Abstract
Diclofenac (DCF) has been widely found in sewage treatment plants and environmental water bodies, and has attracted worldwide attention. In this paper, the photocatalytic degradation of DCF was investigated using a laboratory-scale simulated solar experimental device. This study focused on exploring the effects of the actual secondary effluent from sewage treatment plants (SE-A and SE-B) on the photocatalytic degradation of DCF and the changes of dissolved organic matter (DOM) during the photocatalytic degradation process. The results showed when SE-A and SE-B were used as the background water of the DCF solution, they displayed a significant inhibitory effect on the degradation of DCF, and the values of k were 0.039 and 0.0113 min−1, respectively. Among them, DOM played a major inhibitory role in photocatalytic degradation of DCF in sewage. In the photocatalytic process, the biological toxicity of the DCF solution was the least after 30 min of reaction, and then gradually increased. Furthermore, the organic matters in the sewage were greatly degraded after the photocatalytic reaction, including 254 and 365 nm ultraviolet (UV254, UV365) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). Moreover, titanium dioxide (TiO2) first catalyzed the degradation of macromolecular organic matters, and then degraded the small molecular organic matters.
Highlights
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have been regarded as one of the most serious environmental problems in recent years, due to their potential negative impact on aquatic ecosystems and human health [1,2]
The photolysis experiment was carried out to determine the effect of photocatalytic degradation on DCF removal
A photocatalysis experiment was conducted using a laboratory-scale simulated solar experimental device to investigate the degradation of DCF
Summary
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have been regarded as one of the most serious environmental problems in recent years, due to their potential negative impact on aquatic ecosystems and human health [1,2]. Diclofenac (DCF) is a typical PPCP with anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antipyretic effects. DCF has been widely detected in the effluent of sewage treatment plants, rivers, lakes, and other environmental water bodies and has attracted attention around the world [3,4]. DCF is widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, which consumes approximately 940 tons globally each year. DCF is difficult to degrade completely through conventional water treatment processes, such as the activated sludge or anaerobic fermentation process [5,6]. DCF could have a negative effect on the growth
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
