BACKGROUND: A mixture of three pyridine herbicides in water (clopyralid, triclopyr and picloram) has been treated with photocatalytic processes, involving oxygen or ozone. Nitrogen doped and undoped titania were used in the process. Toxicity evolution during photocatalytic ozonation was monitored considering BOD, Daphnia parvula and fitotoxicity trials. RESULTS: N doped titania with an optimized photoactivity was tested in photocatalytic ozonation, leading to nearly 95% mineralization in 180min. This catalyst was characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD and XPS techniques (13.5nm crystal size, anatase phase, 1% N, and formation of O-Ti-N linkage). No loss of photocatalytic activity was observed after five consecutive runs. Although no toxicity from the parent compounds was observed, this parameter increased during the early stages of the oxidation process. When parent compounds were totally degraded and dechlorination was completed, toxicity decayed again to negligible values. CONCLUSION: N doping improves bare titania photoactivity through an optimum amount of N. Photocatalysis/ozone showed better behavior than photocatalysis/oxygen in herbicide removal and mineralization, and no significant loss of activity was observed after five runs. Toxicity initially increased due to toxic byproducts formation; however, it decreased after their abatement. (c) 2015 Society of Chemical Industry