Use of adsorption for pesticides removal from drinking water sources

Abstract

Pesticides can get in drinking water sources above all by means of agricultural activities, and they can negatively affect not only the environment but also our health. Adsorption is one of the water treatment processes used for pesticide removal from water. Our laboratory trial studying removal of pesticides from raw water used the sorption process on two selected sorbents. The laboratory experiment was performed at the Institute of Municipal Water Management, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Brno University of Technology. Charcoal was one of the sorbents, used in the form of Filtrasorb F100. The other sorbent was Bayoxide E33, selected due to its favourable results in removal of metals from water. The measured values suggest that Filtrasorb F100 reduced concentrations of most pesticides down to the lower limit of measurability. Only pesticide metazachlor ESA showed continuous increase of concentration in the course of the filtration. Bayoxide E33 was unable to remove pesticides. Most pesticides were desorbed by the material after a time, only in the case of two pesticides (atrazin-2-hydroxy and terbuthylazin-desethyl-2-hydroxy) concentrations were reduced down to the limit of measurability.

Pesticides can get in drinking water sources above all by means of agricultural activities, and they can negatively affect not only the environment but also our health. Adsorption is one of the water treatment processes used for pesticide removal from water. Our laboratory trial studying removal of pesticides from raw water used the sorption process on two selected sorbents. The laboratory experiment was performed at the Institute of Municipal Water Management, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Brno University of Technology. Charcoal was one of the sorbents, used in the form of Filtrasorb F100. The other sorbent was Bayoxide E33, selected due to its favourable results in removal of metals from water. The measured values suggest that Filtrasorb F100 reduced concentrations of most pesticides down to the lower limit of measurability. Only pesticide metazachlor ESA showed continuous increase of concentration in the course of the filtration. Bayoxide E33 was unable to remove pesticides. Most pesticides were desorbed by the material after a time, only in the case of two pesticides (atrazin-2-hydroxy and terbuthylazin-desethyl-2-hydroxy) concentrations were reduced down to the limit of measurability.