Textile Dye Removal by Acacia dealbata Link. Pollen Adsorption Combined with UV-A/NTA/Fenton Process

Fabrication of magnetic chitosan-grafted salicylaldehyde/nanoclay for removal of azo dye: BBD optimization, characterization, and mechanistic study

Herein, a novel nanohybrid composite of magnetic chitosan-salicylaldehyde/nanoclay (MCH-SAL/NCLA) was hydrothermally synthesized for removal of azo dye (acid red 88, AR88) from simulated wastewater. Response surface methodology combined with the Box-Behnken design (RSM-BBD) was applied with 29 experiments to assess the impact of adsorption variables, that include A: % NCLA loading (0-50), B: MCH-SAL/NCLA dose (0.02-0.1 g/100 mL), C: pH (4-10), and time D: (10-90 min) on AR88 dye adsorption. The highest AR88 removal (75.16 %) as per desirability function was attained at the optimum conditions (NCLA loading = 41.8 %, dosage = 0.06 g/100 mL, solution pH = 4, and time = 86. 17 min). The kinetic and equilibrium adsorption results of AR88 by MCH-SAL/NCLA reveal that the process follows the pseudo-first-order and Temkin models. The MCH-SAL/NCLA composite has a maximum adsorption capacity (173.5 mg/g) with the AR88 dye. The adsorption of AR88 onto the MCH-SAL/NCLA surface is determined by a variety of processes, including electrostatic, hydrogen bonding, n-π, and n-π interactions. This research revealed that MCH-SAL/NCLA can be used as a versatile and efficient bio-adsorbent for azo dye removal from contaminated wastewater.

Functionalization of chitosan biopolymer with SiO2 nanoparticles and benzaldehyde via hydrothermal process for acid red 88 dye adsorption: Box-Behnken design optimization

An effective hydrothermally prepared chitosan-benzaldehyde/SiO2 adsorbent (CTA-BZA/SiO2) employed functionalization of a CTA biopolymer with SiO2 nanoparticles and BZA. CTA-BZA/SiO2 is an adsorbent that was utilized for the adsorption of an acidic dye (acid red 88, AR88) from synthetic wastewater. The fundamental adsorption variables (A: CTA-BZA/SiO2 dosage (0.02-0.1 g); B: pH (4-10); and C: duration (10-60)) were optimized via the Box-Behnken design (BBD). The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms (coefficients of determination R2 = 0.99) agreed well with empirical data of AR88 adsorption by CTA-BZA/SiO2. The pseudo-first-order model showed reasonable agreement with the kinetic data of AR88 adsorption by CTA-BZA/SiO2. The maximal AR88 adsorption capacity (qmax) for CTA-BZA/SiO2 was identified to be 252.4 mg/g. The electrostatic attractions between both the positively charged CTA-BZA/SiO2 adsorbent and the AR88 anions, plus the n-π, π-π, and H-bond interactions contribute to the favourable adsorption process. This study reveals that CTA-BZA/SiO2 has the capacity to be a suitable adsorbent for the removal of a wider range of organic dyes from industrial effluents.

Strategies for the Management of Aggressive Invasive Plant Species

Current control methods for invasive alien plants (IAPs) have acceptable short-term outcomes but have proven to be unfeasible or unaffordable in the long-term or for large invaded areas. For these reasons, there is an urgent need to develop sustainable approaches to control or restrict the spread of aggressive IAPs. The use of waste derived from IAP control actions could contribute to motivating the long-term management and preservation of local biodiversity while promoting some economic returns for stakeholders. However, this strategy may raise some concerns that should be carefully addressed before its implementation. In this article, we summarize the most common methods to control IAPs, explaining their viability and limitations. We also compile the potential applications of IAP residues and discuss the risks and opportunities associated with this strategy.

