Comparison of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) degradation effect under different experimental conditions

Abstract

Sulfonamides are an important class of synthetic antibacterial medications that is widely utilized and pollute many water bodies. In this study, sulfamethoxazole was selected as the representative of sulfa antibiotics. A molybdenum disulfide-based catalyst was synthesized by hydrothermal method and used to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for the degradation of sulfamethoxazole in water. Co@MoS2 was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The experimental conditions, Cobalt ion concentration, and light effect have been investigated. High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) was used to measure the concentration of sulfamethoxazole. The results showed that the Co@MoS2 /PMS experimental conditions could effectively degrade sulfamethoxazole wastewater.