Yuefei Ji

Nitrate-induced photodegradation of atenolol in aqueous solution: Kinetics, toxicity and degradation pathways

The extensive utilization of β-blockers worldwide led to frequent detection in natural water. In this study the photolysis behavior of atenolol (ATL) and toxicity of its photodegradation products were investigated in the presence of nitrate ions. The results showed that ATL photodegradation followed pseudo-first-order kinetics upon simulated solar irradiation. The photodegradation was found to be dependent on nitrate concentration and increasing the nitrate from 0.5 mML(-1) to 10 mML(-1) led to the enhancement of rate constant from 0.00101 min(-1) to 0.00716 min(-1). Hydroxyl radical was determined to play a key role in the photolysis process by using isopropanol as molecular probe. Increasing the solution pH from 4.8 to 10.4, the photodegradation rate slightly decreased from 0.00246 min(-1) to 0.00195 min(-1), probably due to pH-dependent effect of nitrate-induced .OH formation. Bicarbonate decreased the photodegradation of ATL in the presence of nitrate ions mainly through pH effect, while humic substance inhibited the photodegradation via both attenuating light and competing radicals. Upon irradiation for 240 min, only 10% reduction of total organic carbon (TOC) can be achieved in spite of 72% transformation rate of ATL, implying a majority of ATL transformed into intermediate products rather than complete mineralization. The main photoproducts of ATL were identified by using solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS) techniques and possible nitrate-induced photodegradation pathways were proposed. The toxicity of the phototransformation products was evaluated using aquatic species Daphnia magna, and the results revealed that photodegradation was an effective mechanism for ATL toxicity reduction in natural waters.

Ferrous-activated persulfate oxidation of arsenic(III) and diuron in aquatic system

In situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) can be an effective technology for the remediation of soil and groundwater polluted by organic and inorganic contaminants. This study investigated the oxidation of arsenic(III) (As(III)) and diuron using ferrous activated persulfate-based ISCO. The results indicated that Fe(II)/persulfate oxidation could be an effective method to oxidize As(III) and diuron. Effects of pH, S2O8(2-) and Fe(II) amounts on the destruction of As(III) and diuron were examined in batch experiments. Acidic conditions favored the removal of As(III) and diuron. Four chelating agents, citric acid (CA), Na2S2O3, diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) and ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid disodium (EDTA-Na2) were used in attempt to maintain the quantity of ferrous ion in solution. In our experiments, CA and Na2S2O3 were found to be more effective than DTPA and EDTA-Na2. Our results also revealed a widely practical prospect of inorganic chelating agent Na2S2O3. Hydroxyl and sulfate radical were determined to play key roles in the oxidation process by using ethanol and tertiary butanol as molecular probes. Oxidation of As(III) yielded As(V) via the electron-transfer reaction. In the oxidation process of diuron, a stepwise nucleophilic substitution of chlorine by hydroxyl and a stepwise oxidation process of the methyl on the dimethylurea group by hydroxyl and sulfate radical were proposed.

Aquatic photodegradation of sunscreen agent p-aminobenzoic acid in the presence of dissolved organic matter

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is an important photosensitizer for the phototransformation of organic contaminants in sunlit natural waters. This article focuses on the photolysis kinetics and mechanism of sunscreen agent p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) in the presence of four kinds of DOM; Suwannee River fulvic acid (SRFA), Suwannee River humic acid (SRHA), Nordic Lake fulvic acid (NOFA) and Nordic Lake humic acid (NOHA). It is evident that direct photolysis of PABA is highly pH-dependent because different species of PABA have different electrical densities on the ring system. The presence of four kinds of DOM inhibits the photolysis of PABA primarily due to their light screening effect. Meanwhile, a complex interaction involving energy transfer, triplet carbonyl group induced electron transfer, and amino acid induced proton abstraction between PABA and DOM is verified by competition kinetics experiments and density functional theory (DFT) computation. In addition, DOM-induced singlet oxygen ((1)O(2)) and hydroxyl radical (OH) are determined to play an insignificant role in PABA photolysis by competition dynamics method. Photoproducts identification using solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS) techniques reveals that the distribution of the photoproducts could not be affected by the addition of DOM. Two photodegradation pathways of PABA are temporarily proposed, in which the di(tri)-polymerization of intermediates are the dominant pathway whereas the oxidation of amino group to nitryl followed by hydroxylation is a minor process. Our findings reveal that direct photolysis is the dominant transformation pathway of PABA in natural sunlit waters, while the presence of DOM could evidently influence such process by light screening effect, energy transfer, electron transfer and proton abstraction mechanism. The findings in this study provide useful information for understanding of interaction between DOM and organic contaminants.

