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Advanced methods for treating gemfibrozil and carbamazepine in wastewater: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters 2024 12 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 50 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Jothivel Sivanesan, Sankar Sudharsan Rameshwar, Baskaran Sivaprakash, Natarajan Rajamohan, Ahmed I. Osman, Ala’a H. Al‐Muhtaseb

Summary

Researchers reviewed advanced methods for removing two common pharmaceutical pollutants — gemfibrozil (a cholesterol drug) and carbamazepine (an epilepsy drug) — from wastewater, finding that engineered nanomaterials capable of generating highly reactive oxygen radicals can achieve near-complete removal within minutes. These advanced oxidation approaches represent a significant improvement over conventional wastewater treatment, which struggles to break down pharmaceutical contaminants.

Abstract The contamination of ecosystems by pharmaceuticals and personal care products represents a significant threat to public health, necessitating innovative approaches to clean wastewater before release into aquatic environments. Here, we review the emerging strategies and methods for the remediation of gemfibrozil and carbamazepine, emphasizing toxicological impacts, advanced oxidation processes, membrane-based removal techniques, and the underlying mechanisms driving these removal processes. We found that engineered composites with strong electron transfer capabilities can enhance the removal efficiency as they boost the generation of highly oxidative radicals. For instance, a nano zero-valent ion incorporated carbon–nitrogen composite removes 100% of gemfibrozil within 60 min. Similarly, a ruthenium perovskite-based heterogeneous catalyst achieved 100% elimination of carbamazepine in 7.5 min.

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