Is ionizing radiation effective in removing pharmaceuticals from wastewater?

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2021-05, Vol.28 (19), p.23975-23983
• Main Authors: Tominaga, Flávio Kiyoshi, Silva, Thalita Tieko, Boiani, Nathalia Fonseca, de Jesus, Juliana Mendonça Silva, Teixeira, Antonio Carlos Silva Costa, Borrely, Sueli Ivone
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Advanced Oxidation/Reduction Technologies: An Perspective from Iberoamerican Countries; Aquatic Pollution; Aspirin; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Biological treatment; Contaminants; Degradation; Detoxification; Discharge; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Effluents; Electron beams; Electron irradiation; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Fluoxetine; Hydrogen peroxide; Inflammation; Ionizing radiation; Irradiation; Mineralization; Organic compounds; Oxidation; Oxidation process; Pharmaceuticals; Pollutants; Pretreatment; Quality management; Receiving waters; Tempering; Toxicity; Waste Water Technology; Wastewater; Wastewater discharges; Wastewater treatment; Water bodies; Water Management; Water pollution; Water Pollution Control; Water quality; Water quality management
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-020-11718-8

Wastewater and effluent discharges are the main causes of receiving water body pollution and important challenges in water quality management. Among the emerging contaminants, pharmaceuticals have increasingly drawn attention due to their incomplete removal during conventional biological treatment, inducing potential and actual risks to living organisms following residue discharges in river effluent. Electron beam irradiation (EBI) is a clean process technology for organic compound degradation and mineralization, as well as persistent pollutant detoxification. This study aimed to evaluate EBI effects on the degradation and toxicity removal of anti-inflammatory aspirin (ASA) in a single solution and in a fluoxetine (FLX) mixture. Results indicate that 98% of the single aspirin was degraded at 5.0 kGy. Aspirin toxicity to Daphnia similis , however, increased with increasing absorbed dose (1.0 to 5.0 kGy), possibly as a result of the presence of H 2 O 2 and other byproducts formed during the oxidation process. Regarding the irradiated mixture, complete degradation was achieved for both pharmaceuticals. Toxicity removals for the mixture were of 56.2 ± 0.9% and 58.8 ± 5.4% for 1.0 and 2.5 kGy, respectively. These findings demonstrate that EBI can be an interesting alternative process to be applied as a pre-treatment followed by biological treatment.