The removal of waterborne viruses in constructed wetlands and soils can be enhanced by adsorption onto iron oxides.  Because adsorption is not always coupled with inactivation, changes in solution conditions can desorb and release infective viruses back into the water.  The two project goals were 1) to investigate the release of infective bacteriophages (MS2 and FX174) after adsorption onto iron oxide coated sands (IOCS), and 2) to utilize the photoreactive IOCS surfaces to enhance viral inactivation.  While having no impact on infectivity, the iron oxide coating greatly enhanced adsorption (~109 infective virus/g IOCS) under standard conditions (pH 7.5, 10 mM Tris, 1250 �S/cm).  Increasing the pH and humic acid concentration provoked desorption of infective virus.  Sunlight irradiation caused inactivation of IOCS-adsorbed MS2 via a photocatalytic mechanism in both buffered solutions (4.9-log10 inactivation) and wastewater (3.3-log10 inactivation) after 24-h exposure.  Photocatalysis did not enhance FX174 inactivation.

Enhancing photoinactivation of viruses in sunlit waters using iron-oxide coated sands

244th National Meeting (2012)

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