EVALUATION OF PHOTOCHEMICAL DEGRADATION OF ANTIVIRAL ACYCLOVIR BY UVC/PS & UVC/H2O2 IN SYNTHETIC FRESH AND HYDROLYZED URINE

The increasing presence of contaminants of anthropogenic origin in the aquatic environment raises the concern of the scientific community (Patel et al., 2019). Antiviral drugs play an important role, as their presence in aquatic bodies is associated with antiviral resistance and chronic toxicity to aquatic organisms (Nannou et al., 2020). Acyclovir is one of the widest antivirals as it is preferred for the treatment of various diseases such as herpes simplex virus, hepatitis virus, and cytomegalovirus. Acyclovir has been detected in WWTPs and industrial effluents as well as drinking water. In the present study, the UVC/PS and UVC/H2O2 treatment of ACV was investigated in synthetic fresh (SFU) and hydrolyzed urine (SHU). Specifically, the effect of each component of these complex aqueous matrices on the performance of the treatment methods was evaluated. It was found that UVC/H2O2 system is effective in ACV decomposition even SHU and SFU, as almost complete degradation of the antiviral is achieved in a short time of treatment. In contrast, UVC/PS system presents a lower efficiency in ACV degradation. It was found that the presence of urea in SFU and NH3 in SHU, inhibits the photo-generated sulfate radicals and consequently significantly slows down the decomposition of antiviral.