Comparative study of the effect of pharmaceutical additives on the elimination of antibiotic activity during the treatment of oxacillin in water by the photo-Fenton, TiO 2 -photocatalysis and electrochemical processes

Abstract

Synthetic pharmaceutical effluents loaded with the β-lactam antibiotic oxacillin were treated using advanced oxidation processes (the photo-Fenton system and TiO2 photocatalysis) and chloride mediated electrochemical oxidation (with Ti/IrO2 anodes). Combinations of the antibiotic with excipients (mannitol or tartaric acid), an active ingredient (calcium carbonate, i.e. bicarbonate ions due to the pH) and a cleaning agent (sodium lauryl ether sulfate) were considered. Additionally, urban wastewater that had undergone biological treatment was doped with oxacillin and treated with the tested systems. The evolution of antimicrobial activity was monitored as a parameter of processes efficiency. Although the two advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) differ only in the way they produce OH, marked differences were observed between them. There were also differences between the AOPs and the electrochemical system. Interestingly, each additive had a different effect on each treatment. For water loaded with mannitol, electrochemical treatment was the most suitable option because the additive did not significantly affect the efficiency of the system. Due to the formation of a complex with Fe(3+), tartaric acid accelerated the elimination of antibiotic activity during the photo-Fenton process. For TiO2 photocatalysis, the presence of bicarbonate ions contributed to antibiotic activity elimination through the possible formation of carbonate and bicarbonate radicals. Sodium lauryl ether sulfate negatively affected all of the processes. However, due to the higher selectivity of HOCl compared with OH, electrochemical oxidation showed the least inhibited efficiency. For the urban wastewater doped with oxacillin, TiO2 photocatalysis was the most efficient process. These results will help select the most suitable technology for the treatment of water polluted with β-lactam antibiotics.

Treatment technologies for emerging contaminants in water: A review

“…Similar results have been achieved by comparing different AOPs in the degradation of ECs. Oxacillin was tested for its degradation using white light lamps, photo-assisted Fenton processes, titanium oxide photocatalysis and use of ultrasound vibration, that is similar to sono-chemical treatment [180].…”

Eliminación de fluoxetina presente en aguas contaminadas usando procesos fotoquímicos de oxidación avanzada y luz solar

“…Estos resultados indicaron que usando FEFS con un ánodo de IrO 2 /RuO 2 la ruta de degradación no cambia por el acople electroquímico y se desarrolla únicamente por FFS. Este resultado está acorde con lo evidenciado en trabajos similares, tal como el desarrollado para la degradación de oxacilina vía tratamiento electroquímico en condiciones de laboratorio (Serna-galvis et al, 2016).…”

“…El proceso FCS presentó a mineralización que FFS a pH natural. Dentro de los tres procesos FEFS, presento el menor porcentaje de mineralización, para mejorar este proceso se debe utilizar un ánodo que genere un aporte a la oxidación y mineralización por ejemplo un ánodo BDD (Serna-galvis et al, 2016), no es viable considerar éste proceso para el tratamiento de aguas residuales municipales, ya que se requiere la adición de un electrolito soporte, lo que genera un costo adicional. Los efectos de la matriz en la degradación de la FLX mediante los tres procesos FFS, FEFS y FCS se pueden observar en la Figura 8.…”

Contaminants of Emerging Concern Removal in an Effluent of Wastewater Treatment Plant under Biological and Continuous Mode Ultrafiltration Treatment

“…Currently, membrane filtration technologies and the use of advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are widely studied for the removal of micropollutants, either in wastewater or in drinking water [14][15][16][17]. Among these treatments, the most relevant processes are: ozonation [18,19], UV/H 2 O 2 /Fe 3+ photocatalysis [20], electrochemical reactions [20,21], membrane bioreactors [22], nanofiltration or ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis [23][24][25] and adsorption [26]. Technologies based on hydrogen peroxide oxidation, such as Fenton, or others activated by UV [21,27,28] and ultrasound [29], have also proved significant.…”

“…Among these treatments, the most relevant processes are: ozonation [18,19], UV/H 2 O 2 /Fe 3+ photocatalysis [20], electrochemical reactions [20,21], membrane bioreactors [22], nanofiltration or ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis [23][24][25] and adsorption [26]. Technologies based on hydrogen peroxide oxidation, such as Fenton, or others activated by UV [21,27,28] and ultrasound [29], have also proved significant. However, fundamental questions about the technical viability, cost-effectiveness ratio or the sustainability of the industrial implantation of different techniques are still under discussion.…”