The presence and the removal of atrazine, deethylatrazine, deisopropylatrazine and deethylhidroxiatrazine in a pilot plant consisted of ozonation and slow sand filtration

ABSTRACT Pesticides suffer biotic and abiotic transformations when used in the environment, generating byproducts with toxicity greater than or similar to the original pesticide. In this study the dynamics of the presence of atrazine and its degradation products and chlorinated deisopropylatrazine and deethylhidroxiatrazine oxidation with ozone, in the slow filtration and the association of the two processes in pilot plant were investigated. Ozone dose of 0.9, 1.6 and 2.8 mg.L- 1 were studied for atrazine in the influent concentration ranging 30 a 79 µg.L-1. For ozone dose of 2.8 mg.L-1 atrazine concentration was less than 2 µg.L-1; however, formation of byproducts occurred at a concentration greater than 3 µg.L-1. In slow sand filtration only, there was no reduction in the concentration of atrazine. When preceded by ozonation, dose of 1.6 mg.L-1, the concentration of atrazine was less than 2 µg.L-1 and met the maximum value allowed by the Portaria 2,914/2011; however, the concentration of byproducts was over 18 µg.L-1. For ozone dose of 2.8 mg.L-1, atrazine value in the filtered effluent was less than 0.1 µg.L-1, but the sum of chlorinated byproducts was equal to 3.7 µg.L-1. The assessment of the removal of atrazine in processes using ozonation should always be associated with the monitoring of chlorinated byproducts, especially deethylatrazine considering that: there is formation of those in higher concentration of atrazine producing water supply with a high health risk and those not included in Portaria MS 2,914/2011.