Revisiting regeneration performance and mechanism of anion exchanger-supported nano-hydrated zirconium oxides for cyclic water defluoridation

Exceptional kinetics of heavy metals adsorption from wastewater through tannic-mediated nano-hydrous zirconium oxide (HZO) encapsulated within mesoporous carbon

Conventional immobilization techniques for nanosized metal oxides frequently result in nanoparticle aggregation within the carrier matrix pores, causing severe pore blockage and compromised mass transfer efficiency. A novel hydrous zirconium oxide-based nanocomposite (denoted as ZrTA@CMK-3) was successfully synthesized by leveraging ordered mesoporous carbon (CMK-3) as a structural scaffold, pre-functionalized with a highly negatively charged tannic acid-zirconium (TA-Zr) macromolecular network. Adsorption kinetics evaluation revealed that 85.5 % of the Pb(II) adsorption capacity was achieved within 1 min, with complete equilibrium reached in 5 min, and a kinetic rate constant (k2) of 0.0537 g‧mg-1‧min-1, which is up to 100 times higher than that of other adsorbents. The strongly negatively charged TA-Zr network synergizes with CMK-3's ordered meso-structure to enable accelerated heavy metal ion transport through the pore channels, achieving outstanding Pb(II) adsorption kinetics. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses indicated that the dominant adsorption mechanism of ZrTA@CMK-3 for Pb(II) is attributed to the inner-sphere complexation between Zr-O-H groups and Pb(II) ions. Fixed-bed column test demonstrated that ZrTA@CMK-3 column sustained treatment capacity of 2050 bed volumes (BV) for simulated industrial wastewater (pH 6.0), maintaining effluent Pb(II) concentrations < 1.0 mg·L⁻¹ throughout the operation. Notably, it exhibited only 9.8 % reduction when flow rate increased from 10 to 30 BV/h, compared to a 40 % decrease observed for the commercial cation-exchange resin D001. The exceptional adsorption kinetics and flow-rate resilience of ZrTA@CMK-3 enable significant reductions in hydraulic retention requirements while maintaining operational efficiency, positioning this composite as a promising solution for cost-effective heavy metal removal in industrial wastewater treatment systems.

Cutting-edge regeneration technologies for saturated adsorbents: a systematic review on pathways to circular wastewater treatment system

Adsorption seemed like an excellent physicochemical process employed for wastewater treatment. In the last few decades, significant improvements have been made in efficiency and economy to remove contaminants from wastewater using several adsorbents. However, less attention was paid to the regeneration of used adsorbents. Aside from the adsorbent's high adsorption performance, the disposal of spent adsorbents is an environmental concern. Regeneration is an important aspect to stimulate the adsorption efficiency of the spent adsorbent for wastewater treatment. This article reviews the various regeneration techniques like electrochemical regeneration, biological regeneration, thermal regeneration, ultrasound regeneration, and chemical regeneration in detail that have been performed for the renewal of saturated adsorbents. In the ultrasonic regeneration technique, Fe3O4-loaded coffee waste hydrochar adsorbent showed 100% regeneration efficiency (RE) after 1.3 h at the power consumption of 300 W/L. Electrochemical regeneration of granular activated carbon, Nyex, graphene and titanium dioxide composite, and Nyex 1000 showed 100% RE after 3, 0.16, 0.12, and 1.5 h, respectively, with electrolyte Na2SO4 and NaCl. In the regeneration technique, powdered activated carbon showed 90% RE after 48-72 h. Immobilized fungal biomass (Rhizopus nigricans) adsorbent showed 111-115% RE with base (0.01 N NaOH, NaHCO3, and Na2CO3) solvent. The present study addresses issues including waste generation, adsorbent potential and efficiency, eco-friendly techniques, and the release of adsorbed pollutants in regenerating saturated adsorbents. The mechanisms of adsorbent regeneration were thoroughly examined, highlighting the significance of the regeneration process in adsorption. Furthermore, this review discusses the advantages of hybrid regeneration techniques like microwave-activated ultraviolet-advanced oxidation, electro-peroxide approach, electrochemical and electrothermal methods, and the secondary use of spent adsorbents as catalysts, fertilizer, cementitious materials, secondary adsorbent bio-fuels, etc. Using saturated adsorbents is a practical technology for sustainable wastewater treatment that has the potential to minimize pollution and promote a circular economy. This review concludes with a discussion of the present challenges in the regeneration of the used adsorbents, as well as future directions for ensuring the system's feasibility from an economic and environmental standpoint for use on an industrial scale.

Adsorption of fluorine from lepidolite hydrometallurgy wastewater by aluminum modified zeolite

