Tetracycline is a common antibiotic used in confined livestock feeding operations.  The livestock excrete the tetracycline that is not metabolized, and this tetracycline can migrate into wastewater lagoons.  Tetracycline can then adsorb to organic material in the lagoon such as manure, and thus prevent the photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline.  Past results from January 2017 demonstrated that tetracycline concentrations decrease during solar illumination at similar rates with or without the presence of the photocatalyst if manure or soil is also present.  This experiment was repeated in July 2017 to determine whether temperature and light intensity were important parameters in this result.  The results in July 2017 indicate that tetracycline is likely adsorbing to the manure causing a decrease in photocatalytic degradation rates.  These results indicate that the photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline in wastewater lagoons may not be a practical solution for removing tetracycline from the environment.<br/>

Seasonal comparison of photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline in bovine wastewater

255th National Meeting (2018)

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