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Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Water Pollution

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Pollution Prevention, Mitigation and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 May 2024 | Viewed by 8284

Special Issue Editors

Department of Civil Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou 215123, China
Interests: nanomaterials for environmental applications; advanced oxidation processes; adsorption processes; renewable and sustainable energy; environmental catalysis; membrane separation processes; clean technology; climate change mitigation and adaptation; solid waste remediation; biomass processing; enzyme technology
School of Chemical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang 11800, Malaysia
Interests: environmental catalysis; waste-to-resources; advanced oxidation processes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 5AG, Northern Ireland, UK
Interests: heterogenous catalysis; methane oxidation; methanol synthesis; hydrogen production; biomass; plastics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Globally, reports of heavy metal contamination have sparked widespread concern. Exposure to heavy metals, such as cadmium, mercury, chromium, arsenic, and lead, may negatively impact human health and surrounding ecosystems. Thus, it is critical to prevent and control the presence of heavy metals in water treatment. Prevention and control of heavy metals can be achieved through various means, including developing novel sensor and treatment technologies.

Because the life cycle of different heavy metals are unique and complex, the problems generated by them are worldwide issues for human society's sustainable growth. This Special Issue on "Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Water Pollution" in Sustainability, is collecting original articles, review and short communications on a variety of topics related to heavy metals in water (but not limited to):

(1) Heavy metal removal using various bio-sorbent materials (biochar, activated carbon along with others);

(2) Detecting and tracking various heavy metals in real-world water situations;

(3) Advanced removal techniques for heavy metals in water remediation;

(4) Magnetic materials in heavy metal removal;

(5) Mechanistic heavy metal removal in water treatment;

(6) Advanced analytical methods of heavy metals in water;

(7) Life cycle assessment of heavy metal removal in water;

(8) Techno-economic evaluation of cost-effective heavy metal removal approaches.

We are glad to invite you to submit manuscripts for consideration for this Special Issue. We accept both original research articles and reviews. The following keywords can be adopted as a reference. We eagerly await your input.

Dr. Pow Seng Yap
Dr. Oh Wen Da
Dr. Ahmed Osman
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. Sustainability 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 2400 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

  • heavy metal removal
  • biosorbent
  • detection
  • advanced removal methods
  • magnetic sorbent
  • mechanistic study
  • analytical methods
  • water treatment
  • LCA
  • techno-economic analysis