Fluoride contamination is a serious environmental problem in lepidolite hydrometallurgy wastewater. The treatment of fluoride-bearing wastewater is challenging because of the presence of coexisting ions including lithium (Li+), rubidium (Rb+), silicate (SiO32-), sulfate radical (SO42-). However, aluminum-modified zeolite (Al@zeolite) with sufficient hydroxyl groups and high adaptability has unique advantages for eliminating fluoride from lepidolite hydrometallurgy wastewater. Al@zeolite was prepared on natural zeolite by an atmospheric process and then used for the adsorption of fluorine from fluoride-bearing wastewater produced by the lepidolite hydrometallurgy process. The results of material characterization confirmed the successful immobilization of aluminum within the zeolite pores and indicated the formation of zeolite-Al-OH. The zeolite host significantly enhanced the chemical stability of Al@zeolite against pH changes for a wide pH range of 2.0-10.0. The adsorbent had a surface area of 33.46 m2/g and demonstrated excellent capacity and selectivity for fluoride adsorption. Notably, a maximum adsorption of 98.6% was observed at a pH value of 6.0 for a duration of 20 min with a fluoride content of 20 mg/L, and the equilibrium concentration decreased to 0.4 mg/L. The results of fluorine adsorption showed that fluoride uptake onto Al@zeolite agreed well with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and the Langmuir isotherm model. The reusability of the substance was evaluated for up to eight cycles following consecutive regeneration with 0.2 mol/L AlCl3. The exhausted Al@zeolite was effectively regenerated through simple alkaline treatment for recycling. The above results verified that Al@zeolite is a new kind of efficient defluoridation adsorbent for lepidolite hydrometallurgy wastewater with practical application prospects.

Double cross-linked chitosan sponge encapsulated with ZrO2/soy protein isolate amyloid fibrils nanoparticles for the fluoride ion removal from water

Fluoride ion pollution in water has become a serious threat to the water environment and human health. Adsorption is a promising means of fluoride removal, but it also faces challenges such as the difficult separation and recovery of powdered particles, the leaching of modified coatings from adsorbents, and the structural disintegration of macroscopic adsorbents. For addressing the above challenges, glutaraldehyde/polyvinyl alcohol co-crosslinked ZrSAF/chitosan spongy composites (ZrS/GPCS) were prepared by utilizing encapsulation strategies and cross-linking. ZrS/GPCS-1, ZrS/GPCS-3 and ZrS/GPCS-4 were prepared due to the different amounts of cross-linking agents. The results showed that their fluoride ion adsorption capacities were 42.02, 44.44 and 39.84 mg/g, respectively. The removal of fluoride ions by ZrS/GPCS was maintained at >80 % in the pH range of 4-10. The addition of glutaraldehyde and polyvinyl alcohol affected the contact efficiency of fluoride ions with chitosan and ZrSAF, influencing the adsorption rate and adsorption effect. Glutaraldehyde, polyvinyl alcohol and ZrSAF improved the thermal stability, mechanical properties and structural integrity of chitosan matrix. Both the chitosan matrix and the internal ZrSAF played an important role in fluoride removal, and the removal mechanisms included electrostatic interaction, hydrogen bonding, and complexation.

The Constructing of the Oxide Phase Diagram for Fluoride Adsorption on La-Fe-Al: A Collaborative Study of Density Functional Calculation and Experimentation

In recent years, fluoride pollution in water is a problem that has attracted much attention from researchers. The removal of fluoride-containing wastewater by adsorption with metal oxide as an adsorbent is the most common treatment method. Based on this, the effect of the doping ratio of La2O3, Fe2O3, and Al2O3 on the fluoride-removal performance was discussed by constructing a phase diagram. In this study, the adsorption mechanism of nanocrystalline lanthanum oxide terpolymer was investigated by density functional theory calculation and experiment. The optimal pH condition selected in the experiment was three, and the adsorption kinetics of fluoride ions were more consistent with the quasi-second-order kinetic model. The adsorption thermodynamics was more consistent with the Langmuir model. When the La-Fe-Al ternary composite oxides achieved the optimal adsorption efficiency for fluoride ions, the mass synthesis ratio was Al2O3:(Fe2O3:La2O3 = 1:2) = 1:100, resulting in a fluoride ion removal rate of up to 99.78%. Density functional calculations revealed that the La-Fe-Al ternary composite oxides had three important adsorption sites for La, Fe, and Al. Among them, the adsorption capacity for HF was Fe2O3 > La2O3 > Al2O3, and for F- was La2O3 > Al2O3 > Fe2O3. This provided good guidance for designing adsorbents to remove fluoride.

Sodium-alginate-laden MXene and MOF systems and their composite hydrogel beads for batch and fixed-bed adsorption of naproxen with electrochemical regeneration

Sodium alginate (SA)-laden two-dimensional (2D) Ti3C2Tx MXene (MX) and MIL-101(Fe) (a type of metal-organic framework (MOF)) composites were prepared and used for the removal of naproxen (NPX), following the adsorption and electrochemical regeneration processes. The fixed-bed adsorption column studies were also conducted to study the process of removal of NPX by hydrogels. The number of interactions via which the MX-embedded SA (MX@SA) could adsorb NPX was higher than the number of pathways associated with NPX adsorption on the MIL-101(Fe)-embedded SA (MIL-101(Fe)@SA), and the MX and MIL-101(Fe) composite embedded SA (MX/MIL-101(Fe)@SA). The optimum parameters for the electrochemical regeneration process were determined: charge passed and current density values were 169.3 C g-1 and 10 mA cm-2, respectively, for MX@SA, and the charge passed and current density values were 16.7 C g-1 and 5 mA cm-2, respectively, for both MIL-101(Fe)@SA and MX/MIL-101(Fe)@SA. These parameters enabled excellent regeneration, consistent over multiple adsorption and electrochemical regeneration cycles. The mechanism for the regeneration of the materials was proposed that the regeneration of MX@SA and MIL-101(Fe)@SA involved the indirect electrooxidation process in the presence of OH radicals, and the regeneration of MX/MIL-101(Fe)@SA involved the indirect oxidation process in the presence of active chlorine species.