Abstract
AbstractAdvanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have known increased application to treat wastewaters containing recalcitrant compounds that are hardly degraded by conventional technologies. AOPs are characterized by the formation of strong oxidants such as hydroxyl radicals, superoxide anions, hydroperoxyl radicals and singlet oxygen, which react with the contaminant, contributing to its degradation. This paper provides an overview of the determination methods of reactive oxygen species, ROS, in the application of AOPs; the methods developed in the available literature for the detection and quantification of ROS are reviewed as a first step in the assessment and detailed description of the mechanisms involved in the oxidation reactions, focusing on the critical analysis of the main strengths and weaknesses presented by the probe molecules employed in the evaluated studies. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Highlights
The concern about the growth of surface and underground water contamination has increased over the years at the same time that the quality requirements of treated water are more demanding.[1,2,3] Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) postulate as viable technologies for environmental remediation of wastewaters containing recalcitrant compounds, which cannot be destroyed by conventional treatments, through the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).[4,5] ROS comprehend free radicals, such as hydroxyl radical (OH), superoxide radical (O2―) and hydroperoxyl radical (HO2), and non-radicals such as singlet oxygen (1O2) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2).[1]
A review of AOPs applications is beyond the scope of this manuscript, they have been successfully applied to the treatment of recalcitrant compounds present in actual wastewaters[7] from chemical industry;[8,9,10] textile and tannery industry;[11] food and agro-industry;[12,13] drinking water, landfill leachate and urban wastewater;[14,15,16,17,18] and emerging pollutants.[19,20,21,22]
ROS play a vital role in AOPs and the development of sensitive and selective methods for their detection and quantitative determination, which provide essential information for understanding the generation and reaction mechanisms of these reactive species during AOPs, is crucial
Summary
The concern about the growth of surface and underground water contamination has increased over the years at the same time that the quality requirements of treated water are more demanding.[1,2,3] Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) postulate as viable technologies for environmental remediation of wastewaters containing recalcitrant compounds, which cannot be easily destroyed by conventional treatments, through the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).[4,5] ROS comprehend not only free radicals, such as hydroxyl radical (•OH), superoxide radical (O2―•) and hydroperoxyl radical (HO2•), but also non-radicals such as singlet oxygen (1O2) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2).[1] It has been proved that these species participate in the mineralization of organic compounds due to their nonselective and rapid reaction rates, being •OH the ROS with the highest reactivity.[6] Although a review of AOPs applications is beyond the scope of this manuscript, they have been successfully applied to the treatment of recalcitrant compounds present in actual wastewaters[7] from chemical industry (including fine chemical, pulp and paper, petrochemical, and pharmaceutical industry);[8,9,10] textile and tannery industry;[11] food and agro-industry;[12,13] drinking water, landfill leachate and urban wastewater;[14,15,16,17,18] and emerging pollutants.[19,20,21,22] So that insight in the mechanisms responsible for the oxidation reactions could greatly enhance the understanding and applicability of these processes.
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