International Journal of Environmental Science and Development

Abstract—The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are classified as a public health hazard, and priority pollutants to be eliminated from water. The degradation of PAHs is abetted by its low water solubility, yet countered by its attached to organic matter complicating the PAHs’ removal from wastewater. In this study, the use of two different types of mechanisms to overcome the drawbacks of the presence of dissolved organic matter was evaluated in PHE (phenanthrene) removal. The combination of crude enzymes entrapped in alginate gels with heterogeneous photocatalysis adds the catalytic activity of the enzymes to PHE treatment without requiring special conditions. The application of photocatalysis techniques for water recuperation is subject to photon incidence over the catalyst, which affects the efficiency of the process. The combined system removed 94.3 ± 2.0% of PHE in the presence of polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate and dimethyl sulfoxide. The alginate gels were able to maintain the catalytic activity of the enzymes, while the TiO₂-C-Ag was activated under low-energy UV light (365-465 nm) with the Ag islands acting as electron donors. The latter was confirmed in the surface analysis by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, which presented an increase in carbonyl groups in both materials and a change from Ag⁰ to Ag³⁺ after 13 h of treatment. The combination of both treatments improved removal in a single TiO₂-C-Ag treatment.

Index Terms—Biocatalyst, coupled treatment, heterogeneous photocatalysis, hydrocarbons.

D. F. González-Ramírez is with the the Department of Biotechnology and Bioengineering of the Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (CINVESTAV-IPN), Av. Instituto Politécnico Nacional 2508, A.P. 14-740, Col. Zacatenco, 07360 Ciudad de México, México (e-mail: fgonzalez@cinvestav.mx).
P. Ávila-Pérez Author is with the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ), Carr. Mexico-Toluca S/N, La Marquesa, Ocoyoacac, 52750 State of Mexico, Mexico (e-mail: pedro.avila@inin.gob.mx).
L. G. Torres-Bustillos is with Unidad Profesional Interdisciplinaria de Biotecnología (UPIBI), IPN. Av. Acueducto S/N Col. Barrio La Laguna Ticomán, 97340 Mexico city, Mexico (e-mail: LTorresBustillos@gmail.com).
R. Aguilar-López, J. F. Esparza-García, and R. Rodríguez-Vázquez are with the Department of Biotechnology and Bioengineering of CINVESTAV-IPN, Mexico (e-mail: raguilar@cinvestav.mx, fesparza@cinvestav.mx, rrodrig@cinvestav.mx).

[PDF]

Cite: D. F. González-Ramírez, P. Ávila-Pérez, L. G. Torres-Bustillos, R. Aguilar-López, F. J. Esparza-García, and R. Rodríguez-Vázquez, "Removal of Phenanthrene in an Aqueous Matrix by Entrapped Crude Enzymes on Alginate Beads Combined with TiO₂-C-Ag Coated Fiberglass," International Journal of Environmental Science and Development vol. 8, no. 9, pp. 635-641, 2017.