Águeda Maté, Vicente IsmaelLarriba Martínez, MarcosMartín Martínez, MaríaHuber-Benito, DiegoGarcía, Juan2025-11-032025-11-032024-07-23Diego Huber-Benito, Maria Martin-Martinez, Marcos Larriba, Ismael Agueda, Juan García, Enhanced prednisone removal by catalytic wet air oxidation using sewage sludge derived catalyst, Process Safety and Environmental Protection, Volume 190, Part B, 2024, Pages 475-485, ISSN 0957-5820, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2024.07.099. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0957582024009467)10.1016/j.psep.2024.07.099https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/125617Sewage sludge-based catalysts have been used for the first time for the catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) of prednisone, a glucocorticoid pharmaceutical pollutant present in various aquatic environmental matrices. This research focuses on transforming dry sludge into carbonaceous catalysts through pyrolysis and post-treatment. Various parameters have been considered for the synthesis, finding that pyrolysis temperature and acid washing are determinant for specific surface area development. The sewage sludge derived catalysts exhibit high catalytic activity in the CWAO of prednisone (Dcat= 0.3 g⋅L-1, T= 100 ◦C, P= 15 bar). The development of porosity enhances their catalytic properties, the C-750-N catalysts demonstrated the highest activity for prednisone with 66 % TOC reduction, initial reaction rate 0.0092 mg⋅s-1 and 66 % CO2 selectivity. The study provides valuable insights into the synthesis, characterization, and application of sewage sludge-derived catalysts, offering a sustainable solution for wastewater treatment and pharmaceutical pollutant removal. Our present study indicates that catalysts with unique reforming properties may be potentially applicable for prednisone treatment and industrial applications.engEnhanced prednisone removal by catalytic wet air oxidation using sewage sludge derived catalystjournal articlehttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2024.07.099https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0957582024009467embargoed access66Sewage sludge derived catalystPrednisoneCatalytic wet air oxidationDegradation mechanismIngeniería química3308.07 Eliminación de Residuos3308.11 Control de la Contaminación del Agua3303.01 Tecnología de la Catálisis