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 3991 KiB  
Article
Chemical Treatment of Banana Blossom Peels Adsorbent as New Approach for Manganese Removal: Isotherm and Kinetic Studies
by Nurul Nadia Rudi, Najeeha Mohd Apandi, Mimi Suliza Muhamad, Norshuhaila Mohamed Sunar, Affah Mohd Apandi, Lee Te Chuan, Ramathasan Nagarajah and Suhair Omar
Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10223; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310223 - 28 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1314
Abstract
This research aimed to investigate the potential of chemically modified banana blossom peels (BBP) as an adsorbent for removing manganese (Mn) from water. Zeta potential, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET) were [...] Read more.
This research aimed to investigate the potential of chemically modified banana blossom peels (BBP) as an adsorbent for removing manganese (Mn) from water. Zeta potential, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET) were used to characterise the BBP adsorbent. Batch adsorption studies were used to assess the effects of the solution pH, adsorbent dosage, initial manganese concentration, and contact time of the adsorption process. Zeta potential of BBP with a value of −9.87 to −21.1 mV and FESEM analysis revealed deeper dents and rough internal surfaces conducive to Mn deposition, whereas EDX analysis revealed the presence of C, O, and Na elements (before adsorption); C, O, and Mn (after adsorption). The presence of hydroxyl, carboxylic, and amino groups, which are responsible for the adsorption process, was discovered using FTIR analysis. Furthermore, XRD analysis revealed that the BBP adsorbent structure is amorphous. The BBP adsorbent has a BET surface area of 2.12 m2/g, a total pore volume of 0.0139 cm3/g, and an average pore diameter of 64.35 nm. The BBP adsorbent demonstrated remarkable results of 98% Mn removal under the optimum pH 7, 0.5 g (adsorbent dosage), and 10 mg/L of Mn initial concentration in 150 min of contact time. The linear Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models best fit the adsorption isotherm data with the R2 > 0.98. In contrast, the adsorption process occurs as a function of the chemisorption as determined by linear pseudo-second-order kinetics. Using 0.1 M HCI, the maximal desorption rate of Mn was 92% in the first cycle, with a recovery rate of 94.18% Mn removal in 30 min. These findings support the use of BBP as a natural adsorbent for Mn removal as a treatment option for improving wastewater quality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Water Pollution)
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25 pages, 8216 KiB  
Article
Statistical Modelling of Biosorptive Removal of Hexavalent Chromium Using Dry Raw Biomasses of Dioscorea rotundata, Elaeis guineensis, Manihot esculenta, Theobroma cacao and Zea mays
by Angel Villabona-Ortíz, Candelaria Tejada-Tovar and Ángel Darío González-Delgado
Sustainability 2023, 15(12), 9156; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15129156 - 06 Jun 2023
Viewed by 963
Abstract
Hexavalent chromium [Cr (VI)] is a highly toxic and hazardous contaminant that poses serious health risks to both humans and the environment. Its presence in water sources can lead to severe health issues, including various types of cancer and respiratory ailments. Therefore, developing [...] Read more.
Hexavalent chromium [Cr (VI)] is a highly toxic and hazardous contaminant that poses serious health risks to both humans and the environment. Its presence in water sources can lead to severe health issues, including various types of cancer and respiratory ailments. Therefore, developing efficient and effective methods for Cr (VI) removal is crucial in ensuring safe and clean water supplies. The aim of this research is the environmentally responsible elimination of hexavalent chromium by bioadsorption using corn residues (CR), palm fiber (PF), and the peels of yam (YP), cassava (CP), and cocoa (CH). The study was conducted with varying levels of pH, bioadsorbent quantity, temperature, and adsorbent particle size at 200 rpm, with an initial concentration of 100 mg/L and 24 h of contact time to improve the adsorption efficiency. The process variables were evaluated and optimized using the statistical technique response surface methodology (RSM). The SEM-EDS analysis revealed that the predominant elements in the structure of the bioadsorbents were carbon and oxygen. Furthermore, the adsorption process led to the incorporation of Cr (VI) into the structure of the biomaterials, as indicated by their EDS spectra. The maximal adsorption efficiency of 99.11% was obtained at pH 2, bioadsorbent dose of 0.03 mg, 30 °C, and 0.5 mm of particle size. Various equilibrium isotherms were utilized to fit and analyze the adsorption data. The assessed maximum adsorption capacities were 38.84, 56.88, 52.82, 138.94, and 240,948.7 mg/g for YP, PF, CP, CH, and CR, respectively. The adsorption data exhibited conformity with the Freundlich and Redlich–Peterson isotherm models (R2 = 0.95), indicating that the phenomenon occurs in a multilayer. Pseudo-second order and Elovich kinetic models adjusted the kinetics of chromium (VI), suggesting that the mechanism could be controlled by chemisorption. Therefore, the residual biomasses evaluated can serve as a cost-effective adsorbent for Cr (VI) removal, and the use of RSM enables efficient modeling and prediction of the adsorption process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Water Pollution)
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Review

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23 pages, 872 KiB  
Review
Remediation of Heavy Metals in Polluted Water by Immobilized Algae: Current Applications and Future Perspectives
by Zhonghao Chen, Ahmed I. Osman, David W. Rooney, Wen-Da Oh and Pow-Seng Yap
Sustainability 2023, 15(6), 5128; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15065128 - 14 Mar 2023
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4941
Abstract
The progression of urban industrialization releases large quantities of heavy metals into water, resulting in the severe heavy metal contamination of the aquatic environment. Traditional methods for removing heavy metals from wastewater generally have varying removal efficiencies, whereas algae adsorption technology is a [...] Read more.
The progression of urban industrialization releases large quantities of heavy metals into water, resulting in the severe heavy metal contamination of the aquatic environment. Traditional methods for removing heavy metals from wastewater generally have varying removal efficiencies, whereas algae adsorption technology is a cost-effective and sustainable bioremediation technique. A green technology that immobilizes algae through a carrier to improve biosorbent’s stability and adsorption performance is immobilization technology. The purpose of this review is to study the optimization strategy of the immobilization of algae for the bioremediation of heavy metals and to comprehensively analyze immobilized algae technology in terms of sustainability. The analysis of the mechanism of heavy metal removal by immobilized algae and the parameters affecting the efficiency of the biosorbent, as well as the approach based on life cycle assessment and economic analysis, allowed the identification of the optimization of the adsorption performance of immobilized algae. This provides a theoretical basis for the practical application of algal bioremediation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Water Pollution)
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