai, P., Szalai, Z., Krüzselyi, D., … Szabó, L. (2026) Main Parameters of Fixed-Bed Column Systems Using White-Rot Fungi (Pleurotus spp., Trametes versicolor) and Their Effect on the Removal of Micropollutants from Water: An Overview. WATER, 18(3). DOI

Zrínyi, Z., Kovács, N., Gerencsér-Berta, R., Galambos, I., Kovács, B., Kucserka, T., … Kondor, A. C. (2025) Wastewater-impacted streams within an agricultural catchment: occurrence, attenuation, and risks of organic micropollutants. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ADVANCES, 17.DOI

Szabó, L., Szalai, Z., Kondor, A. C., Vancsik, A., Vajna, B., Maller, C. L., … Bauer, L. (2025b) Soil organic matter decomposition as a key driver of pharmaceutical retention. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, 394. DOI

Bauer, L., Szalai, Z., Vancsik, A., Kondor, A. C., Dévény, Z., Silva, B., & Szabó, L. (2025b) Thermodynamic modelling of pharmaceutical sorption in soil systems : a comparative study of batch and fixed-bed approaches. ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY, 302 DOI

Gresina, F., Szalai, Z., Zacháry, D., Kiss, K., Madarász, B., Angyal, Zs., Jakab, G., Darabos, G., & Varga, Gy. (2025) Combined effect of a pretreatment and optical settings on the laser diffraction particle size distribution of soils and sediments. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 25, 160–178. DOI

Kondor, A. C., Vancsik, A. V., Bauer, L., Szabó, L., Szalai, Z., Jakab, G., … Lado Ribeiro, A. R. (2024) Efficiency of the bank filtration for removing organic priority substances and contaminants of emerging concern : a critical review. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION, 340(2) DOI

Szabó, L., Vancsik, A., Bauer, L., Jakab, G., Király, C., Hatvani, I., … Szalai, Z. (2024b) Effects of root-derived organic acids on sorption of pharmaceutically active compounds in sandy topsoil. CHEMOSPHERE, 355. DOI

Vancsik, A., Szabó, L., Bauer, L., Pirger, Z., Karlik, M., Kondor, A. C., … Szalai, Z. (2024) Impact of land use-induced soil heterogeneity on the adsorption of fluoroquinolone antibiotics, tested on organic matter pools. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS, 474. DOI

Gresina, F., Farkas, B., Fábián, S. Á., Szalai, Z., & Varga, G. (2023) Morphological analysis of mineral grains from different sedimentary environments using automated static image analysis. SEDIMENTARY GEOLOGY, 455. DOI

Filep, T., Szabó, L., Kondor, A. C., Jakab, G., & Szalai, Z. (2021) Evaluation of the effect of the intrinsic chemical properties of pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) on sorption behaviour in soils and goethite. ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY, 215. DOI

Szalai, Z., Ringer, M., Németh, T., Sipos, P., Perényi, K., Pekker, P., … Jakab, G. (2021) Accelerated soil development due to seasonal water-saturation under hydric conditions. GEODERMA, 401. DOI

Szabó, L., Vancsik, A., Király, C., Ringer, M., Kondor, A., Jakab, G., … Filep, T. (2020) Investigation of the sorption of 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) on soils formed under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. CHEMOSPHERE, 240. DOI

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