High efficiency plasma treatment of water contaminated with organic compounds. Study of the degradation of ibuprofen

Abstract

The degradation of ibuprofen in water by nonthermal plasma is studied using a pulsed corona discharge above liquid, generated in oxygen. The influence of pulse duration (50-430 ns FWHM) on removal efficiency and on mineralization was investigated.Complete removal of the target compound was achieved within 15-20 min plasma treatment and the mineralization degree reached 76% after 60 min. The energy efficiency was greatly enhanced by reducing pulse length: 20.2 g kWh −1 was obtained for 50 ns pulses at 90% IBP removal, more than one order of magnitude higher than the value for the longest pulses. Higher initial concentration of the target compound led to further improvement of the energy yield, but required more time to complete the degradation process. K E Y W O R D S energy efficiency, ibuprofen, non-thermal plasma, pulse duration, pulsed corona discharge Plasma Process Polym. 2018;15:e1700201.www.plasma-polymers.com

Iron Oxide/Phosphatic Materials Composites with Potential Applications in Environmental Protection

“…Phenolic compounds and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) represent another category of pollutants widely found in the environment, especially in wastewaters [4,21]. Our group previously developed some adsorbents based on apatitic materials, substituted with Sr and Ba, which showed good results in terms of stability and potential applications [4].…”

Special issue: Plasma and Liquids

“…The two different configurations of gas‐liquid plasma reactors allow for compact operation and characterization of the chemical and physical processes inside the reactor. Other papers in this issue include analysis of direct underwater discharges (Yang et al and Kozakova et al), study of pollutant treatment (Magureanu et al, Kozakova et al, Tampieri et al), determination of the fundamental species formation for plasma formed in contacting with a liquid water stream (X. Zhang et al, Tarabova et al, and Wandell et al), and analysis of plasma with organic liquids (Rezaei et al and Franclemont et al) . Of particular importance for chemical oxidation is the determination of hydroxyl radical, ·OH, concentrations and production using chemical probes (M. Zhang et al and X. Zhang et al), and in the case of an air plasma contacting the liquid the determination of nitrogen containing species and their interactions with species such as hydrogen peroxide (Tarabova et al) is necessary.…”

“…Three contributions to this Special Issue are devoted specifically to the decontamination of various compounds found in the liquid phase (Kozakova et al, Magureanu et al, Tampieri et al) and this work builds upon the environmental applications of gas‐liquid plasma that have recently been reviewed …”

“…Magureanu et al report on the degradation of the antibiotic ibuprofen using corona discharge over water with oxygen carrier gas coupled with a following ozonation reactor where gas phase plasma‐formed ozone further dissolves and reacts in the liquid phase . Both ozone and ·OH reactions are responsible for the degradation of the antibiotic.…”

“…Wandell et al also report plasma and hydrodynamic properties for an argon‐water plasma reactor where the liquid forms a thin film which flows in parallel to the gas . This work also contributes to the increasing interest in nanosecond discharges whereby 20 ns pulses are generated for a range of frequencies, liquid and gas flow rates, and input power (see also Magureanu et al). The gas temperature in the plasma filaments ranges from 450 to 550 K with electron densities in the range of 2 to 5 × 10 22 m −3 giving a higher electron density and lower temperature than the discharge reported by Tampieri et al but the electron density is close to other nanosecond discharges in gas bubbles in liquid water .…”