Photochemical degradation of sunscreen agent 2-phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic acid in different water matrices.

The occurrence of sunscreen agents in natural environment is of scientific concern recently due to their potential risk to ecology system and human beings as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). In this work the photodegradation mechanism and pathways of sunscreen agent 2-phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic acid (PBSA) were investigated under artificial solar irradiation with the goal of assessing the potential of photolysis as a transformation mechanism in aquatic environments. The quantum yield of PBSA direct photolysis in pH 6.8 buffer solution under filtered mercury lamp irradiation was determined as 2.70 × 10(-4). Laser flash photolysis (LFP) experiments confirmed the involvement of PBSA radical cation (PBSA(·+)) during direct photolysis. Acidic or basic condition facilitated PBSA direct photolysis in aqueous solution. Indirect photolysis out-competes direct photolysis as a major process for PBSA attenuation only at higher level of photosensitizers (e.g., NO3(-) > 2 mM). Thus, direct photolysis is likely to be the major loss pathway responsible for the elimination of PBSA in natural sunlit surface waters, while indirect photolysis (e.g., mediated by HO·) appeared to be less important due to a general low level of steady-state concentration of HO· ([HO·]ss) in natural surface waters. Direct photolysis pathways of PBSA includes desulfonation and benzimidazole ring cleavage, which are probably initiated by the excited triplet state ((3)PBSA*) and radical cation (PBSA(·+)). Conversely, hydroxylation products of PBSA and 2-phenyl-1H-benzimidazole as well as their ring opening intermediates were found in nitrate-induced PBSA photolysis, suggesting the indirect photodegradation was primarily mediated by HO and followed a different mechanism.

The effect of nitrate, bicarbonate and natural organic matter on the degradation of sunscreen agent p-aminobenzoic acid by simulated solar irradiation

Our experiments revealed that a model sunscreen agent, p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), can be effectively transformed through reactions that are mediated by simulated solar irradiation. We systematically explored the effects of nitrate ions, bicarbonate and different types of natural organic matter (NOM) on the degradation of PABA by simulated solar irradiation. Experimental data suggest that these components ubiquitous in nature water have different influence on the rates of the photoinduced removal of PABA. Products were extracted and analyzed using LC/MS and a total of four products probably resulting from OH and NO2 radicals attack were identified and the possible reaction pathways were proposed. The findings in this study provide useful information for understanding the environmental transformation of sunscreen agent in aquatic system.

The role of dissolved organic matters in the aquatic photodegradation of atenolol

Atenolol (ATL) is a photostable and hydrolysis resistant beta-blocker and has been frequently detected in natural water. In this study, mechanism on aquatic photodegradation of ATL was investigated with an emphasis on the role of dissolved organic matters (DOMs) as well as other natural water compositions (nitrate, bicarbonate and ferric ions). Significant acceleration of photodegradtion of ATL was observed in the presence of each DOMs added, namely Suwannee River Fulvic Acid (SRFA), Suwannee River Humic Acid (SRHA), Nordic Lake Fulvic Acid (NOFA) and Nordic Lake Humic Acid (NOHA). Hydroxyl radical (•OH) was determined as the main reactive species in this process, instead of singlet oxygen or excited triplet of DOM. Addition of these four DOMs all inhibited photodegradation of ATL in nitrate solutions through reducing nitrated-derived •OH and screening photons absorbed by nitrate. No loss of ATL was detected in bicarbonate solution with or without DOMs. Bicarbonate exhibited a scavenger of •OH derived from DOMs. However, in the presence of iron species, photodegradation of ATL was significantly enhanced by the addition of each DOM, due to the high yield of •OH in the photoprocess of Fe(III)-DOM complex. The photoproducts distribution of ATL demonstrated that SRFA promote the hydroxylation on aromatic ring in the presence of nitrate and reduce the ketone moiety to alcohol in the system of ferric ions. Our findings indicate that DOMs should be considered in aquatic photoprocesses of organic pollutants induced by themselves as well as other coexisting photoactive water compositions.

