Photocatalytic Degradation of Chlorophenols and Antibiotics from Wastewater

Abstract

In recent years, refractory organic compounds have attracted increasing attention due to the difficulties with which they are removed from waste effluents. The use of advanced oxidation processes alone or in combination with biological processes in wastewater treatment plants represents viable alternatives for removing refractory organic contaminants. Of the advanced oxidation processes, photocatalytic oxidation seems to have the highest potential and therefore has been intensively tested for the removal of many types of refractory organic contaminants. Therefore, the objective of this work is to explore the potential of photocatalytic oxidation for the removal of chlorophenols and antibiotics from wastewater. Several types of photocatalytic membranes have been tested. The experimental results revealed that the rate of photocatalytic degradation is higher in the case of cobalt (Co)-doped TiO2/polymer membrane comparative with that of TiO2/Ti for both 4-chlorophenol and 2,4-dichlorophenol, regardless of their concentration. Moreover, the degradation rate of 4-chlorphenol is higher than that of 2,4-dichlorophenol, regardless of the type of photocatalytic membrane used. Regarding the photocatalytic degradation of the antibiotics studied, by using the new obtained TiO2/sisal fiber membrane, the photocatalytic degradation after 120 minutes of irradiation is 98% for ampicillin, 96% for tetracycline, and 90% for erythromycin, regardless of their concentration.