Fotodegradación de las aguas residuales con pesticida Mertect en la industria bananera empleando Fotocatálisis con Dióxido de Titanio y Lámpara de Luz Ultravioleta

Abstract

Introduction. Pesticides are synthetic chemical compounds with the characteristic of being persistent, thus helping to contaminate water and incorporating pollutants to the soils and to edible vegetables and animals that, when eaten, act as pesticide transporters, accumulating that pesticide in living organisms from all the links of the trophic chain. This is the reason for the great importance of the degradation and decontamination processes of this kind of pollutants. Objective. To evaluate the photodegradation of the Mertect pesticide by the use of photocatalysis with titanium dioxide and ultra violet light. Materials and methods. In the experiment, an ultra violet light lamp, a glass bucket to store the pesticide to be degraded and a bomb to recirculate the solution trough the treatment system were used. The degradation of the pesticide was determined by visible/ultraviolet spectrophotometry. For the information analysis the 23 experimental factorial designs was used, under complete balance. Results. The highest removal percentage was 99.5%, obtained for two experimental conditions: 50 mg /L of titanium dioxide and 1% v/v of hydrogen peroxide, and 100mg/L of titanium dioxide and 1%v/ v of hydrogen peroxide. Conclusions. Advanced oxidation processes are adequate to remove and eliminate the Mertect pesticide in the waste waters from the banana industry.