Design of separable magnetic chitosan grafted-benzaldehyde for azo dye removal via a response surface methodology: Characterization and adsorption mechanism

In this study, a magnetic chitosan grafted-benzaldehyde (CS-BD/Fe₃O₄) was hydrothermally prepared using benzaldehyde as a grafting agent to produce a promising adsorbent for the removal of acid red 88 (AR88) dye. The CS-BD/Fe₃O₄ was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, surface area analysis, scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray, vibrating sample magnetometry, powder X-ray diffraction, CHN elemental analysis, and point of zero charge (pH_PZC). The Box-Behnken design (BBD) was adopted to study the role of variables that influence AR88 dye adsorption (A: CS-BD/Fe₃O₄ dose (0.02-0.1 g), B: pH (4-10), and time C: (10-90 min)). The ANOVA results of the BBD model indicated that the F-value for the AR88 removal was 22.19 %, with the corresponding p-value of 0.0002. The adsorption profiles at equilibrium and dynamic conditions reveal that the Temkin model and the pseudo-first-order kinetics model provide an adequate description of the isotherm results, where the maximum adsorption capacity (qmax) with the AR88 dye was 154.1 mg/g. Several mechanisms, including electrostatic attraction, n-π interaction, π-π interaction, and hydrogen bonding, regulate the adsorption of AR88 dyes onto CS-BD/Fe₃O₄ surface. As a result, this research indicates that the CS-BD/Fe₃O₄ can be utilized as an effective and promising bio-adsorbent for azo dye removal from contaminated wastewater.

Treatment of Winery Wastewater by Combined Almond Skin Coagulant and Sulfate Radicals: Assessment of HSO5- Activators

The large production of wine and almonds leads to the generation of sub-products, such as winery wastewater (WW) and almond skin. WW is characterized by its high content of recalcitrant organic matter (biodegradability index < 0.30). Therefore, the aim of this work was to (1) apply the coagulation-flocculation-decantation (CFD) process with an organic coagulant based on almond skin extract (ASE), (2) treat the organic recalcitrant matter through sulfate radical advanced oxidation processes (SR-AOPs) and (3) evaluate the efficiency of combined CFD with UV-A, UV-C and ultrasound (US) reactors. The CFD process was applied with variation in the ASE concentration vs. pH, with results showing a chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal of 61.2% (0.5 g/L ASE, pH = 3.0). After CFD, the germination index (GI) of cucumber and corn seeds was ≥80%; thus, the sludge can be recycled as fertilizer. The SR-AOP initial conditions were achieved by the application of a Box-Behnken response surface methodology, which described the relationship between three independent variables (peroxymonosulfate (PMS) concentration, cobalt (Co²⁺) concentration and UV-A radiation intensity). Afterwards, the SR-AOPs were optimized by varying the pH, temperature, catalyst type and reagent addition manner. With the application of CFD as a pre-treatment followed by SR-AOP under optimal conditions (pH = 6.0, [PMS] = 5.88 mM, [Co²⁺] = 5 mM, T = 343 K, reaction time 240 min), the COD removal increased to 85.9, 82.6 and 80.2%, respectively, for UV-A, UV-C and US reactors. All treated wastewater met the Portuguese legislation for discharge in a municipal sewage network (COD ≤ 1000 mg O₂/L). As a final remark, the combination of CFD with SR-AOPs is a sustainable, safe and clean strategy for WW treatment and subproduct valorization.

Degradation of Agro-Industrial Wastewater Model Compound by UV-A-Fenton Process: Batch vs. Continuous Mode

The degradation of a model agro-industrial wastewater phenolic compound (caffeic acid, CA) by a UV-A-Fenton system was investigated in this work. Experiments were carried out in order to compare batch and continuous mode. Initially, batch experiments showed that UV-A-Fenton at pH 3.0 (pH of CA solution) achieved a higher generation of HO•, leading to high CA degradation (>99.5%). The influence of different operational conditions, such as H2O2 and Fe2+ concentrations, were evaluated. The results fit a pseudo first-order (PFO) kinetic model, and a high kinetic rate of CA removal was observed, with a [CA] = 5.5 × 10−4 mol/L, [H2O2] = 2.2 × 10−3 mol/L and [Fe2+] = 1.1 × 10−4 mol/L (kCA = 0.694 min−1), with an electric energy per order (EEO) of 7.23 kWh m−3 order−1. Under the same operational conditions, experiments in continuous mode were performed under different flow rates. The results showed that CA achieved a steady state with higher space-times (θ = 0.04) in comparison to dissolved organic carbon (DOC) removal (θ = 0−0.020). The results showed that by increasing the flow rate (F) from 1 to 4 mL min−1, the CA and DOC removal rate increased significantly (kCA = 0.468 min−1; kDOC = 0.00896 min−1). It is concluded that continuous modes are advantageous systems that can be adapted to wastewater treatment plants for the treatment of real agro-industrial wastewaters.