Transformation of paracetamol into 1,4-benzoquinone by a manganese oxide bed filter

This study investigates the transformation of paracetamol (PRC) by a granular manganeseoxide in a column bed reactor. Paracetamol was quantitatively transformed into p-benzoquinone(BZQ) for empty bed residence times (EBRT) <5 min at pH 6.0. For 5 mM MOPS (3-morpholinopropane-1-sulfonic acid) and pH 7.0, the mean removal yield of PRC was 77% for initial PRC concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 50 μM. Conversion of PRC and formation of BZQ decreased when pH increased from 6 to 8. Dimer of PRC was observed at pH 7.0, which could explain the lower conversion into BZQ when pH increased. The presence of organic buffer MOPS and natural organic matter (NOM) reduced the oxidation of PRC because of competition reactions for active sites. The formation of the toxic BZQ metabolite was reduced in presence of NOM because of cross-coupling reactions between phenoxyl radicals and NOM. Results suggest that manganese oxide bed filter can be used to remove pharmaceutical compounds including phenolic moiety in their structure.