Urban wastewater treatment by using Ag/ZnO and Pt/TiO2 photocatalysts

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 26; no. 5; pp. 4171 - 4179
• Main Authors: Murcia Mesa, Julie J., Arias Bolivar, Lizeth G, Sarmiento, Hugo Alfonso Rojas, Martínez, Elsa Giovanna Ávila, Páez, César Jaramillo, Lara, Mayra Anabel, Santos, José Antonio Navío, del Carmen Hidalgo López, María
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.02.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Advanced Oxidation Technologies: State-of-the-Art in Ibero-American Countries; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Catalytic activity; E coli; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Industrial effluents; Industrial pollution; Industrial wastewater; Organic chemistry; Photocatalysis; Photocatalysts; Platinum; Pollutants; Precursors; Reaction time; Rivers; Silver; Titanium; Titanium dioxide; Turbidity; Waste Water Technology; Wastewater treatment; Water analysis; Water Management; Water pollution; Water Pollution Control; Water sampling; Zinc oxide; Treatment; Pt/TiO; Wastewater; Photocatalysis; Ag/ZnO
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-1592-3

In this study, the treatment of wastewater coming from a river highly polluted with domestic and industrial effluents was evaluated. For this purpose, series of photocatalysts obtained by ZnO and TiO 2 modification were evaluated. The effect of metal addition and Ti precursor (in the case of the titania series) over the physicochemical and photocatalytic properties of the materials obtained was also analyzed. The evaluation of the photocatalytic activity showed that semiconductor modification and precursor used in the materials synthesis are important factors influencing the physicochemical and therefore the photocatalytic properties of the materials obtained. The water samples analyzed in the present work were taken from a highly polluted river, and it was found that the effectiveness of the photocatalytic treatment increases when the reaction time increases and for both, wastewater samples and isolated Escherichia coli strain follow the next order Pt/TiO 2 << ZnO. It was also observed that biochemical and chemical demand oxygen and turbidity significantly decrease after treatment, thus indicating that photocatalysis is a non-selective technology, which can lead to recover wastewater containing different pollutants.