Spectroscopic study of the degradation of antibiotics and the generation of representative EfOM oxidation products in ozonated wastewater

This study examined effects of ozonation on thirteen fluoroquinolone, macrolide and lincosamide antibiotics present in municipal wastewater. Transformations of effluent organic matter (EfOM) caused by ozonation were characterized using absorbance/fluorescence spectroscopy and high performance size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC). Concentrations of aldehydes and carboxylic acids generated via the oxidation of EfOM were also determined. The absorbance and fluorescence of ozonated wastewater decreased with increasing ozone dose or treatment time. HPSEC data showed that these phenomena corresponded to the oxidation of all EfOM fractions, with some preference towards the degradation of the EfOM molecules with high apparent molecular weight. The removal of antibiotics and production of aldehydes and carboxylic acids were strongly correlated with the changes in both EfOM absorbance and fluorescence. Applications of a model describing the concurrent degradation of trace level contaminants and relative changes of EfOM emission allowed achieving a good fitting between the experimental and modeled ΔC/C0 vs. ΔA/A0 and ΔC/C0 vs. ΔF/F0 data.

► We carried out ozonation of wastewater effluent containing trace level antibiotics.
► Target contaminants were efficiently removed and EfOM oxidation products were formed.
► Ozonation caused concurrent changes in EfOM optical properties and AMW distribution.
► Strong correlations between degradation of antibiotics and EfOM optical changes.
► Direct correlations between oxidation byproducts and EfOM optical changes.