Cu2+ activated persulfate for sulfamethazine degradation

Sulfonamide antibiotics (SAs) are widely used in veterinary medicine but are poorly metabolized in biological systems; thus, they can cause a selective pressure to promote the proliferation of antibiotic resistant pathogens and threaten human health. Persulfate (PS)-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have been applied for SA degradation, but using transition metal ions as PS activators is relatively limited. In this study, sulfamethazine (SMZ) was used as a model SA to evaluate the performance of a Cu 2+ -activated PS system. Cu 2+ -PS exhibited better SMZ removal than other metal ions, and 25 mg/L SMZ can be degraded in the presence of 0.2 mM Cu 2+ and 2.5 g L −1 PS within 120 min. Various anions inhibited SMZ degradation to different degrees except HCO 3 − . Among the cations, Fe 3+ significantly inhibited SMZ removal, while Ni 2+ increased the removal rate. High concentrations of humic acid and protein also increased the degradation rate of SMZ. Radical and singlet oxygen quenching experiments, together with the results of electron spin-resonance spectroscopy (ESR), showed that the main active species generated from Cu 2+ -PS are SO 4 · - and ·OH. The degradation pathway of SMZ was identified through HPLC-HRMS. Direct SO 4 · - and ·OH oxidation products of SMZ were not found, suggesting that the complex formed between Cu 2+ and SMZ may affect the fate of SMZ. On the other hand, the efficiency and selectivity of Cu 2+ -PS against different SAs were confirmed. Overall, this study provides a facile and effective method for SMZ and other SA removal.