1
|
Potential of Advanced Oxidation as Pretreatment for Microplastics Biodegradation. SEPARATIONS 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/separations10020132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
Abstract
In the last two decades, microplastics (MP) have been identified as an emerging environmental pollutant. Due to their small size, MP particles may easily enter the food chain, where they can have adverse effects on organisms and the environment in general. The common methods for the removal of pollutants from the environment are not fully effective in the elimination of MP; thus, it is necessary to find a more suitable treatment method(s). Among the various approaches tested, biodegradation is by far the most environmentally friendly and economically acceptable remediation approach. However, it has serious drawbacks, generally related to the rather low removal rate and often insufficient efficiency. Therefore, it would be beneficial to use some of the less economical but more efficient methods as pretreatment prior to biodegradation. Such pretreatment would primarily serve to increase the roughness and hydrophilicity of the surface of MP, making it more susceptible to bioassimilation. This review focuses on advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) as treatment methods that can enhance the biodegradation of MP particles. It considers MP particles of the six most commonly used plastic polymers, namely: polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene terephthalate and polyurethane. The review highlights organisms with a high potential for biodegradation of selected MP particles and presents the potential benefits that AOP pretreatment can provide for MP biodegradation.
Collapse
|
2
|
Zhang Y, He Z, Zhou J, Huang Y, Li W, Li Y, Li Y, Bi H, Chang F, Zhang H, Hu G. Amorphous Co@TiO 2 heterojunctions: A high-performance and stable catalyst for the efficient degradation of sulfamethazine via peroxymonosulfate activation. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 307:135681. [PMID: 35839989 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.135681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Persulfate-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) cannot easily achieve the efficient degradation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) with high stability. In this study, a simple in situ precipitation method was used to prepare an amorphous Co@TiO2 heterojunction catalyst. The deposition of Co oxide on TiO2, which is relatively nontoxic, efficiently activated peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to degrade sulfamethazine (SMT) and reduce the leaching of Co ions (0.915%). A catalytic system prepared using 0.3 g L-1 Co@TiO2 and 0.5 g L-1 PMS could degrade SMT within 30 min with a degradation rate of 95.8%. Co@TiO2 could activate PMS over a wide pH range (5.00-9.00) to efficiently degrade other antibiotics and dyes. Radical-capture experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance analysis suggested that SMT degradation occurs through a combination of the free radical and non-radical pathways, in which singlet 1O2 played a major role. Owing to the novelty of the proposed composite materials, the degradation path of SMT, which was determined through liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, differed from that reported previously. This study provides not only an advanced and renewable catalyst for SMT degradation but also a feasible strategy for designing materials for AOPs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunqiu Zhang
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Zhuang He
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Jing Zhou
- Institute of Eco-environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510650, PR China
| | - Yimin Huang
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Wenyan Li
- Joint Institute for Environmental Research and Education, College of Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, PR China
| | - Yongtao Li
- Joint Institute for Environmental Research and Education, College of Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, PR China
| | - Yuanxin Li
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Huilin Bi
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Fengqin Chang
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China.
| | - Hucai Zhang
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China
| | - Guangzhi Hu
- Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650504, PR China.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Removal of chemical and microbial water pollutants by cold plasma combined with Ag/TiO 2-rGO nanoparticles. Sci Rep 2022; 12:9850. [PMID: 35701491 PMCID: PMC9198087 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13444-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the synergistic effect of the cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) and heterogeneous photocatalytic processes in an aqueous solution to enhance water purification efficacy and reduce the energy cost required by CAP. 0.1% Ag/TiO2-reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanoparticles (NPs) photo-composite were prepared and fully characterized. Data showed that Ag nanoparticles and the rGO play an important role in increasing the efficiency of the whole treatment process and the photo-composite (0.1% Ag/TiO2-1% rGO at 400 °C) revealed the highest phenol removal rate with excellent reusability. Also, complete inactivation (~ 5log10 reduction) of both E. coli and S. aureus by NPs was observed without CAP exposure, whereas a minimal effect (0.1-0.5 log10) on viruses (Adenovirus (AdV), rotavirus, and ɸX174) was observed after 10 min incubation. Interestingly, the photocatalytic virus inactivation test was promising, as it resulted in > 4.7log10 reduction of AdV at 2 min treatment, whereas < 1log10 could be reduced using only CAP at the same treatment time. Accordingly, we believe that this work could provide new insights into how the synergy between CAP and 0.1% Ag/TiO2-1% rGO photo-composite in aqueous media imposes a great potential for environmental applications, such as water purification and microbial inactivation.
Collapse
|
4
|
Topolovec B, Škoro N, Puаč N, Petrovic M. Pathways of organic micropollutants degradation in atmospheric pressure plasma processing - A review. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 294:133606. [PMID: 35033511 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Concern of toxic compounds and their, potentially more harmful degradation products, present in aquatic environment alarmed scientific community and research on the development of novel technologies for wastewater treatment had become of great interest. Up to this date, many papers pointed out the challenges and limitations of conventional wastewater treatment and of some advanced oxidation processes. Advanced technologies based on the use of non-equilibrium or non-thermal plasma had been recognized as a possible solution for, not only degradation, but for complete removal of recalcitrant organic micropollutants. While previous review papers have been focused on plasma physics and chemistry of different types of discharges for few organic micropollutants, this paper brings comprehensive review of current knowledge on the chemistry and degradation pathways by using different non-thermal plasma types for several micropollutants' classes, such as pharmaceuticals, perfluorinated compounds, pesticides, phenols and dyes and points out some major research gaps.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Topolovec
- Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Emili Grahit 101, 17003, Girona, Spain; University of Girona, Girona, Spain
| | - Nikola Škoro
- Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade, Pregrevica 118, 11080, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Nevena Puаč
- Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade, Pregrevica 118, 11080, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Mira Petrovic
- Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Emili Grahit 101, 17003, Girona, Spain; Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), Passeig Lluis Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Non-Thermal Plasma Coupled with Catalyst for the Degradation of Water Pollutants: A Review. Catalysts 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/catal10121438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Non-thermal plasma is one of the most promising technologies used for the degradation of hazardous pollutants in wastewater. Recent studies evidenced that various operating parameters influence the yield of the Non-Thermal Plasma (NTP)-based processes. In particular, the presence of a catalyst, suitably placed in the NTP reactor, induces a significant increase in process performance with respect to NTP alone. For this purpose, several researchers have studied the ability of NTP coupled to catalysts for the removal of different kind of pollutants in aqueous solution. It is clear that it is still complicated to define an optimal condition that can be suitable for all types of contaminants as well as for the various types of catalysts used in this context. However, it was highlighted that the operational parameters play a fundamental role. However, it is often difficult to understand the effect that plasma can induce on the catalyst and on the production of the oxidizing species most responsible for the degradation of contaminants. For this reason, the aim of this review is to summarize catalytic formulations coupled with non-thermal plasma technology for water pollutants removal. In particular, the reactor configuration to be adopted when NTP was coupled with a catalyst was presented, as well as the position of the catalyst in the reactor and the role of the main oxidizing species. Furthermore, in this review, a comparison in terms of degradation and mineralization efficiency was made for the different cases studied.
Collapse
|