Achieving biodegradability enhancement and acute biotoxicity removal through the treatment of pharmaceutical wastewater using a combined internal electrolysis and ultrasonic irradiation technology

Research Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Actual pharmaceutical wastewater was treated using a combined ultrasonic irradiation (US) and iron/coke internal electrolysis (Fe/C) technology. A significant synergetic effect was observed, showing that ultrasonic irradiation dramatically enhanced the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiencies by internal electrolysis. The effects of primary operating factors on COD removal were evaluated systematically. Higher ultrasonic frequency and lower pH values as well as longer reaction time were favorable to COD removal. The ratio of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and COD (B/C) of the wastewater increased from 0.21 to 0.32 after US-Fe/C treatment. An acute biotoxicity assay measuring the inhibition of bioluminescence indicated that the wastewater with overall toxicity of 4.3 mg-Zn2+·L−1 was reduced to 0.5 mg-Zn2+·L−1 after treatment. Both the raw and the treated wastewater samples were separated and identified. The types of compounds suggested that the increased biodegradability and reduced biotoxicity resulted mainly from the destruction of N,N-2 dimethyl formamide and aromatic compounds in the pharmaceutical wastewater.

Keywords

internal electrolysis ultrasonic pharmaceutical wastewater biodegradability acute biotoxicity 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

References

  1. 1.
    Yu Y, Peng W, Shu J S, Yuan L. Microwave enhanced Fenton-like process for the treatment of high concentration pharmaceutical wastewater. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2009, 168(1): 238–245CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  2. 2.
    Zwiener C, Frimmel F H. Oxidative treatment of pharmaceuticals in water. Water Research, 2000, 34(6): 1881–1885CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. 3.
    Matthew K, James K, Kaleena W, Crispin W, Margaret Z. Pharmaceuticals in wastewater: behavior, preferences, and willingness to pay for a disposal program. Journal of Environmental Management, 2009, 90(3): 1476–1482CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  4. 4.
    Bao L X, Li J Z, Liu Y, Zhu G F, Lin Q Y, Shan W G. Pretreatment and toxicity reduction of apramycin wastewater by iron internal electrolysis process. Journal of Harbin Institute of Technology, 2007, 39(6): 883–886 (in Chinese)Google Scholar
  5. 5.
    Qin C, Yang S G, Sun C, Zhan M J, Wang R J, Cai H X, Zhou J. Investigation of the effects of humic acid and H2O2 on the photocatalytic degradation of atrazine assisted by microwave. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering in China, 2010, 4(3): 321–328CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  6. 6.
    Fan L, Ni J N, Wu Y J, Zhang Y Y. Treatment of bromoamine acid wastewater using combined process of micro-electrolysis and biological aerobic filter. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2009, 162(2–3): 1204–1210CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. 7.
    Cheng H F, Xu W P, Liu J L, Wang H J, He Y Q, Chen G. Pretreatment of wastewater from triazine manufacturing by coagulation, electrolysis, and internal micro-electrolysis. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2007, 146(1–2): 385–392CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  8. 8.
    Yuan S H, Kang J, Wu X H, Wang L L, Chen J, Lu X H. Development of a novel internal electrolysis system by iron connected with carbon: treatment of nitroaromatic compounds and case of engineering application. Journal of Environmental Engineering, 2010, 136(9): 975–982CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  9. 9.
    Shi Y, Liu H, Zhou X, Xie A, Hu C Y. Mechanism on impact of internal-electrolysis pretreatment on biodegradability of yeast wastewater. Chinese Science Bulletin, 2009, 54(12): 2124–2130CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  10. 10.
    Zhu N R, Luan H W, Yuan S H, Chen J, Wu X H, Wang L L. Effective dechlorination of HCB by nanoscale Cu/Fe particles. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2010, 176(1–3): 1101–1105CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  11. 11.
    Ge M, Guo C S, Zhu X W, Ma L L, Han Z N, Hu J W, Wang Y Q. Photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange using ZnO/TiO2 composites. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering in China, 2009, 3(3): 271–280CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  12. 12.
    Liu H M, Li G T, Qu J H, Liu H Y. Degradation of azo dye Acid Orange 7 in water by Fe0/granular activated carbon system in the presence of ultrasound. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2007, 144 (1–2): 180–186CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. 13.
    Peng X L, Chen C, Long J, Sun J. Treatment of p-Nitrophenol solution by synergistic ultrasonic electrolysis. Water and Water Engineering, 2007, 33(5): 164–167 (in Chinese)Google Scholar
  14. 14.
    Wang C, Xi J Y, Hu H Y. Chemical identification and acute biotoxicity assessment of gaseous chlorobenzene photodegradation products. Chemosphere, 2008, 73(8): 1167–1171CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  15. 15.
    Diana V, Zoltan N, Attila K. Microbial toxicity of pesticide derivatives produced with UV-photodegradation. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 2007, 79(3): 356–359CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  16. 16.
    Wang L S, Wei D B, Wei J, Hu H Y. Screening and estimating of toxicity formation with photobacterium bioassay during chlorine disinfection of wastewater. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2007, 141(1): 289–294CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  17. 17.
    Ren Y, Wei C H, Wu C F, Li G B. Environmental and biological characteristics of coking wastewater. Acta Scientiae Circumstantiae, 2007, 27(7): 1094–1100 (in Chinese)Google Scholar
  18. 18.
    Fan J H, Ma L M. The pretreatment by the Fe-Cu process for enhancing biological degradability of the mixed wastewater. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2009, 164(2–3): 1392–1397CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  19. 19.
    Qu J X, Chen J Z. Research Progress in Recovery and Treatment of DMF-contained Tannery Wastewater. Westleahter, 2009, 31(21): 34–38 (in Chinese)Google Scholar
  20. 20.
    Okazaki M, Hamada T, Fujii H. Development of poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogel for wastewater cleaning 2 treatment of N,N-dimethylformamide in wastewater with poly(vinyl alcohol) gel with immobilized microorganisms. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 1995, 58(12): 2243–2249CrossRefGoogle Scholar

Copyright information

© Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.School of Environmental Science and EngineeringTianjin UniversityTianjinChina

Personalised recommendations