Application of hybrid advanced oxidation and adsorption processes for pharmaceutical wastewater treatment

ABSTRACT

During a coronavirus pandemic, the use of drugs that subsequently enter and contaminate water resources increases significantly. Water contaminated with pharmaceutical substances becomes dangerous to human health and threatens the functioning of all ecosystems. The use of various methods of wastewater treatment and solving this problem are still ongoing, so this chapter is devoted to one of the improved method that provides a synergistic effect of removing drugs from wastewaters. Advanced oxidation processes are popular for water purification, but their use is expensive, accompanied by the consumption of large amounts of electricity, and requires expensive materials. The combination of such methods with adsorption can reduce operating costs and increase process productivity, so the use of a hybrid oxidation process and adsorption is an excellent alternative for water purification from pharmaceuticals. The book chapter describes the main advantages and disadvantages of advanced oxidation processes (photocatalysis, ozonation, electrochemical oxidation, and Fenton processes). The adsorption process and effective materials used as adsorbents are described. The most common combinations of oxidation and adsorption processes, that generate active radicals, interact with a potential contaminant adsorbed on the adsorbent surface and decompose them to CO2 and H2O, are demonstrated. Hybrid methods of photocatalysis, Fenton process, ozonation and adsorption are presented, their mechanism and advantages over conventional methods in water purification from pharmaceutical compounds are described. The application of photocatalysis and adsorption is covered in details, and materials with photocatalytic properties and high surface area (iron oxides, titanium(IV) oxide, and zinc oxide) are characterized. As a result, the hybrid methods are considered effective for wastewater treatment from pharmaceutical contaminants. © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.