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Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II
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Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2024 | Viewed by 2497

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yongchang Sun

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Water and Environment, Chang'an University, Xi'an 710054, China
Interests: biochar; lignocellulosic biomass; wastewater treatment; nanomaterials; adsorption; heavy metals; groundwater pollution remediation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Dimitrios Giannakoudakis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: synthesis and characterization of novel multifunctional nanocomposites; application of active phases to textiles/fabrics; (photo)catalytic detoxification of chemical warfare agent vapors or droplets; adsorption of organic compounds from liquid phases; photo- and chemo-catalytic valorization/oxidation of biomass-obtained model compounds; desulfurization of biofuels; colorimetric detection of toxic vapors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The continuous widespread technological progress and industrial expansion over the last several decades has been accompanied by the serious environmental problem of water pollution. The pollution of water is related to the uncontrollable contamination of water bodies such as lakes, rivers, oceans, and groundwater by a plethora of substances/pollutants that can be harmful for humans, as well as for flora and fauna, even at very low concentrations. For example, heavy metals/metalloids can accumulate in living organisms, causing permanent cell damage and disorders, leading to disease and even death. The unmanageable disposal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) to water bodies can cause serious ecotoxicological problems and pose extraordinary threats to ecosystems or organisms. Microplastics are a class of emerging pollutants that generate severe environmental issues because of their small size, unique morphology, and enhanced chemical heterogeneity, but above all due to their stability and ability to act as pollutant carriers.

Environmental protection is regarded as key in the design and development of a sustainable future, and, hence, the attention of researchers and the public is concentrated on novel remediation approaches. Intense emphasis is placed on the removal of heavy metals, PPCPs, MPs, and other pollutants from water and wastewater. The diverse composition of polluted water bodies, and of industrial wastewater, requires a variety of treatment methods. Heavy metal ions are most often removed by the precipitation of their hardly soluble compounds. Ion exchange and sorption methods are also widely used. Sorption is an effective method for the removal of emerging contaminants and heavy metals from water and wastewater. Sorbents derived from discarded biomass, wastes and other feedstocks are widely studied for the treatment of contaminated water, since this material development strategy is within the framework of sustainable (bio)economy. Additionally, biodegradation and catalytic degradation methods are receiving attention for the removal of PPCPs and MPs. Therefore, the research and development of novel and efficient materials for environmental remediation applications, and especially for the removal of pollutants from water bodies, remains an active field of research.

This Special Issue aims to contribute towards the search for new methods beyond sorption, biodegradation and catalytic degradation and to present new materials for effective (waste)water treatment and purification.

We especially welcome works that address emerging pollutants or compounds that are not broadly studied. We encourage the publication of scientific articles, critical reviews, and case studies relevant to the context outlined above, and which generally fall within the field of modern environmental remediation applications.

Dr. Yongchang Sun
Dr. Dimitrios Giannakoudakis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • wastewater
  • adsorption
  • biodegradation
  • catalytic degradation
  • photocatalysis
  • heavy metal
  • emerging contaminant
  • biosorbent
  • mechanism

