12 - Ozone Treatment of Antibiotics in Water

Abstract

Antibiotics have emerged as contaminants of concern in environmental water sources. Besides the ability of antibiotics to exert selective pressure on microbial communities, trace concentrations of these compounds may also instigate development of antibiotic resistance, affect cell signaling processes, and alter carbon and nutrient cycling in ecosystems. For these reasons, advanced treatment processes are required to remove the threat posed by antibiotics in water and wastewater. Ozone is a highly reactive oxidant that demonstrates selectivity for moieties commonly found in antibiotic molecules. Ozone and ozone-based advanced oxidation processes, which promote ozone decomposition to hydroxyl radicals, are quite effective at transforming antibiotics in real systems. Specific topics of this chapter include description of antibiotics, literature review of antibiotics in wastewater and surface water, background on ozone chemistry and reaction kinetics, discussion of antibiotic transformation during ozone and advanced oxidation processes, insight into the effects of dissolved organic matter on ozonation of antibiotics, and description of the importance of transformation products. Ultimately, ozone-based processes offer an effective solution to this emerging threat.