Fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) are frequently detected as emerging pollutants in aqueous environments.In this study,kinetics,influencing factors and mechanisms on the photodegradation of gatifloxacin,a representative FQ,were investigated.The photodegradation follows the pseudo-first-order kinetics.Gatifloxacin photodegrades with a quantum yield of (5.94 ± 0.95) × 10 3 in pure water and undergoes direct photolysis as well as self-sensitized photodegradation.The FQ photodegrades slower in freshwater and seawater than in pure water,which is attributed to the integrative effects of pH and the aqueous dissolved matter (e.g.,humic acids and NO 3-) on the photodegradation.A toxicity test using Vibrio fischeri revealed the formation of hazardous photoproducts.
GE LinKe CHEN JingWen ZHANG SiYu CAI XiYun WANG Zhuang WANG ChunLing
