Removal of cephalexin from aqueous solutions using the fenton photocatalytic process

Abstract

This paper aims to study the degradation and oxidation/mineralization process of cephalexin in model systems using Fenton’s reagent for UV irradiation (λ = 254 nm). The effect of pH (2-11), concentration of H2O2 (0,3434 mg/L) and concentration of Fe(II) (0-28 mg/L) on the degradation of 50 mg/L CPX were investigated. It has been determined optimum conditions for photocatalytic oxidation of CPX. Increasing the amount of H2O2 plays an inhibitory role in the production of hydroxyl radicals and reduces the process efficiency. This can be attributed to the reaction of excess peroxide with •OH and the formation of HO2 •, which has less oxidizing power compared to free hydroxyl radical. And as the concentration of the catalyst increases to the optimum, the excess of Fe(II) ions reacts with the hydroxyl radical and, therefore, the efficiency of the process also is reduced. Accordingly, the optimum degradation efficiency of 88 % and 83% for COD was obtained under the following conditions: pH 2,5, H2O2 concentration – 3,4 mg/L, Fe(II) ions concentration – 5,6 mg/L, cephalexin concentration – 50 mg/L, and reaction time – 60 min. Thus, the current study demonstrated that the photo-Fenton reactor can be used effectively as an advanced oxidation treatment unit for degradation of cephalexin under optimized environmental conditions.