Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University Journal of Engineering Sciences

Abstract

The antibacterial personal care product Triclosan (TCS), is a broad spectrum antibacterial. It has been used for more than 40 years as an antiseptic, disinfectant or preservative in clinical settings, and in the various consumer products including cosmetics, plastic materials and toys. It has lately been determined in the sources of the aquatic environment; its potential effect on ecosystems. The contaminants can reach the soil and aquatic environment through land application of wastewater effluent and agricultural runoff, and then reach to humans through the food chain. Triclosan is used worldwide on a large scale especially in many personal care products, like toothpaste, shampoo and soap. In this study, the removal of Triclosan was investigated in an extended activated sludge process set in a laboratory-scale reactor. Activated sludge biomass used in the reactor was obtained from Gaziantep wastewater treatment plant. The analytical method based on solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by high Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) was used for the determination of Triclosan in extended activated sludge effluent. Reactor was operated in different HRTs and Triclosan removal efficiency was obtained as 92.5%, 95.4%, 99.1% and 99.9% for different HRT values of 18h, 24h, 48h, and 52h, respectively.