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Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment

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A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Nanoscience and Nanotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2024) | Viewed by 7456

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Prof. Dr. Xing Chen

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Guest Editor

Industry and Equipment Technology Institute, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Interests: nanocomposites for water pollution control; electrochemical sensing interfaces; industrial wastewater treatment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Improvements in living standards and the rapid development of industrialization have combined to increase the amount of pollutants, including large amounts of emerging pollutants, entering aqueous environments. There are urgent demands for efficient materials and technologies to carry out environmental monitoring and water treatment.

Many scientists have devoted themselves to studying nanomaterials in order to discover environmental applications based on their unique properties, such as their high specific areas, adequate activated sites, and high energy conversion efficiency. Various types of sensing interfaces and devices (fluorescent, Raman, colorimetric, electrochemical, electrical, etc.) have been designed for monitoring pollutants, such as persistent organic pollutants, heavy metal ions and pesticides, in aqueous environments. Additionally, nanomaterials demonstrate a huge potential for water treatment via adsorption and catalytic methods.

This Special Issue welcomes contributions devoted to the design, characterization, and application of novel nanomaterials for environmental monitoring and water treatment, especially and predominately those focused on nanomaterials with high efficiency, low cost, and potential practical applications.

Prof. Dr. Xing Chen
Guest Editor

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Keywords

nanostructured materials
sensitive nanomaterials
pollutant monitoring
nanocatalysts
advanced oxidation process
water treatment
wastewater treatment

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 6977 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Enhanced Adsorption of Methylene Blue Dye on Functionalized Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

by Ludovica Ceroni, Stefania Benazzato, Samuel Pressi, Laura Calvillo, Ester Marotta and Enzo Menna

Nanomaterials 2024, 14(6), 522; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano14060522 - 14 Mar 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 799

Abstract

Carbon nanomaterials are promising adsorbents for dye removal from wastewater also due to their possible surface functionalization that, in principle, can increase the adsorption rate and provide regeneration. To investigate the real advantages of functionalization, we synthesized and characterized through IR, TGA, TEM, XPS and DLS measurements a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) derivative bearing benzenesulfonate groups (MWCNT-S). The obtained material demonstrated to have good dispersibility in water and better capability to adsorb methylene blue (MB) compared to the pristine MWCNT adsorbent. Adsorption kinetic studies showed a very fast process, with a constant significantly higher with respect not only to that of the unfunctionalized MWCNT adsorbent but also to those of widely used activated carbons. Moreover, the adsorption capacity of MWCNT-S is more than doubled with respect to that of the insoluble pristine MWCNT adsorbent, thanks to the dispersibility of the derivatives, providing a larger available surface, and to the possible electrostatic interactions between the cationic MB and the anionic sulfonate groups. Additionally, the reversibility of ionic interactions disclosed the possibility to release the adsorbed cationic pollutant through competition with salts, not only regenerating the adsorbent, but also recovering the dye. Indeed, by treating the adsorbed material for 1 h with 1 M NaCl, a regeneration capacity of 75% was obtained, demonstrating the validity of this strategy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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17 pages, 3797 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Automated Monitoring System for Suspended Photocatalytic Batch Reactions Based on Online Circulatory Spectrophotometry

by Da-Peng Lei and Jian-Hua Huang

Nanomaterials 2024, 14(6), 508; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano14060508 - 12 Mar 2024

