Electrochemical Oxidation of Anastrozole over a BDD Electrode: Role of Operating Parameters and Water Matrix

The electrochemical oxidation (EO) of the breast-cancer drug anastrozole (ANZ) is studied in this work. The role of various operating parameters, such as current density (6.25 and 12.5 mA cm(-2)), pH (3-10), ANZ concentration (0.5-2 mg L-1), nature of supporting electrolytes, water composition, and water matrix, have been evaluated. ANZ removal of 82.4% was achieved at 1 mg L-1 initial concentration after 90 min of reaction at 6.25 mA cm(-2) and 0.1 M Na2SO4. The degradation follows pseudo-first-order kinetics with the apparent rate constant, k(app), equal to 0.022 min(-1). The k(app) increases with increasing current density and decreasing solution pH. The addition of chloride in the range 0-250 mg L-1 positively affects the removal of ANZ. However, chloride concentrations above 250 mg L-1 have a detrimental effect. The presence of bicarbonate or organic matter has a slightly negative but not significant effect on the process. The EO of ANZ is compared to its degradation by solar photo-Fenton, and a preliminary economic analysis is also performed.

Automated summary

The electrochemical oxidation of the breast-cancer drug anastrozole has been studied in this work, with factors such as current density, pH, ANZ concentration, and supporting electrolytes being evaluated. ANZ removal was achieved at a certain initial concentration, with the degradation following pseudo-first-order kinetics. The addition of chloride was found to have a positive effect within a certain range, but detrimental effects above a certain concentration. The presence of bicarbonate or organic matter had a slightly negative effect on the process.