Ultrasonic degradation of acetaminophen in water: effect of sonochemical parameters and water matrix.
This paper deals about the sonochemical water treatment of acetaminophen (ACP, N-acetyl-p-aminophenol or paracetamol), one of the most popular pharmaceutical compounds found in natural and drinking waters. Effect of ultrasonic power (20-60 W), initial ACP concentration (33-1323 μmol L(-1)) and pH (3-12) were evaluated. High ultrasonic powers and, low and natural acidic pH values favored the efficiency of the treatment. Effect of initial substrate concentration showed that the Langmuir-type kinetic model fit well the ACP sonochemical degradation. The influence of organic compounds in the water matrix, at concentrations 10-fold higher than ACP, was also evaluated. The results indicated that only organic compounds having a higher value of the Henry's law constant than the substrate decrease the efficiency of the treatment. On the other hand, ACP degradation in mineral natural water showed to be strongly dependent of the initial substrate concentration. A positive matrix effect was observed at low ACP concentrations (1.65 μmol L(-1)), which was attributed to the presence of bicarbonate ion in solution. However, at relative high ACP concentrations a detrimental effect of matrix components was noticed. Finally, the results indicated that ultrasonic action is able to transform ACP in aliphatic organic compounds that could be subsequently eliminated in a biological system.
Grupo de Investigación en Cromatografía y Técnicas Afines, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Caldas, A.A. 275, Manizales, Colombia.
Erica
E
Villaroel
Grupo de Investigación en Remediación Ambiental y Biocatálisis, Instituto de Química, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Antioquía, A.A. 1226, Medellín, Colombia.
Javier
J
Silva-Agredo
Laboratoire Rhéologie et Procédés, Grenoble, France; King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Christian
C
Petrier
Grupo de Investigación en Cromatografía y Técnicas Afines, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Caldas, A.A. 275, Manizales, Colombia.
Gonzalo
G
Taborda
Grupo de Investigación en Remediación Ambiental y Biocatálisis, Instituto de Química, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Antioquía, A.A. 1226, Medellín, Colombia. Electronic address: rtorres@matematicas.udea.edu.co.
Ricardo A
RA
Torres-Palma
D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000032:analysis; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D012996:Solutions; D013010:Sonication; D014465:Ultrasonics; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods
D060766:Drinking Water; D009930:Organic Chemicals; D012996:Solutions; D000082:Acetaminophen
Acetaminophen; Advanced oxidation processes; Paracetamol; Pharmaceutic products; Sonochemical degradation; Water treatment