Chapter 9. Inactivation of Pathogenic Microorganisms with Sulfate Radical-based Advanced Oxidation Processes

Water scarcity will increase in the world over the next few decades as a consequence of the growth of the world population and the irregular hydric regime caused by climate change. Under this situation, the regeneration and reuse of treated wastewater is of great importance to save water resources. Therefore, these effluents must be properly treated to avoid risks to human health. The fact is that the presence of waterborne pathogens or contaminants of emerging concern limits their use. The search for new disinfection technologies which are efficient, economical, have a low environmental impact, and minimize the generation of disinfection by-products is one of the major challenges that sanitary engineering is currently facing. Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) have emerged as a suitable route for the oxidation of organic contaminants and microorganism removal. Sulfate radicals (SO4˙−) have been increasingly applied as an efficient oxidant for water treatment in recent years. This book chapter intends to focus on the recent developments regarding the inactivation of pathogenic microorganisms (including antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARBs)) and antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) using sulfate radical based-advanced oxidation processes (SR-AOPs), providing an overall perspective of the advantages and limitations of these AOPs.