Viewed by 706

Abstract

Employing an automated monitoring system (AMS) for data acquisition offers benefits, such as reducing the workload, in the kinetic study of suspended photocatalytic batch reactions. However, the current methods in this field tend to narrowly focus on the substrate and often overlook the optical characteristics of both the mixture and solid particles. To address this limitation, in this study, we propose a novel AMS based on online circulatory spectrophotometry (OCS) and incorporate debubbling, aeration, and segmented flow (DAS), named DAS-OCS-AMS. Initially, a debubbler is introduced to mitigate the issue of signal noise caused by bubbles (SNB). Subsequently, an aerated and segmented device is developed to address the issue of particle deposition on the inner wall of the pipeline (PDP) and on the windows of the flow cell (PDW). The proposed DAS-OCS-AMS is applied to monitor the kinetics of the photocatalytic degradation of Acid Orange Ⅱ by TiO₂ (P25), and its results are compared with those obtained using the traditional OCS-AMS. The comparative analysis indicates that the proposed DAS-OCS-AMS effectively mitigates the influence of SNB, PDP, and PDW, yielding precise results both for the mixture and solid particles. The DAS-OCS-AMS provides a highly flexible universal framework for online circulatory automated monitoring and a robust hardware foundation for subsequent data processing research. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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17 pages, 3570 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficient Degradation of Sulfamethoxazole by Diatomite-Supported Hydroxyl-Modified UIO-66 Photocatalyst after Calcination

by Hui-Lai Liu, Yu Zhang, Xin-Xin Lv, Min-Shu Cui, Kang-Ping Cui, Zheng-Liang Dai, Bei Wang, Rohan Weerasooriya and Xing Chen

Nanomaterials 2023, 13(24), 3116; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano13243116 - 11 Dec 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 723

Abstract

Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) is a widely used antibiotic to treat bacterial infections prevalent among humans and animals. SMX undergoes several transformation pathways in living organisms and external environments. Therefore, the development of efficient remediation methods for treating SMX and its metabolites is needed. We fabricated a photo-Fenton catalyst using an UIO-66 (Zr) metal–organic framework (MOF) dispersed in diatomite by a single-step solvothermal method for hydroxylation (HO-UIO-66). The HO-UIO-66-0/DE-assisted Fenton-like process degraded SMX with 94.7% efficiency; however, HO-UIO-66 (Zr) is not stable. We improved the stability of the catalyst by introducing a calcination step. The calcination temperature is critical to improving the catalytic efficiency of the composite (for example, designated as HO-UIO-66/DE-300 to denote hydroxylated UIO-66 dispersed in diatomite calcined at 300 °C). The degradation of SMX by HO-UIO-66/DE-300 was 93.8% in 120 min with 4 mmol/L H₂O₂ at pH 3 under visible light radiation. The O1s XPS signatures signify the stability of the catalyst after repeated use for SMX degradation. The electron spin resonance spectral data suggest the role of h⁺, •OH, •O₂⁻, and ¹O₂ in SMX degradation routes. The HO-UIO-66/DE-300-assisted Fenton-like process shows potential in degrading pharmaceutical products present in water and wastewater. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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17 pages, 10155 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synthesis and Characterization of Porous MgO Nanosheet-Modified Activated Carbon Fiber Felt for Fluoride Adsorption

by De-Cai Wang, Min-Da Xu, Zhen Jin, Yi-Fan Xiao, Yang Chao, Jie Li, Shao-Hua Chen and Yi Ding

Nanomaterials 2023, 13(6), 1082; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano13061082 - 16 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1252

Abstract

In the present work, the porous MgO nanosheet-modified activated carbon fiber felt (MgO@ACFF) was prepared for fluoride removal. The MgO@ACFF was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, EDS, TG, and BET. The fluoride adsorption performance of MgO@ACFF also has been investigated. The adsorption rate of the MgO@ACFF toward fluoride is fast; more than 90% of the fluoride ions can be adsorbed within 100 min, and the adsorption kinetics of MgO@ACFF can be fitted in a pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption isotherm of MgO@ACFF fitted well in the Freundlich model. Additionally, the fluoride adsorption capacity of MgO@ACFF is larger than 212.2 mg/g at neutral. In a wide pH range of 2–10, the MgO@ACFF can efficiently remove fluoride from water, which is meaningful for practical usage. The effect of co-existing anions on the fluoride removal efficiency of the MgO@ACFF also has been studied. Furthermore, the fluoride adsorption mechanism of the MgO@ACFF was studied by the FTIR and XPS, and the results reveal a hydroxyl and carbonate co-exchange mechanism. The column test of the MgO@ACFF also has been investigated; 505-bed volumes of 5 mg/L fluoride solution can be treated with effluent under 1.0 mg/L. It is believed that the MgO@ACFF is a potential candidate for a fluoride adsorbent. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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13 pages, 6235 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Evaluation of the Photocatalytic Activity of Distinctive-Shaped ZnO Nanocrystals Synthesized Using Latex of Different Plants Native to the Amazon Rainforest

