Degradation of Anti-Inflammatory Drugs in Synthetic Wastewater by Solar Photocatalysis

Abstract

Due to the high number of anti-inflammatory drugs (AIMDs) used by the public health sector in Iraq and distributed all over the country and due to their toxicity, there is a need for an environmental-friendly technique to degrade any wasted (AIMD) present in aquatic ecosystem. The degradation of diclofenac sodium (DCF), ibuprofen (IBN), and mefenamic acid (MFA) in synthetic hospital wastewater were investigated utilizing locally-made Cu-coated TiO2 nanoparticles in a solar-irradiated reactor. Different key variables were studied for their effects on process efficiency, such as loadings of catalyst (C CU-TiO2 = 100–500 mg/L), AIMDs (100 µg/L), pH (4–9), and hydrogen peroxide (CH2O2 = 200–800 mg/L). The results revealed that degradation percentages of 96.5, 94.2, and 82.3%, were obtained for DCF, IBN, and MFA, respectively, using our Cu-coated TiO2 catalyst within 65 min at pH = 9, while other parameters were C CU-TiO2 = 300 mg/L, and CH2O2 = 400 mg/L. The experimental results revealed coupling photocatalysis with solar irradiation as a clean energy source could be utilized for the degradation of toxic pollutants in surface water.

Eco-Friendly Synthesis of CuO@ZnO Nanocomposites Using Artemisia vulgaris Leaf Extract and Study of Its Photocatalytic Activity for Methylene Blue

“…Also, it shows a higher percentage of zinc (34.30 At %) compared to copper (4.79 At %) in the 2% CuO@ ZnO nanocomposites. In a similar study, AbdulRazak et al synthesized 3.5 wt% Cu-doped TiO 2 NPs and employed them for the degradation of anti-infammatory drugs used by public health sector [41]. Compared to this fnding, 2 wt% CuO@ ZnO nanocomposites prepared in this research work reveal the formation of nanomaterials without any signifcant aggregation.…”

Photodegradation of Methylene Blue with Aid of Green Synthesis of CuO/TiO2 Nanoparticles from Extract of Citrus Aurantium Juice

“…It clearly shows that the adsorbent dosage had positive effects on the photodegradation efficiency, whereas the photodegradation efficiency increased with increases in the adsorbent dosage across the entire initial dye concentration 10-50 mg/L. This may be as the catalyst amount increases the active sites on the surface of the catalyst increase, which in turn enhances the photoreaction [35].…”

The Photo-Oxidation of CO from Ambient Air Using Catalytic Asphaltic Pavement

“…Various published data on experimental CO conversion by photocatalysis using doped semiconductors can be summarised in Table 2. The utilization of simulated solar light for the photo-catalytic oxidation of organic pollutants onto Cu/TiO2 is explained in a few works of literature [9,17]. The goal of this work was to see if CO from an internal combustion engine could be oxidized by spreading Cu-doped TiO2 nanoparticles on asphalt pavement and exposing them to simulated solar light.…”