Photodegradation kinetics and halogens release of the emerging concern pollutants dexamethasone and S-metolachlor on TiO2/rGO composites

This work studies the photocatalytic degradation of solutions containing 0.11 mM of a glucocorticoid (dexamethasone, DEX) and 0.11 mM of an herbicide (S-metolachlor, MTLC), organohalogenated compounds containing fluorine and chlorine atoms in their molecules, respectively. To treat 1 L volume, a mass of 0.5 g of TiO2/rGO composite in suspension has been used as photocatalyst, irradiated with UV-A LEDs with 200 W m−2 of irradiance. MTLC is partially adsorbed on the surface of the catalyst, while DEX is not adsorbed, showing different degradation kinetics. The halogen ions released into the solution from the breakage of the parent molecules, F− and Cl− respectively, were analysed. In the case of MTLC, the released Cl− followed two different kinetic trends, being faster, and with a rate that matched the rate of MTLC disappearance, the part corresponding to non-adsorbed MTLC. In the experiments with DEX solutions a different behaviour was observed; the released F− in the photocatalytic degradation was partially adsorbed on the catalyst surface, but the adsorption capacity decreased with the use of the photocatalyst in consecutive cycles until the solubilised F− matched the degraded concentration of DEX. Furthermore, the mass balance between the degraded contaminant and the solubilised halogen anion, for both contaminants, allowed to conclude the absence of halogenated intermediates under the final operating conditions, that is a remarkable outcome in water remediation processes.These results are part of the R&D projects PID2021-122563OB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and “ERDF A way of making Europe” and PDC2022-133563-I00, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and “UE Next Generation EU/PRTR”. Carmen Barquín is also grateful for the FPI contract PRE2019-089096