Degradação de ciprofloxacina pelo processo oxidativo avançado UV//H202

Abstract

The consumption of pharmaceuticals increases year after year and the conventional treatment processes are not being totally efficient on their removal or degradation. This makes the disposal of these contaminants become a serious environmental problem. The purpose of the present work was to evaluate the degradation of the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin (CIP) by the advanced oxidative process POA-UV/H 2 O 2 . The reactions were carried out under lab-scale conditions. The used arrangement contained one becker of borosilicate, one magnetic stirrer and lamps. This arrangement was exposed to different radiation sources, such as UV-A, UV- C, UV-vis and solar. In order to determine the better experimental conditions, were tested several different initial pH values of the solution as well as different concentrations of the oxidant hydrogen peroxide and of the contaminant itself. The concentration of CIP, the consumption of H 2 O 2 and the pH of the solution were monitored, during irradiation times of up to 600 minutes. Satisfactory results were achieved using UV-C (λ 254 nm) radiation, with initial pH 3 and e 100 mg H 2 O 2 L-1, obtaining 100% of degradation (Co = 5 mg CIP L-1) after 120 minutes. Therefore, POA-UV/H 2 O 2 may be considered an alternative system for the degradation of CIP, minimizing the impacts caused by the inappropriate disposal of these contaminants in water bodies.