UV-A and UV-C induced photolytic and photocatalytic degradation of aqueous ciprofloxacin and moxifloxacin: Reaction kinetics and role of adsorption

▶ pH plays a significant role in both photolysis and heterogeneous photocatalysis of the emerging contaminants ciprofloxacin and moxifloxacin in water. ▶ The third generation fluoroquinolone moxifloxacin is more susceptible to photocatalytic degradation than the second generation fluoroquinolone ciprofloxacin. ▶ First-order degradation rate constants and partition ratios of the different fluoroquinolone species reveal that the photocatalytic degradation rate is strongly determined by the pH dependent adsorption on the TiO2 catalyst surface.