Photoreactivity of hydroxylated multi-walled carbon nanotubes and its effects on the photodegradation of atenolol in water.

In spite of the increasing concerns about the fate of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and the nanomaterial pollution in aquatic ecosystem, the effects of carbon nanotubes on the photochemical transformation of PPCPs are less considered. In this study, the photochemical production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) were examined in colloidal dispersions of hydroxylated multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT-OH) under simulated solar irradiation using a Xenon lamp. Two kinds of ROS, (1)O2 and OH, were confirmed by their molecular probes, furfuryl alcohol (FFA) and p-chlorobenzoic acid (PCBA). The steady-state concentrations of (1)O2 and OH were calculated as 1.30×10(-14) M and 5.02×10(-16) M, respectively. The effects of MWNT-OH on photodegradation of atenolol (ATL) were investigated in the presence of natural water components, i.e., dissolved organic matters (DOMs), nitrate (NO3(-)) and ferric ions (Fe(3+)). Photoproducts of atenolol were identified by solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS) analysis techniques. Three potential photochemical pathways of atenolol, including the hydroxylation on aromatic ring, the loss of amide group and the cleavage of ether oxygen bond as well as di-polymerization of reaction intermediates were tentatively proposed. Using the radical quenching method, reaction with OH was determined as the major photolysis pathway of atenolol in irradiated MWNT-OH suspensions. These findings of the production of ROS and their effects on the photodegradation of organic contaminants provided useful information for assessing environmental risk of MWNT-OH.

Non-activated peroxymonosulfate oxidation of sulfonamide antibiotics in water: Kinetics, mechanisms, and implications for water treatment

Despite that sulfate radical-based activated peroxymonosulfate (PMS) oxidation processes (e.g., UV/PMS, Co2+/PMS, etc.) have been widely applied for decontamination, the direct oxidation of organic contaminants by PMS per se is less known. This contribution reports that certain contaminants, such as sulfonamides (SAs), are amendable to direct oxidation by PMS without activation. Using sulfamethoxazole (SMX) as a representative, kinetics and density functional theory (DFT)-based computational methods were applied to elucidate the underlying mechanisms and pathways through which SMX was transformed by direct PMS oxidation. High resolution mass spectrometry (HR-MS) coupled with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analyses using authentic standards were adopted to qualifying and quantifying SMX transformation products. Our results reveal that nonradical oxidation of SMX by PMS was initiated by formation of a transition state complex between PMS molecule and amino functional group of SMX. Such reaction was assisted by two water molecules, which significantly reduced energy barrier. Direct PMS oxidation of SMX led to the formation of N4-hydroxyl-sulfamethoxazole (N4-OH-SMX), 4-nitroso-sulfamethoxazole (4-NO-SMX), and 4-nitro-sulfamethoxazole (4-NO2-SMX), sequentially. Implications of PMS oxidation with SAs to water treatment were further evaluated by investigating the effects of PMS dosage, pH, and natural water matrices. While PMS has a potential to transform a suite of SAs with similar structures (SMX, sulfisoxazole, sulfamethizole, sulfapyridine, sulfadiazine, and sulfachloropyridazine), the formation of potential hazardous nitroso- and nitro-byproducts should be scrutinized before this technology can be safely used for water and wastewater treatment.