Processos foto-assistidos de degradação de fármacos: avanços recentes e perspectivas

Abstract

Drugs fit as a class of contaminants of emerging concern when present in water resources, due to their potential to negatively affect human health and the environment. Conventional water treatments are not efficient to completely remove these contaminants, usually of complex molecular structure and specific polar nature, requiring alternative methods to minimize this problem. In this perspective, the Advanced Oxidative Processes (POA's) are highlighted and among the most common and most promising are heterogeneous photocatalysis, the photo-Fenton process and ozonation. This article presents a literature review of the articles published on the Web of Science search platform in the last five years, regarding drug degradation, making it possible to establish the state of the art on the subject, highlighting the main drugs, catalysts and experimental conditions used to increase the efficiency of degradation.