Ferreira, Vanessa R. A.Amorim, Catarina L.Cravo, Sara M.Tiritan, Maria E.Castro, Paula M. L.Afonso, Carlos M. M.2015-06-252015-06-252015-05-13Ferreira, Vanessa R. A. [et al.] - Biosorption of fluoroquinolones by activated sludge and aerobic granules sludge. – 8th Meeting of young researchers of University of Porto IJUP`15, Porto, Portugal, 13-15 May, 2015 – In Abstract of 8th Meeting of young researchers of University of Porto IJUP`15, p.25http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/17925Oral communicationAntibiotic residues have been detected in various environmental matrices, such as surface water and even drinking water. Although present at low levels (μg/L, ng/L), many antibiotics are bioaccumulative, pseudo-persistent and can promote resistance/alterations in bacterial populations [1]. Recent studies on antibiotics removal by activated sludge (AS) and aerobic granules (AGS) show biosorption as the dominant process, determining the fate of these micropollutants [2-3]. In this work the biosorption of three widely used fluoroquinolones (FQ) - ofloxacin (OFL), norfloxacin (NOR) and ciprofloxacin (CPF) - to AS and AGS was evaluated. A High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Fluorescence Detection (HPLC-FD) method was validated and used to follow the biosorption of the target FQ. Data obtained in this study contribute to a better comprehension of FQ biosorption behavior in AS and AGS. At pH 7 AS showed better performance to biosorb OFL, NOR and CPF than AGS. The higher biosortion capacity of AS was probably due to the negative charge on its surface, evaluated by a zeta potential of -25.65 mV, at pH 7. OFL was the less biosorbed, both onto AS and AGS, because this FQ at pH 7 is mainly present in its anionic form. The equilibrium data for AS showed a better fit to the Langmuir model, while the model that presented better fit for AGS was the Freundlich model. The FQ could be desorbed from AGS at pH 3, pH 8 and pH 9 whereas at pH 4 the biosorption process was promoted.engFluoroquinolonasBiosorptionconference object