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1391 KiB  
Article
Removal of Azo Dyes from Water Using Natural Luffa cylindrica as a Non-Conventional Adsorbent
by Ma. Guadalupe Aranda-Figueroa, Adriana Rodríguez-Torres, Alexis Rodríguez, Gloria Ivette Bolio-López, David Osvaldo Salinas-Sánchez, Dulce Ma. Arias-Atayde, Rosenberg J. Romero and Maria Guadalupe Valladares-Cisneros
Molecules 2024, 29(9), 1954; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29091954 - 24 Apr 2024
Viewed by 204
Abstract
Reducing high concentrations of pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, drugs, and dyes from water is an emerging necessity. We evaluated the use of Luffa cylindrica (Lc) as a natural non-conventional adsorbent to remove azo dye mixture (ADM) from water. The [...] Read more.
Reducing high concentrations of pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, drugs, and dyes from water is an emerging necessity. We evaluated the use of Luffa cylindrica (Lc) as a natural non-conventional adsorbent to remove azo dye mixture (ADM) from water. The capacity of Lc at three different doses (2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 g/L) was evaluated using three concentrations of azo dyes (0.125, 0.250, and 0.500 g/L). The removal percent (R%), maximum adsorption capacity (Qm), isotherm and kinetics adsorption models, and pH influence were evaluated, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed. The maximum R% was 70.8% for 10.0 g L−1 Lc and 0.125 g L−1 ADM. The Qm of Lc was 161.29 mg g−1. Adsorption by Lc obeys a Langmuir isotherm and occurs through the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Statistical analysis showed that the adsorbent dose, the azo dye concentration, and contact time significantly influenced R% and the adsorption capacity. These findings indicate that Lc could be used as a natural non-conventional adsorbent to reduce ADM in water, and it has a potential application in the pretreatment of wastewaters. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II)
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18 pages, 3708 KiB  
Article
Tetraethylenepentamine-Grafted Amino Terephthalic Acid-Modified Activated Carbon as a Novel Adsorbent for Efficient Removal of Toxic Pb(II) from Water
by Mutairah S. Alshammari
Molecules 2024, 29(7), 1586; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29071586 - 02 Apr 2024
Viewed by 469
Abstract
In this study, a new composite, tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), was incorporated into amino terephthalic acid-modified activated carbon (ATA@AC) through a one-pot integration of TEPA with the COOH moiety of ATA@AC. This process resulted in the creation of a TEPA@ATA@AC composite for Pb(II) removal from [...] Read more.
In this study, a new composite, tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), was incorporated into amino terephthalic acid-modified activated carbon (ATA@AC) through a one-pot integration of TEPA with the COOH moiety of ATA@AC. This process resulted in the creation of a TEPA@ATA@AC composite for Pb(II) removal from an aquatic environment. Several techniques, including SEM, EDX, FT-IR, TGA, XRD, and Zeta potential, were employed to emphasize the chemical composition, morphology, and thermal durability of the as-synthesized TEPA@ATA@AC composite. The impact of experimental variables on the adsorption of Pb(II) ions was studied using batch adsorption. The uptake assessment suggested that the TEPA@ATA@AC composite exhibited superior Pb(II) removal performance with high removal efficiency (97.65%) at pH = 6.5, dosage = 0.02 g, equilibrium time = 300 min, and temperature = 298 K. The isotherm data exhibited good conformity with the Langmuir isotherm model, whereas the kinetics data displayed strong agreement with both pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetics models. This reflected that the Pb((II) uptake by the TEPA@ATA@AC composite was caused by physisorption coupled with limited chemisorption. The greatest monolayer uptake capacity of the TEPA@ATA@AC composite was 432.8 mg/g. The thermodynamic findings indicated that the Pb(II) uptake on the TEPA@ATA@AC composite was an exothermic and feasible process. After five adsorption—desorption runs, the TEPA@ATA@AC composite maintained a superior uptake capacity (83.80%). In summary, the TEPA@ATA@AC composite shows promise as a potent adsorbent for effectively removing Cr(VI) from contaminated water, with impressive removal efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II)
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18 pages, 7725 KiB  
Article
Spherical Lignin-Derived Activated Carbons for the Adsorption of Phenol from Aqueous Media
by Piotr Łątka, Bazyli Olszański, Magdalena Żurowska, Marek Dębosz, Anna Rokicińska and Piotr Kuśtrowski
Molecules 2024, 29(5), 960; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29050960 - 22 Feb 2024
Viewed by 526
Abstract
In this work, a synthesis and activation path, which enabled the preparation of spherical activated carbon from a lignin precursor, characterized by high adsorption capacity in the removal of phenolic compounds from water, was successfully developed. Two industrial by-products, i.e., Kraft lignin and [...] Read more.
In this work, a synthesis and activation path, which enabled the preparation of spherical activated carbon from a lignin precursor, characterized by high adsorption capacity in the removal of phenolic compounds from water, was successfully developed. Two industrial by-products, i.e., Kraft lignin and sodium lignosulfonate, were used to form spherical nanometric lignin grains using pH and solvent shift methods. The obtained materials became precursors to form porous activated carbons via chemical activation (using K2CO3 or ZnCl2 as activating agents) and carbonization (in the temperature range of 600–900 °C). The thermal stabilization step at 250 °C was necessary to ensure the sphericity of the grains during high-temperature heat treatment. The study investigated the influence of the type of chemical activator used, its quantity, and the method of introduction into the lignin precursor, along with the carbonization temperature, on various characteristics including morphology (examined by scanning electron microscopy), the degree of graphitization (evaluated by powder X-ray diffraction), the porosity (assessed using low-temperature N2 adsorption), and the surface composition (analyzed with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) of the produced carbons. Finally, the carbon materials were tested as adsorbents for removing phenol from an aqueous solution. A conspicuous impact of microporosity and a degree of graphitization on the performance of the investigated adsorbents was found. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II)
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19 pages, 4348 KiB  
Article
Enhanced Adsorption of Textile Dyes by a Novel Sulfonated Activated Carbon Derived from Pomegranate Peel Waste: Isotherm, Kinetic and Thermodynamic Study
by Badr M. Thamer, Faiz A. Al-aizari and Hany S. Abdo
Molecules 2023, 28(23), 7712; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28237712 - 22 Nov 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 844
Abstract
The rapid growth of the dye and textile industry has raised significant public concerns regarding the pollution caused by dye wastewater, which poses potential risks to human health. In this study, we successfully improved the adsorption efficiency of activated carbon derived from pomegranate [...] Read more.
The rapid growth of the dye and textile industry has raised significant public concerns regarding the pollution caused by dye wastewater, which poses potential risks to human health. In this study, we successfully improved the adsorption efficiency of activated carbon derived from pomegranate peel waste (PPAC) through a single-step and surface modification approach using 5-sulfonate-salicylaldehyde sodium salt. This innovative and effective sulfonation approach to produce sulfonated activated carbon (S-PPAC) proved to be highly effective in removing crystal violet dye (CV) from polluted water. The prepared PPAC and S-PPAC were characterized via FESEM, EDS, FTIR and BET surface area. Characterization studies confirmed the highly porous structure of the PPAC and its successful surface modification, with surface areas reaching 1180.63 m2/g and 740.75 m2/g for the PPAC and S-PPAC, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacity was achieved at 785.53 mg/g with the S-PPAC, an increase of 22.76% compared to the PPAC at 45 °C. The isothermic adsorption and kinetic studies demonstrated that the adsorption process aligned well with the Freundlich isotherm model and followed the Elovich kinetic model, respectively. The thermodynamic study confirmed that the adsorption of CV dye was endothermic, spontaneous and thermodynamically favorable onto PPAC and S-PPAC. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wastewater Treatments Based on Adsorption, Catalysis, Biodegradation, and Beyond II)
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