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.
Highlights
Diclofenac (DIC), ibuprofen (IBN), and mefenamic acid (MFA) are nonsteroidal antiinflammatory and analgesic drugs [1]
The optimum operating conditions to obtain the best photodegradation of the tested anti-inflammatory drugs (AIMDs) were pH = 9, C(Cu-TiO2) = 300 mg/L, and C (H2O2) = 400 mg/L
The increased loading of H2O2 above the optimal value has no impact on the elimination the acidity of the wastewater, photocatalyst, and hydrogen peroxide loadings all affect the removal effectiveness
Summary
Diclofenac (DIC), ibuprofen (IBN), and mefenamic acid (MFA) are nonsteroidal antiinflammatory and analgesic drugs [1]. Large quantity of anti-inflammatory drugs (AIMDs) are utilized by the health sector in Iraq and dispensed all over Iraq. Wastewater discharged from some Iraqi hospitals comprises components of drugs which will enter the aquatic ecosystem if they are not removed. Toxicological studies have revealed that exposure to AIMDs can stimulate adverse effects on living aquatic organisms, for instance fishes may suffer kidney harm and changes in their gills if exposed to diclofenac at a loading of >1 μg/L for approximately 21 days [3]. Mehinto et al [4] and Daouk et al [5] reported a syndrome of changes of swimming efficacy followed by death in organisms because of exposure to AIMDs
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