Sulfamethoxazole abatement by means of ozonation

• Published in: Journal of hazardous materials Vol. 150; no. 3; pp. 790 - 794
• Main Authors: Dantas, Renato F., Contreras, Sandra, Sans, Carme, Esplugas, Santiago
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 11-02-2008; Elsevier
• Subjects: Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Antibiotic; Applied sciences; Biodegradability; Exact sciences and technology; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Kinetic; Kinetics; Oxidants, Photochemical - chemistry; Ozonation; Ozone - chemistry; Pharmaceuticals; Pollution; Sulfamethoxazole; Sulfamethoxazole - chemistry; Water Pollutants, Chemical - chemistry; Water Purification - methods; Ozonation; Antibiotic; Sulfamethoxazole; Kinetic; Biodegradability; Pharmaceuticals; Human; Drug; Second order; Metabolite; Toxicity; Pollution control; Ozone; Ozonization; Chemical oxygen demand; Mineralization; Water quality; pH; Pollution abatement; Kinetics; Degradation product; Organic compounds
• ISSN: 0304-3894; 1873-3336
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2007.05.034

Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) is a bacteriostatic antibiotic largely used for diverse types of illness. Its widely use in humans and even in animals releases unmetabolized and active metabolites that have a strong potential in terms of effect in organisms. In this work, 200
mg
L
−1 solution of sulfamethoxazole was treated by ozonation at different pH. Results showed that ozonation was proved to be an efficient method to degrade sulfamethoxazole. After 15
min of ozonation (corresponding dose
=
0.4
g of ozone L
−1), the complete antibiotic abatement was almost achieved with just 10% of mineralization. The biodegradability and toxicity of the ozonation intermediates were also studied. A biodegradability enhancement (increment of BOD
5/COD ratio) from 0 to 0.28 was observed after 60
min of ozonation. The acute toxicity of the intermediates was followed by the Microtox
® test and the toxicity profile showed a slight acute toxicity increment in the first stage of ozonation. The pH variation had an important role in the TOC and COD removal, promoting their growth with the increment of alkalinity. The second order kinetic constants for the ozonation of the SMX in an order of magnitude of 10
5
L
mol
−1
s
−1 were also determined for pH 5 and 7.