Pharmaceutical wastewater is a typical refractory chemical wastewater. It features complex compositions, high chemical oxygen demand (COD), dramatic fluctuations in water quality, a low BOD/COD ratio and strong color intensity. In addition, the discharge volume of pharmaceutical wastewater has been on a steady rise in recent years. Proper treatment of such wastewater is critical to preventing ecological environmental damage. This article briefly introduces four core advantages of applying advanced oxidation processes to treat pharmaceutical wastewater.

1. This technology generates abundant hydroxideradicals with strong oxidizing capacity, which can oxidize and degrade most organic and inorganic contaminants.
2. The oxidation reaction is non-selective. Hydroxideradicals participate in red-oxreactions without producing secondary pollutants.
3. The reaction proceeds rapidly with high treatment efficiency. The rate constant for oxidation reactions between hydroxideradicals and most organic substances ranges from 106~109M-1S-1.
4. The reaction requires mild operating conditions with relatively low treatment costs. It imposes no strict requirements on temperature and pressure, and reactions can generally be carried out under normal temperature and atmospheric pressure.

High-concentration and highly toxic pharmaceutical wastewater cannot be directly fed into biochemical treatment systems, as direct discharge would lead to system failure. For this reason, most pharmaceutical wastewater treatment facilities are equipped with advanced oxidation units as a pretreatment step; only after this oxidation treatment can the wastewater enter subsequent biochemical processes.

It is also important to conduct regular Water Quality Monitoring after wastewater treatment to evaluate treatment performance and verify compliance of all water quality indicators. Different monitoring instruments are required to measure different water quality parameters, so suitable equipment should be selected according to actual wastewater characteristics.

Hangzhou Modi is an independent R&D manufacturer of Online Water Quality Monitoring Instruments. Its main product portfolio includes online total residual chlorine analyzers, online coliform analyzers, online heavy metal water monitors, as well as monitoring devices for other special water quality parameters.