The oxidative degradation of common pharmaceuticals including propranolol, carbamazepine, ranitidine, metoprolol, trimethoprim, cimetidine, ciprofloxacin, and acetaminophen have been studied by using nitrogen-doped carbon monolith 3D cathode in a continuous electro-peroxone process with novel 3D printed electro-chemical reactor. The carbon monolith electrode was prepared from polymer precursor with the ease of control over nitrogen dopant concentration and structure of the 3D porosity, which tunes oxygen reduction selectivity to facilitate hydrogen peroxide production and improves mass transfer respectively. The effect of parameters including current density, solution pH, and flow rate on the pharmaceutical degradation in aqueous solution was determined. The mineralization of pharmaceuticals and intermediates formed during the electro-peroxone treatment were evaluated using total organic carbon (TOC) and quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Q-TOF). In addition, we found the porous structure of the carbon monolith 3D electrode significantly influenced treatment efficiency, which is associated with the mobility of pharmaceuticals inside the pore structure. Our results indicate that carbon monolith 3D electrode is superior to the existing electrodes employed in electro-peroxone study in terms of treatment efficiency, and it may be employed as suitable alternative for the nanofiltration membrane.

Degradation and mineralization of common pharmaceuticals using nitrogen-doped carbon monolith 3D electrode with 3D printed electrochemical reactor

254th National Meeting (2017)

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