Photocatalytic Detoxification of Some Insecticides in Aqueous Media Using TiO2 Nanocatalyst

Abstract

The present study was performed to fabricate a titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanocatalyst with proper characteristics for the removal of some insecticides (dimethoate and methomyl) from aqueous media. A TiO2 catalyst of regular (TiO2—commercial—/H2O2/UV) or nano (TiO2—synthesized—/H2O2/UV) size was employed as an advanced oxidation process by combining it with H2O2 under light. Moreover, the total detoxification of insecticides after treatment with the most effective system (TiO2(s)/H2O2/UV) was also investigated through exploring the biochemical alterations and histopathological changes in the liver and kidneys of the treated rats. Interestingly, the present study reported that degradation rates of the examined insecticides were faster using the TiO2 catalyst of nano size. Complete degradation of the tested insecticides (100%) was achieved under the TiO2(s)/H2O2/UV system after 320 min of irradiation. The half-life values of the tested insecticides under H2O2/TiO2(c)/UV were 43.86 and 36.28 for dimethoate and methomyl, respectively, whereas under the H2O2/TiO2(c)/UV system, the half-life values were 27.72 and 19.52 min for dimethoate and methomyl, respectively. On the other hand, no significant changes were observed in the biochemical and histopathological parameters of rats administrated with water treated with TiO2(s)/H2O2/UV compared to the control, indicating low toxicity of the TiO2 nanocatalyst-. Altogether, the advanced oxidation processes using TiO2 nanocatalyst can be considered as a promising and effective remediation technology for the complete detoxification of methomyl and dimethoate in water. However, further future research is needed to identify the possible breakdown products and to verify the safety of the used nanomaterials.

Ameliorative Effects of Bovine Lactoferrin on Benzene-Induced Hematotoxicity in Albino Rats

“…The liver is the primary organ concerned with the biotransformation of chemicals, which mostly results in markedly detrimental effects on the biochemistry of hepatocytes, such as excessive ROS generation, which causes oxidative damage not only in the liver but also in other organs, including the kidneys, spleen, and hematopoietic system (36,(43)(44)(45)(46)(47)(48)(49)(50). In this study, Bz-treated rats revealed significant increases in serum bioactivities of AST, ALT, ALP, and LDH and decreased serum total protein, albumin, and α2-and γ-globulin concentrations.…”

Advanced Oxidation Processes Using Zinc Oxide Nanocatalyst for Detoxification of Some Highly Toxic Insecticides in an Aquatic System Combined With Improving Water Quality Parameters

“…Advanced oxidation processes, especially those with nanocatalysts (Massoud et al, 2021), are promising remediation technologies for removing dimethoate or methomyl from water resources and are suitable for highly contaminated water, such as drainage or wastewater, due to the faster degradation rate via its great degradation power relative to bioremediation, which takes a long time, requires special environmental conditions, and is limited to biodegradable compounds (Derbalah et al, 2014). Although nanomaterials present seemingly limitless possibilities, they bring new challenges to understanding, predicting, and managing potential safety and health risks to workers.…”

Photo-Fenton and TiO2 Photocatalytic Inactivation of Model Microorganisms under UV-A; Comparative Efficacy and Optimization

“…Extensive research has been conducted aiming at the development of optimized homogeneous and heterogeneous photocatalytic approaches for the decomposition and detoxification of hazardous organic substances in aqueous solutions, such as antibiotics [ 13 , 15 , 16 , 17 ], pesticides [ 18 , 19 , 20 ] and dyes [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. Similar studies have been conducted for the evaluation of the photocatalytic inactivation of microorganisms in suspension [ 25 ], focusing on endospores, considered to be one of the most resistant targets [ 12 , 26 , 27 ], viruses [ 28 , 29 , 30 ], fungi [ 14 ], Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria [ 31 ].…”