Abstract
Carbon-based materials, namely activated carbon, carbon nanotube and graphene, are considered as one of the most effective adsorbents for pollutant removal and wastewater treatment. Due to their high surface area and distinct chemical and physical properties of the carbon-based materials, particularly activated carbon and carbon nanotube are rapidly emerging as one of the most effective adsorbents for wastewater treatment. Various studies have reported the applications of activated carbon, carbon nanotubes and graphene as promising adsorbents for removing organic and inorganic pollutants. In this chapter, an introduction about the activated carbon, carbon nanotubes and graphene and their production, prosperities and usage for the removal of pharmaceutical active materials from aqueous media are highlighted and summarized. Challenges and future opportunities for application of these carbon-based materials as adsorbents in wastewater treatment are also addressed in this chapter.
Highlights
In recent years, there is great concern about the occurrence and the impact of the pharmaceutical active compounds in water, in addition, development of efficient and cost-effective technologies for the removal of these compounds and treatment of industrial effluent, surface water and ground water
Ji et al [98, 99] modified the single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) and multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) by etching using KOH and tested the etched carbon nanotube (CNT) for three pharmaceutical active compounds. They found the adsorption performance of the KOH modified SWNTs (K-SWNTs) and KOH modified MWNTs (K-MWNTs) for sulfamethoxazole and tetracycline was enhanced by around 56% and 84% compared to the unetched SWNTs and MWNTs, respectively
Pharmaceutical active compounds are continuously released into aquatic environment via different routes
Summary
There is great concern about the occurrence and the impact of the pharmaceutical active compounds in water, in addition, development of efficient and cost-effective technologies for the removal of these compounds and treatment of industrial effluent, surface water and ground water. Pharmaceutical active compounds are natural or synthetic chemicals that can be found in over-the-counter therapeutic drugs and veterinary drugs. They induce pharmacological effect and give significant benefits to human beings. These compounds in water exist in a trace concentration level [2]. A study conducted in the United Kingdom by Drinking Water Inspectorate reported that many classes of pharmaceutical active compounds are present in wastewater influent [9]. Literature showed that the surface water and ground water sources affected by wastewater discharges have pharmaceutical active compound concentrations less than 100 ng/L, while these compounds were found in the drinking water with a concentration less than 50 ng/L [2]
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