Advanced Oxidation Methods for Treatment of Contaminants in Water

Hadas Mamane, School of Mechanical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
Dror Avisar, School Of Earth Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel-aviv, Israel

In this presentation, selected research studies will be presented while highlighting environmental applications and implications, focused on developing water-treatment processes and technologies by introducing natural and induced photons, radicals and reactive species into the water via Advanced Oxidation Processes for treatment of water contaminants. Case studies will be presented as follows:

1. Wastewater reuse is one of the promising and most sustainable solutions to address global water scarcity. As such, wastewater reuse provides a major alternative to fresh water for the growing needs of water for food production. Soil-Aquifer Treatment (SAT) improves water quality during the percolation of treated wastewater through unsaturated soil. However, the use of reclaimed wastewater for irrigation is an important route for the introduction of organic compounds into the environment. Depletion of oxygen has been observed in the aquifer. Infiltrating more oxygenated water (via ozonation) has been suggested to enable using artificial recharge system in a more efficient way and provide high quality water from wastewater origin for reuse.


2. A photocatalytic water treatment was developed to harness the UVA and visible sun wavelengths to disinfect water and break down organic pollutants in water, via solar based AOP. The nano-structured photocatalyst material is based on nitrogen-doped TiO₂, integrated in ceramic membranes, thus combining water filtration and oxidation via AOP in a simple treatment unit. The ultimate goal is to produce safe drinking water via solar irradiation, without the use of chemicals.


3. In a recent study, the influence of effluent particles on ozone degradation of trace organic contaminants and effluent-quality parameters was examined. Secondary effluent was filtered through different pore-size filters and ozonated by various ozone doses. Degradation of both ozone-reactive and ozone-refractory contaminants improved following ozonation of effluent filtered with smaller-pore-size filters, indicating that particles in this range may adversely affect ozonation. The inhibitory effect of particles was attributed to their reaction with ozone, reducing available ozone and HO• radicals. Ozone was shown to react with particles even during the first seconds of the process, suggesting a high rate of some ozone–particle reactions, comparable to ozone reaction with highly reactive dissolved organic matter moieties.