Photoelectrocatalytic degradation of sulphonamide antibiotics in aquatic media using a novel Co-doped ZnO nanocomposite: evaluation of performance, kinetic studies.

It is well known that antibiotics' residues in aquatic environments are a great threat to human health and ecology. Thus, it is vital to develop efficient strategies to overcome the mentioned threat and degrade the pointed out residues as much as possible. Herein, a novel Co-doped ZnO nanocomposite was fabricated and deposited on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass sheets (FTO) and eventually applied for the photoelectrocatalytic degradation of four sulphonamides (SAs), namely sulphacetamide (SCT), sulphathiazole (STZ), sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and sulphadiazine (SDZ) under visible light irradiation. In this regard, the effect of initial pH (3–11), applied current (0.5–1.5 mA/cm²), initial concentration of SAs (5–20 mg/L) were thoroughly investigated. The results indicated that under the optimal conditions (pH = 9, [SAs] = 5 mg/L and applied current = 1.5 mA/cm²), the degradation efficiencies obtained under a 90-min of reaction time were as follows: SCT (97.1%), SMX (95.8%), SDZ (93.2%) and STZ (91.8%). In addition, the degradation of the SAs by the applied photoelectrocatalytic process (PECP) followed the first-order kinetic model. Meanwhile, the applied PECP exhibited an excellent performance with regard to real samples. Finally, PECP is reckoned to be associated with 'green' technologies as electricity is involved and the used catalyst will not end up in the environment as secondary toxic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Journal of Environmental Analytical Chemistry is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)