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Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis

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A special issue of Separations (ISSN 2297-8739). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Separations".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 January 2024) | Viewed by 20157

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Daniela Suteu

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Department of Organic, Biochemical and Food Engineering, ‘Cristofor Simionescu’ Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Environment Protection, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 73 D. Mangeron Blvd., 700050 Iasi, Romania
Interests: adsorption; biosorption; natural/synthetic adsorbents; wastewater treatment; chemical pollutants; organic dyes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Carmen Zaharia

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Department of Environmental Engineering and Management, “Cristofor Simionescu” Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Protection, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 73 Prof. Dr. docent D. Mangeron Blvd, 700050 Iasi, Romania
Interests: environmental engineering and management; environmental chemistry (atmosphere, water, soil/subsoil chemistry); analysis and control of environment pollution; water and wastewater treatment systems; elements of environmental monitoring and/or risk control; optimization of some processes applied for environmental protection; environmental assessments; waste management; energy and the environment; chemical engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to contribute an original research paper, review article or hot topic to our Special Issue of Separations titled “Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis”, for peer-review and possible publication.

It is well-known that emerging pollutants (contaminants) represent a broad group of chemical pollutants (organic and inorganic) are present in the environment as a result of human activity. Their sources are daily household activities, quality assurance and protection of human health, animal husbandry and plant culture, industrial production and others.

The quality management of all environmental components (atmosphere, water, soil/subsoil, etc.) and environmental treatment/remediation are targets of environmental policy and strategy for the next period until 2030. In this context, the issue of emerging pollutants is of some relevance, both in terms of pollution prevention, their elimination from the environment (water, air, soil) and their analysis.

We invite the submission of original unpublished research reports and review articles on the removal of emerging pollutants from the environment, the elimination of different classes of emerging contaminants, analyses of emerging pollutants in the environment, ways to prevent pollution with emerging pollutants from the environment, and pollution level assessment for possible publication in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Daniela Şuteu
Dr. Carmen Zaharia
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. Separations is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2600 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

emerging pollutants
separation methods
analysis techniques
quality of environmental components
wastewater
pollution prevention

Published Papers (12 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

15 pages, 3877 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficient Removal of Tetracycline by Metal–Organic Framework ZIF-67 and Its Mechanism

by Shengyang Zheng, Yaping Xu, Xu Yao, Chenzhe Wang, Ping Liu, Haitao Zhao, Jianbing Lu and Jing Ju

Separations 2024, 11(2), 63; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations11020063 - 18 Feb 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1107

Abstract

The widespread use of tetracycline (TC) poses potential hazards to ecosystems and human health. In this study, ZIF-67 was successfully synthesized using a room-temperature static synthesis method and applied to the efficient removal of TC from water. It was shown that the maximum adsorption of TC by ZIF-67 could reach 1583.128 mg·g⁻¹ at pH = 5.0, an initial TC concentration of 450 mg·g⁻¹, an adsorption time of 720 min, and a temperature of 308K.The pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Langmuir’s isothermal adsorption model could describe the adsorption process better, which proved that the adsorption of ZIF-67 on TC was mainly monolayer adsorption dominated by chemisorption. Mechanistic studies showed that the adsorption process of ZIF-67 on TC was mainly through electrostatic interactions, pore adsorption, π–π interactions, and framework coordination of ZIF-67 surface cations with TC. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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20 pages, 3497 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Adsorption, Modeling, Thermodynamic, and Kinetic Studies of Acteray Golden Removal from Polluted Water Using Sindh Clay and Quartz as Low-Cost Adsorbents

by Aqsa Fatima, Muhammad Asif Hanif, Umer Rashid, Muhammad Idrees Jilani, Fahad A. Alharthi and Jeehoon Han

Separations 2023, 10(10), 538; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10100538 - 11 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1333

Abstract

Due to growing environmental awareness and demands, many efforts were implemented for the transformation of waste materials into highly efficient adsorption capacity materials. In this work, efforts were made to convert the Sindh clay and quartz into an efficient composite for dye removal from polluted water. The synthesized composites were characterized using FT-IR, BET, SEM, and XRD. The synthesized composite showed a crystalline structure with specific characteristics, including a specific surface area of 7.20 m²/g and a pore diameter of 3.27 nm. The formation of iron cyanide hydrate (2030 cm⁻¹) and iron oxides (418 cm⁻¹) were depicted through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis. The micrographs obtained show that the unmodified quartz sample has a flattened and elongated shape compared to the modified quartz sample, which has aggregated and coarse morphology. The effects of several factors, such as temperature, contact time, and initial dye concentration, were studied. Kinetic models were also applied to determine the probable route of the adsorption process. For adsorption equilibrium analysis, the Dubinin–Radushkevich, Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, and Harkin–Juraisotherm models were employed. The Freundlich isotherm model and pseudo-first-order model best described the adsorption of dyes onto the clay composites. R² values were close to 1 or more than 0.9, showing which equation fits the experimental data. The produced composite demonstrated good reusability, maintaining over 90% of the adsorption capacity after five reaction cycles without the need for reactivation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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17 pages, 5849 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Treatment of Produced Water Using Prepared Activated Carbon-Based Sewage Sludge

