pH effect on ozonation of ampicillin: Kinetic study and toxicity assessment

Ampicillin (AP) is a penicillin-type antibiotic and one of the most widely used bacteriostatic antibiotics in human and veterinary medicine. A kinetic study was performed under different pH conditions (5, 7.2, and 9) to determine the degradation efficiency of AP by ozonation. The second-order rate constants for the direct reaction of AP with ozone were measured to be 2.2 ~5.4×10⁵ M^-1s^-1 under the pH conditions tested. The rate constants were greater at higher pH. The potential toxicity of the AP intermediates formed after ozonation under the various pH conditions were examined using a bioluminescence assay on Vibrio fischeri species. The biodegradability of the AP degraded products was also determined by measuring the BOD₅/COD of the ozonated samples under the different pH conditions. A lower biodegradability and acute toxicity was observed at the lowest pH (pH 5). These results suggest that higher pH conditions are needed for the removal of AP by ozonation in order to mitigate the residual toxicity that can remain even after complete removal of the parent compound by ozonation.