Background and purpose: Antibiotics are extensively used in treatment of diseases. Metronidazole is an antimicrobial agent and is a nitroimidazole derivative, which is widely used in treatment of infectious diseases caused by bacteria and protozoa. This compound is irrefrangible, toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, and has high solubility in water. Advanced oxidation process is an effective method for removal of metronidazole from aqueous solutions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of advanced oxidation process based on persulfate (UV / Na₂S₂O₈) to remove metronidazole from aqueous solutions.
Materials and methods: In this research, the effect of some variables such as pH, persulfate concentration and contact time was studied by a UV-C lamp (16 watts). Also, the remaining concentration of metronidazole was measured by UV-Vis spectrophotometer Cecil model CE7400.
Results: The optimum conditions in this study were obtained at pH=9، persulfate concentration of 0.7 mmol/l, and contact time of 30 min. The removal of metronidazole by advanced oxidation process based on persulfate (UV / Na₂S₂O₈) followed the first-order kinetic model.
Conclusion: Persulfate-based advanced oxidation process (UV/Na₂S₂O₈) is an effective method for removal of metronidazole from aqueous solution. It is recommended as an effective and efficient process that could be used for purification of aqueous solutions.