The Effectiveness in the Removal of PAHs from Aqueous Solutions in Physical and Chemical Processes: A Review

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are relatively well-known organic pollutants and due to their carcinogenic and mutagenic properties, their presence in the aqueous environment still attracts a lot of attention. This article presents a critical review of the literature on the application of physical and chemical processes for removal of PAHs from aqueous solution, including water and wastewater. The effectiveness of coagulation, chemical oxidation, photodegradation, sorption, and membrane processes in the degradation or removal of these micropollutants is described. The PAHs removal efficiency (coagulation ∼ 99%, chemical oxidation ∼ 87%, photodegradation ∼ 93%, sorption ∼ 100%, and membrane ∼ 100%) during the above processes is difficult to compare due to the works conducted under different conditions and using various mediums, e.g., water, wastewater, PAHs model aqueous solutions.