Looming water crisis in many parts of the world requires a “radical rethink” of policies to manage competing claims of different stakeholders. Sustainability of safe water supply is dictated by a potent protection and management of water sources and an efficient reclamation of used water from different effluents. However, various organic compounds such as pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), including prescription drugs and nutraceuticals, fragrances and sunscreen products are reported to be found in numerous wastewater effluents and aquatic systems. The micropollutants are poorly removed in conventional WWTP using physical and biological processes. In order to remove them, tertiary or advanced treatment step e.g. ultrafiltration, flocculation, ozonation, advanced oxidation, or reverse osmosis is needed.  Advanced oxidation processes involving hydroxyl and reactive radicals in-situ can be used for the removal of micropollutants. Traditional wastewater plants can be easily retrofitted for the application of UV and ozone based processes for such application.  In the present paper possibilities and limitations of such applications are discussed using model micropollutants such as estrogens and antibiotics.

 

Dr. Madhumita Bhowmick Ray is a Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at The University of Western Ontario.  She graduated with BSc (Chemistry honors) and BTech (Chemical Engineering) from Calcutta University, MTech (Chemical Engineering) from IIT Kanpur, and Ph D (Environmental Engineering) from University of Minnesota.  Prior to Western University, she has worked at the West Virginia University, University of Groningen, the Netherlands, and the National University of Singapore. Her research areas include development of advanced treatment technologies for waste streams based on physico-chemical principles such as adsorption, membrane separation, and advanced oxidation processes, and environmental modelling.  She has about 5 book chapters, 90 journal publications in high impact factor journals and over 100 conference proceedings and has been visiting scholar in India, Russia and China.  She has been guest editor of several issues of journals as well as member of numerous international conference committees and a member of Environmental Division of Canadian Chemical Society.