by Robert S. Matos, John M. Attah-Baah, Michael D. S. Monteiro, Benilde F. O. Costa, Marcelo A. Mâcedo, Simone P. A. Da Paz, Rômulo S. Angélica, Tiago M. de Souza, Ştefan Ţălu, Rosane M. P. B. Oliveira and Nilson S. Ferreira

Nanomaterials 2022, 12(16), 2889; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12162889 - 22 Aug 2022

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 1454

Abstract

ZnO nanocrystals with three different morphologies have been synthesized via a simple sol-gel-based method using Brosimum parinarioides (bitter Amapá) and Parahancornia amapa (sweet Amapá) latex as chelating agents. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron diffraction patterns (SAED) patterns showed the ZnO nanocrystals were a pure hexagonal wurtzite phase of ZnO. XRD-based spherical harmonics predictions and HRTEM images depicted that the nanocrystallites constitute pitanga-like (~15.8 nm), teetotum-like (~16.8 nm), and cambuci-like (~22.2 nm) shapes for the samples synthesized using bitter Amapá, sweet Amapá, and bitter/sweet Amapá chelating agent, respectively. The band gap luminescence was observed at ~2.67–2.79 eV along with several structural defect-related, blue emissions at 468–474 nm (V_O, V_Zn, Zn_i), green emissions positioned at 513.89–515.89 (h-

V_{O}^{+}

), and orange emission at 600.78 nm (

V_{O}^{+}

–

V_{O}^{+ +}

). The best MB dye removal efficiency (85%) was mainly ascribed to the unique shape and oxygen vacancy defects found in the teetotum-like ZnO nanocrystals. Thus, the bitter Amapá and sweet Amapá latex are effective chelating agents for synthesizing distinctive-shaped ZnO nanocrystals with highly defective and remarkable photocatalytic activity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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16 pages, 5614 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Eco-Friendly NiO/Polydopamine Nanocomposite for Efficient Removal of Dyes from Wastewater

by Marwa A. El-Ghobashy, Hisham Hashim, Moustafa A. Darwish, Mayeen Uddin Khandaker, Abdelmoneim Sulieman, Nissren Tamam, Sergei V. Trukhanov, Alex V. Trukhanov and Mohamed A. Salem

Nanomaterials 2022, 12(7), 1103; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12071103 - 27 Mar 2022

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2116

Abstract

The rapid development of industries discharges huge amounts of wastewater that contain surface water. For this reason, we used NiO/polydopamine (NiO/PDA) nanocomposite as an efficient material for the removal of Methyl violet 2B from water. It was synthesized and then characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis, Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET). The EDX analysis confirmed the presence of O, Ni, N, and C. The composite has an average particle size of 18 nm. Its surface area is 110.591 m²/g. It was found that the efficiency of dye removal by adsorption on NiO/PDA exceeded that of bare NiO. The adsorption capacity of NiO and NiO/PDA are 126 and 284 mg/g, respectively. The effects of adsorbent dose, dye concentration, and pH on the removal efficiency were examined. The efficiency increased with increasing the adsorbent dose and pH, but dropped from 85 to 73% within 30 min as the initial dye concentration was increased from 0.984 to 4.92 mg/L. Such a drop in the removal efficiency is due to the blocking of the surface-active sites of NiO/PDA, with the high population of dye molecules derived from the continuous increase in dye concentration. The adsorption results of the dye fitted well with the pseudo-second-order kinetics and Langmuir isotherm. The reusability data showed that NiO/PDA was stable across three adsorption–regeneration cycles, thus it can be considered a good recyclable and efficient adsorbent. Because of these results, it can be considered that this method can be applied for the treatment of wastewater. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterial Application in Environmental Monitoring and Water Treatment)

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