Coupling process between solid-liquid extraction of amino acids by calixarenes and photocatalytic degradation

The removal of biological or pharmaceutical compounds through the wastewater treatment becomes relevant. These compounds are present as traces in sewage. In this work, we propose a coupling process which combines the pre-concentration of the pollutant by selective extraction and then degradation of these pollutants by photocatalysis in presence of TiO2. This process is efficient at room temperature by activation of a photocatalyst (TiO2) under UV light. Aromatic amino acids were chosen as model of pharmaceutical pollutants. Their extraction from water, ensured by calixarene derivatives, and their photocatalytic degradation were investigated. It was shown that photodegradation follows a first-order kinetic and that the rate constant enhances with amino acid concentration. The effect of the pH on the rate constant will be discussed. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.