In the treatment of drinking water, the ibuprofen (IBP) disinfection by-products, toxicity, and its impact on drinking water safety have caused widespread attention in domestic and overseas research areas. We studied the removal efficiency of IBP under the following conditions: combination of good catalytic activity of a silicate-based microfiltration membrane with the strong oxidizing ability of ozone in the continuous flow experiment mode and various influencing factors. This research revealed that with the increase of pH and hydraulic retention time, the removal efficiency of IBP exhibited an increasing trend; with the increase of alkalinity and humic acid concentration in water, the removal efficiency of IBP was obviously inhibited. Free radical inhibitors and electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis demonstrated that hydroxyl radical (∙OH) is an important active species during the reaction of ozone-catalyzed IBP with the silicate-based microfiltration membrane.

Catalytic ozonation with metal oxides is of interest for advanced water treatment technology. The amount of active oxygen-containing radicals produced is a primary objective of this process. Fe₂O₃ is a widely used catalyst because of its high performance. In this study, Fe₂O₃/SBA-15 was synthesized and characterized. The results revealed that Fe₂O₃/SBA-15 was a nano-/mesoporous material with high-order hexagonal array structures and exhibited greater catalytic performance than Fe₂O₃ in ozonation processes. To investigate the role of the Fe₂O₃/SBA-15 surface in O₃ decomposition, the kinetic constant was measured, and the interfacial reactions were discussed. Compared with Fe₂O₃, Fe₂O₃/SBA-15 significantly increased the formation of hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and the efficient utilization of O₃ in the catalytic O₃ decomposition process. The SBA-15 support decreased the O₃ self-decomposition rate during catalytic ozonation with Fe₂O₃/SBA-15, which resulted in increased formation of •OH via the reaction between O₃ and Fe₂O₃. From a practical point of view, Fe₂O₃/SBA-15 is an efficient green ozonation catalyst for water treatment.

The interaction of disinfectants with bromide/iodide ions and natural organic matter (NOM) generates brominated/iodinated disinfection byproducts (Br/I-DBPs), known for their heightened cytotoxicity and genotoxicity relative to chlorinated DBPs. This study investigated Br/I-DBP formation during sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) disinfection of lignin-containing synthetic water by quantifying adsorbable organic halogens (AOX) and trihalomethanes (THMs). Disinfection of bromide-containing water yielded a bromide ion (Br⁻) to adsorbable organic bromine (AOBr) conversion rate of approximately 60%, with bromine within THMs accounting for about 30% of the total AOBr, indicating significant brominated DBP formation where THMs represent a major fraction. Conversely, iodide ion (I⁻) conversion to adsorbable organic iodine (AOI) is minimal, suggesting negligible iodinated DBP formation under NaClO disinfection. Examination of key parameters revealed that brominated THM (Br-THM) formation decreased with increasing lignin concentration, while iodinated THM (I-THM) formation increased. The effect of chlorine dose differed: Br-THM formation exhibited an initial increase followed by a decrease at higher doses, whereas I-THM formation consistently decreased. Both Br-THM and I-THM formation increased with higher bromide or iodide ion concentration and with increasing pH. These results highlight the distinct pathways and influencing factors governing brominated versus iodinated DBP formation in lignin-containing waters disinfected with hypochlorite.

Odorous metabolites produced by algae in source water pose severe threats to drinking water safety. Compared with conventional powdered activated carbon (PAC), in situ surface-amplified PAC exhibits superior adsorption capacity and favorable anti-interference performance in simplified aqueous systems containing selected inorganic ions for the removal of 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB) and geosmin (GSM). This study systematically investigated the influences of PAC dosage, initial contaminant concentration, air exposure duration, inorganic anion and cation concentration, pH, and temperature on the adsorption behavior of 2-MIB and GSM onto surface-amplified PAC. Kinetic analyses reveal that the adsorption process follows the pseudo-second-order kinetic model (R² ≥ 0.98): the rate-limiting step is governed by liquid film diffusion at low concentrations, while intraparticle diffusion dominates adsorption under high-concentration conditions. Satisfactory fitting results of the Freundlich isotherm model (R² > 0.99) indicate heterogeneous energy distribution of surface active sites, demonstrating that heterogeneous adsorption characteristics serves as the main adsorption pathway. The relatively high adsorption energy (E) obtained from the Dubinin–Radushkevich (D-R) model suggests a possible contribution of micropore-related adsorption for both pollutants. Thermodynamic results prove that the adsorption is spontaneous (ΔG < 0) with a possible endothermic tendency (ΔH > 0). Active adsorption sites are distributed across both internal pore channels and external surfaces of PAC. This work provides a solid theoretical basis and experimental data for odor pollution remediation by the structural optimization of PAC.