Removal of ibuprofen from municipal sewage by three-dimensional particle electrode combined with a biological aerated filter (TDE-BAF)

The degradation of ibuprofen was investigated in aqueous solution by three-dimensional particle electrode (TDE) technology. When the initial concentration was between 10 and 40 mg/L, almost 80% of the ibuprofen was degraded at 6 h. However, only about 16.64% of ibuprofen was mineralized even at 6 h according to total organic carbon measurements. A combined process of TDE and biological aerated filter (BAF) was therefore developed to enhance the treatment of ibuprofen contaminated municipal sewage. The effluent quality of coupled process was substantially improved by TDE due to the degradation of ibuprofen and related intermediates. The experimental results showed that TDE-BAF is effective for removing ibuprofen from municipal sewage.