Abstract
Environmental pollution due to antibiotics is a serious problem. In this work, the adsorption and desorption of the antibiotic cefuroxime (CFX) were studied in four by-products/residues from the forestry and food industries. For this, batch-type experiments were carried out, adding increasing concentrations of CFX (from 0 to 50 µmol L−1) to 0.5 g of adsorbent. The materials with a pH higher than 9 (mussel shell and wood ash) were those that presented the highest adsorption percentages, from 71.2% (23.1 µmol kg−1) to 98.6% (928.0 µmol kg−1). For the rest of the adsorbents, the adsorption was also around 100% when the lowest concentrations of CFX were added, but the percentage dropped sharply when the highest dose of the antibiotic was incorporated. Adsorption data fitted well to the Langmuir and Freundlich models, with R2 greater than 0.9. Regarding desorption, the materials that presented the lowest values when the highest concentration of CFX was added were wood ash (0%) and mussel shell (2.1%), while pine bark and eucalyptus leaves presented the highest desorption (26.6% and 28.6%, respectively). Therefore, wood ash and mussel shell could be considered adsorbents with a high potential to be used in problems of environmental contamination by CFX.
Highlights
IntroductionFrom 2000 to 2015, the worldwide consumption of antibiotics in humans and in veterinary medicine increased by almost 65% [1,2], due to the increase in the world population, and to the higher demand for protein, which intensified animal production, requiring a higher use of antibiotics [3,4]
Lugo (Spain), pine bark, pine needles, and wood ash from a combustion boiler in Lugo (Spain); and (b) a waste/by-product from the food industry: crushed mussel shell
The pH in water ranged from highly acidic values, such as that of pine needles, to clearly alkaline values, such as that of wood ash
Summary
From 2000 to 2015, the worldwide consumption of antibiotics in humans and in veterinary medicine increased by almost 65% [1,2], due to the increase in the world population, and to the higher demand for protein, which intensified animal production, requiring a higher use of antibiotics [3,4]. Among these drugs, cephalosporins, belonging to the group of beta-lactams, are widely used in the treatment of bacterial infections, as they have good tolerance and few side effects [5,6]. Cephalosporins are widely used in infections of the respiratory tract and mammary glands [8,9,10]
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