Photocatalytic degradation of ibuprofen in water using TiO₂ and ZnO under artificial UV and solar irradiation

Abstract

The degradation of anti‐inflammatory and antipyretic drug (Ibuprofen; IBP) has been described in this study by using photocatalytic‐based advanced oxidation processes. The catalysts (TiO2 and ZnO) were activated by irradiation of artificial UV lamp and solar rays for the generation of highly oxidizing species which resulted in the degradation of IBP to intermediates and finally to carbon dioxide and water. In solar reactor, quartz and borosilicate tubes were installed for absorption of required ultraviolet rays and curved chrome plates were used to reflect and concentrate rays on the tubes containing feed mixture. The liquid chromatography, Total organic carbon (TOC), and Chemical oxygen demand (COD) tests were employed to determine the degradation rates and demineralization of solution samples. At catalyst dosing of 1–1.5 g/L, TiO2‐based experiments showed high degradation rate under acidic conditions. Similarly, for ZnO catalyst, 1 g/L dozing rate was found to be effective under neutral conditions (pH = 7.0). UV lamp‐based photocatalysis had higher degradation rate as compared to that of solar reactor. Moreover, better absorption of solar rays by quartz tubes resulted in higher degradation than that in borosilicate tubes. For UV lamp photocatalysis, the TOC and COD reduction was higher. With improved catalyst doping and better solar reactor design, solar‐based IBP degradation could be more promising than UV‐based catalysis. Practitioner points TiO2 and ZnO were employed to generate oxidizing agents for comparative photocatalytic degradation. Degradation rate of Ibuprofen with TiO2 was much higher compared to ZnO. Quartz material was found more effective as radiation absorbing material than borosilicate glass for solar photo catalysis. Influence of catalyst loading (TiO2 and ZnO) and pH conditions on degradation rate and mineralization of IBP was examined. IBP is a carcinogenic and endocrine disrupting drug so its degradation in water can protect ecological and human life.

Optimization of photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B using Box–Behnken experimental design: Mineralization and mechanism

“…Biological processes are also very effective methods for removing organic pollutants. Among treatment technologies, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have rapidly gained a great place as a method of treating aqueous effluents (Ranjbar, Ayati, & Ganjidoust, 2018; Shao et al., 2017, 2018, 2019; Tanveer, Guyer, & Abbas, 2019). AOPs are based on the formation of highly reactive radicals that will break down the most recalcitrant molecules into biologically degradable molecules or mineral compounds such as CO 2 , H 2 O, and mineral salts (Tassalit, Chekir, et al, 2016).…”

Removal of anthracycline cytostatics from aquatic environment: Comparison of nanocrystalline titanium dioxide and decontamination agents

“…Briefly, the oleic acid coating on the surface of TiO 2 was exchanged with carboxylic silane and modified nanoparticles were used for the surface interaction of DOX [65]. Recently, most of the researchers described the adsorption (or in conjunction with photocatalytic degradation) of ibuprofen on the titania surface from the solution [66,67].…”

Fabrication of Partially Graphitic Biochar for the Removal of Diclofenac and Ibuprofen from Aqueous Solution: Laboratory Conditions and Real Sample Applications

“…Various methodologies have been developed to remove DCF and IBU from water bodies such as electrochemical degradation (Pourzamani et al, 2018), chlorination (Simazaki et al, 2008), advanced oxidation processes (Perisic et al, 2016;Saeid et al, 2018), ozonation (García-Araya et al, 2010; Quero-Pastor et al, 2013), photodegradation (Chianese et al, 2016;Tanveer et al, 2019), membrane filtration (Shojaee Nasirabadi et al, 2016), ultrasonic irradiation (Nie et al, 2014), and adsorption (Ghemit et al, 2019;Phasuphan et al, 2019;Tam et al, 2020). Among those mentioned techniques, adsorption has gained much attention from environmentalists and researchers because of its simplicity, less time consuming, reliability, and low cost (Yin et al, 2018).…”