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This study investigated the removal of estrogenic activity during oxidative treatment ofwater containing the oral contraceptive 17a-ethynylestradiol (EE2). Six different oxidants, ozone,chlorine dioxide, ferrate, hydroxyl radical, chlorine, and bromine, were considered. First, theeffect of sub-stoichiometric doses of each oxidant on the estrogenic activity of aqueous solutionof EE2 was studied to test whether initial transformation of EE2 results in a substantial removalof estrogenic activity. For the six investigated oxidants, the reduction of estrogenic activity wasgenerally proportional to the decrease of EE2 concentration. This indicates that either theestrogenic activity of the intermediates of the initial transformation step is much lower than thatof EE2 or these initial intermediates are further oxidized rapidly. Various oxidation productsformed during oxidation of EE2 were identified. The estrogenic activity and oxidation kinetics ofthese products were also measured. The relative estrogenic activity of various oxidation productsreveals that only small modifications of the phenol ring results in a substantial reduction of theestrogenicity of EE2. Overall, this study demonstrates that oxidative water treatment is apromising tool for the control of phenol-containing estrogens in drinking water and wastewater. Includes 17 references, table, figures.

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Edition: Vol. - No. Published: 11/01/2006 Number of Pages: 8File Size: 1 file , 340 KB