Improvement of the Wastewater Treatment Process at the Pharmaceutical Enterprise

Abstract Water quality concerns are becoming increasingly important globally, in the context of the contamination of water resources with organic compounds, heavy metals and pharmaceutical waste. Pharmaceutical wastewater has a complex composition, which may include mineral salts, acids, alkalis, as well as organic and inorganic products of chemical and biological synthesis. There is a growing number of studies focused on the use of advanced oxidation processes and the latest biotechnologies for the treatment of wastewater from pharmaceutical contaminants. This paper analyzes the results, summarizes the experience, and determines the perspectives for the implementation of advanced oxidation methods in the process of wastewater treatment at the pharmaceutical enterprise. For wastewater processing, the chemical treatment stage was improved by combining hydrodynamic cavitation and the use of experimentally selected appropriate components of the Fenton reagent. As a result, the quality indicators of activated sludge in the bioreactor were enhanced and the wastewater treatment process was improved.