RT journal article
T1 Supercritical water valorization of a model wastewater containing anxiolytic and antidepressant drugs: Experimental and thermodynamic assessment
A1 Dias, Isabela M.
A1 Mourão, Lucas C.
A1 De Souza, Guilherme B. M.
A1 Dos Santos-Junior, Julles M.
A1 De Freitas, Antônio C. D.
A1 Pavão, Leandro V.
A1 Portela Miguélez, Juan Ramón
A1 Abelleira Pereira, José María
A1 García Jarana, María Belén
A1 Cardozo-Filho, Lucio
A1 Alonso, Christian G.
A2 Ingeniería Química y Tecnología de Alimentos
K1 Degradation
K1 Emergent pollutants
K1 Hydrothermal process
K1 Wastewater treatment
K1 psychoactive drugs
AB This study presents a continuous hydrothermal process based on the supercritical water (ScW) technology for the treatment of pharmaceutical contaminants in wastewater. Using a simulated wastewater as feedstock, which was prepared with 5 psychoactive drugs (sertraline, paroxetine, zolpidem, escitalopram, and clonazepam), the impact of temperature, feed flow rate, and concentration of H2O2 in the degradation of organic matter was investigated. Thermodynamic aspects of the process were also assessed. The optimal conditions of treatment were at a temperature of 692.8 °C, feed flow rate of 6.6 mL/min, and H2O2 concentration in terms of oxidant coefficient (Ox. C.) of 1.03. Under these conditions, the experimental test achieved a total organic carbon removal efficiency (%RTOC) of 85.9 ± 0.5 %. Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentrations decreased from 559.0 and 1118.4 mg/L to 66.0 and 152.5 mg/L, respectively. The liquid phase was also assessed by toxicity assays against Artemia salina microcrustaceans. For the gaseous phase, hydrogen was identified as the main component (57.7 %). Additionally, an assessment of the energy efficiency of the process scale-up was investigated. The ScW process showed a promising potential for large-scale continuous operations as an energy-efficient solution for wastewater treatment and valorization due to the concomitant production of H2-rich gas.
PB Elsevier
SN 2214-7144
YR 2024
FD 2024-09
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/35218
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/35218
LA eng
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz
RD 07-nov-2026