Catalytic ozonation of pharmaceutical compounds using carbon-based catalysts

Abstract

Catalytic ozonation has become one of the most promising technologies for wastewater treatment due to its high efficiency in the removal of organic pollutants. Three carbon materials (carbon nanotubes, graphene oxide and activated carbon) and five pharmaceutical compounds were selected for this study. All tested parent pollutants were easily degraded by single ozonation. In terms of mineralization, the presence of catalyst revealed to be necessary to enhance organic matter removal, and activated carbon (GAC) showing superior performance. To evaluate the effect of the water matrix, experiments were performed with ground water and wastewater and significant degradation of pollutants was achieved.