Evaluation of oxidation processes for pharmaceutical compounds removal

Abstract

Seven oxidation processes (OPs); UV, H2O2, Fenton, and O3, and their UV combinations are applied to a mixture of 15 pharmaceutical compounds (PhCs) at environmental concentration in synthetic solution and wastewater. O3/UV achieved the best efficiency for most molecules. Overall, all treatments' performances were higher in synthetic solutions than in wastewater. Moreover, results were OPs-specific and highly dependent on the composition of the solution. Intermolecular interactions significantly affect the processes. Using acetaminophen as a model compound revealed that OPs mainly resulted in transformation rather than mineralization (< 20%) of the target molecule, except the Fenton/UV with 83% of mineralization.

Keywords

• Oxidation processes
• Mineralization
• Trace organic contaminants
• Cocktail effect