Is photoelectrocatalysis an efficient process to degrade endocrine disruptors chemicals?

Abstract

Endocrine disruptors chemicals (EDCs) pose significant health risks, including cancer, behavioral disorders, and infertility. In this study, we employed the photoelectrocatalysis (PEC) technique with optimized tungsten oxide (WO₃) nanostructures as a photoanode to degrade three diverse EDCs: methiocarb, dimethyl phthalate, and 4-tert-butylphenol. PEC degradation tests were carried out for individual contaminants and a mixture of them, assessing efficiency across different EDC families. Ultra High-Performance Liquid Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry was used to control the course of the experiments. For individual solutions, 4-tert-butylphenol and methiocarb were 100% degraded at 1 hour of PEC degradation. Among the tested EDCs, dimethyl phthalate showed the highest resistance to degradation when treated individually. However, when assessed in a mixture with the other EDCs, the degradation efficiency of dimethyl phthalate increased compared to its individual treatment. Furthermore, four degradation intermediates were identified for each contaminant. Finally, toxicity tests revealed that the initial solution was more toxic than the samples treated for all the contaminants tested, except for the phthalate.