Nanotechnology-Based Treatment Strategies for the Removal of Antibiotics and Their By-Products from Wastewater

Pachamal, Nithiya; Dharmarajan, Rajarathnam; Sundaram, S. Senthil; Rajendran, Selvakumar

Abstract

Antibiotic resistance has become a serious issue throughout the world due to its inappropriate use and overdosing in pharmaceutical therapies and veterinary and agricultural applications. The cause of increasing antibiotic resistance is the slow and steady exposure of sensitive microbes to antibiotics released into the wastewater. Not only the antibiotics but also the degradation products of antibiotics in wastewater are also of major concern. The higher stability of antibiotics during biodegradation and conventional chlorination process has been a major challenge to remove them from wastewater. Various technologies like photocatalysis, advanced oxidation process (AOP), biological removal, adsorption, and nanotechnology-based processes/products have been investigated to address this issue. Among these technologies, nano-based technologies have been increasingly getting attention recently owing to their advantages. This chapter addresses the suitability, efficiency, advantages, disadvantages, and other factors involved in the removal of antibiotics and their by-products from wastewater using nanotechnology. The integrated use of biotechnology and nanotechnology has also been discussed.

• Online Publication Date: Jun 4, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022
• Deposit Date: Mar 10, 2023
• Publisher: Springer
• Pages: 339-360
• Book Title: Legacy and Emerging Contaminants in Water and Wastewater: Monitoring, Risk Assessment and Remediation Techniques
• ISBN: 978-3-030-95442-0
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95443-7_15
• Keywords: Antibiotics, Classification, By-product, Wastewater, Biodegradation, Antibiotic resistance, Challenges, Nanophotocatalyst, Nanoadsorption, Nanofiltration, Advanced oxidation, Nano-bio approach, Limitation