Removal of Ciprofloxacin from Aqueous Solutions by Nanoscale Zerovalent Iron-Based Materials: A Mini Review

Ciprofloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic developed to fightback several bacterial diseases. The widespread application in human and animal medicine and the low biodegradation resulted in the persistent detection of ciprofloxacin in many water systems. The occurrence of ciprofloxacin threats human and aquatic life by motivating the development of antimicrobial resistant geneses in water. Microscale (ZVI) and nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) were used to efficiently remove ciprofloxacin from aqueous solutions. The aim of this mini review to summarize: (1) the possible routes for ciprofloxacin to enter the environment, (2) the mechanism of oxidizing organic pollutants by nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI), (3) the ways to improve the performance of nZVI and overcome its limitations and finally (4) the available treatment systems in the literature which is developed based on NZVI to remove ciprofloxacin from aqueous environments.