Removal of Diclofenac in Wastewater Using Biosorption and Advanced Oxidation Techniques: Comparative Results

Abstract

Wastewater treatment is a topic of primary interest with regard to the environment. Diclofenac is a common analgesic drug often detected in wastewater and surface water. In this paper, three commonly available agrifood waste types (artichoke agrowaste, olive-mill residues, and citrus waste) were reused as sorbents of diclofenac present in aqueous effluents. Citrus-waste biomass for a dose of 2 g·L−1 allowed for removing 99.7% of diclofenac present in the initial sample, with a sorption capacity of 9 mg of adsorbed diclofenac for each gram of used biomass. The respective values obtained for olive-mill residues and artichoke agrowaste were around 4.15 mg·g−1. Advanced oxidation processes with UV/H2O2 and UV/HOCl were shown to be effective treatments for the elimination of diclofenac. A significant reduction in chemical oxygen demand (COD; 40–48%) was also achieved with these oxidation treatments. Despite the lesser effectiveness of the sorption process, it should be considered that the reuse and valorization of these lignocellulosic agrifood residues would facilitate the fostering of a circular economy.

Available Pathways for Operationalizing Circular Economy into the Olive Oil Supply Chain: Mapping Evidence from a Scoping Literature Review

“…This technological solution could be applied where other treatments such as filtration, reverse osmosis, extraction, chemical precipitation, and others, result expensive or less effective. [106] suggests the utilization of olive mill residues, among other agri-food wastes, as sorbents of diclofenac present in aqueous effluents.…”

Adsorptive and Surface Characterization of Mediterranean Agrifood Processing Wastes: Prospection for Pesticide Removal

“…The agrifood wastes targeted by this research have previously been tested as sorbents to bioremove heavy metals and dyes from aqueous effluent, obtaining excellent results [7][8][9]11,13,31,59]. However, further research is needed to accomplish the technological development of the results reached at laboratory scale, in addition to examining their performance regarding specific pollutants.…”

Preparation and Characterization of Chitosan-Coated Manganese-Ferrite Nanoparticles Conjugated with Laccase for Environmental Bioremediation

“…Many contemporary pollutants come from pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, biomedical, and personal care products utilized by people. Diclofenac (DFC) is one of the most common contaminants found in the aquatic environment, belonging to the category of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) [ 13 , 14 , 15 ]. The presence of these unconventional contaminants (UCs) in surface water and wastewater is an issue of considerable scientific interest for their possible toxic effects [ 16 ].…”