title: Transformation of pharmaceuticals during oxidation/disinfection processes in drinking water treatment.
abstract: Pharmaceuticals are emerging contaminants of concern and are widespread in the environment. While the levels of these substances in finished drinking waters are generally considered too low for human health concern, there are now concerns about their disinfection by-products (DBPs) that can form during drinking water treatment, which in some cases have been proven to be more toxic than the parent compounds. The present manuscript reviews the transformation products of pharmaceuticals generated in water during different disinfection processes, i.e. chlorination, ozonation, chloramination, chlorine dioxide, UV, and UV/hydrogen peroxide, and the main reaction pathways taking place. Most of the findings considered for this review come from controlled laboratory studies involving reactions of pharmaceuticals with these oxidants used in drinking water treatment.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA)-Spanish National Research Council (CID-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Postigo
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA. Electronic address: richardson.susan@sc.edu.
authors.forename: Susan D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Richardson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004203:Disinfection / Q000379:methods*; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000737:chemistry*; D014873:Water Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D060766:Drinking Water; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D014873:Water Pollutants
keywords: Chlorination; DBPs; Disinfection by-products; Drinking water; Pharmaceuticals; Transformation pathways