by Salam K. Al Dawery, Maroa K. Al-Sawai, Ghatara M. S. Al Muzami, Sri Hari K. Annamareddy, Muataz S. Al Dawari, Ramzi H. Harharah, Hamed N. Harharah and Abdelfattah Amari

Separations 2023, 10(10), 519; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10100519 - 22 Sep 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1317

Abstract

Removal of organic pollutants and metal ions from produced water by adsorption, using prepared activated carbon (AC) from sewage sludge, with chemical activations using NaOH, KOH and ZnCl₂ separately and pyrolysis at different temperatures (500, 600 and 700 °C). Pure sludge and prepared ACs were analyzed using FTIR and XRD. The results showed 18% crystallinity compared to that of commercial AC, which has 44% crystallinity. The results of FTIR demonstrate that the properties of the post-treated affect the final products depending on the method used and that it contains similar functional groups to those present in the commercial AC, but at a higher peak intensity. Adsorption treatments were carried out at 25, 35 and 45 °C solution temperatures. The results showed that the removal of pollutants from produced water using prepared AC with all types of chemical activations reached 99.5%, such as commercial AC with 0.06 g dosage of adsorbent at pyrolysis temperatures of 500 and 600 °C and a solution temperature of 25 °C. The obtained results refer to the mechanism of exothermic reaction and physical adsorption. It was observed that despite the lower dosage of adsorbent of 0.01 g, a sufficient treatment of pollutants was achieved. This reveals the effectiveness of using sewage sludge as a cheap adsorbent. Also, using pure sewage sludge, the adsorption data showed a 95.2% removal of the pollutants. This result indicated that pure sludge has an efficient adsorption capacity and can be utilized as a cheap and environmentally friendly material. For the removal of manganese and cadmium metal ions from the produced water, the resultant data showed that more than 90% of manganese was adsorbed and more than 97% of cadmium was adsorbed, especially when using pure sewage sludge and prepared activated carbon with NaOH chemical activation at pyrolysis temperatures of 500 °C and 600 °C. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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14 pages, 3825 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Insights into the Adsorption Performance of Emerging Contaminants on Granular Activated Carbon

by Sang-Hoon Lee, Namgyu Kim and Donghee Park

Separations 2023, 10(9), 501; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10090501 - 13 Sep 2023

Viewed by 1081

Abstract

Emerging contaminants are being detected at a high frequency, posing significant environmental and human health challenges. This study aimed to investigate the potential of using commercial granular activated carbon for adsorbing nine aqueous emerging contaminants (carbamazepine, phenacetin, pentoxifylline, norfloxacin, iprobenfos, isoprothiolane, metolachlor, tebuconazole, and hexaconazole). The adsorption study involved employing kinetic and isotherm models, using various concentrations of emerging contaminants and sorbents in a batch system. Additionally, the study explored the correlation between the characteristics of emerging contaminants and their adsorption values, which displayed a relatively linear relationship. While some previous papers have evaluated the performance of one or two substances, there is a lack of research on the adsorption mechanisms of all nine aqueous emerging contaminants. Therefore, the findings from this study on the adsorption potential of granular activated carbon can serve as a valuable foundation for further investigations into its effectiveness in adsorbing emerging contaminants. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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13 pages, 1992 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Empirical Modeling by Active Central Composite Rotatable Design: Orange 16 Dye Biosorption onto Biosorbents Based on Residual Bacterial Lactobacillus sp. Biomass

by Carmen Zaharia and Daniela Suteu

Separations 2023, 10(5), 279; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10050279 - 25 Apr 2023

Viewed by 920

Abstract

(1) Background: This research work proposes the ‘passive’ biosorption study of Orange 16 dye onto residual Lactobacillus sp. biomass immobilized in sodium alginate using an experimental modeling design. (2) Methods: It was applied the batch biosorption methodology was applied with a real-time determination of residual dye content and biosorption efficiency (Y, %). Empirical planning was used based on an active central composite rotatable design of 2³ order in which three independent variables were considered, including residual biomass concentration (2.92–13.00 g/L, mean granule size of 0.7–1.0 mm) (X₁), temperature (8–42 °C) (X₂) and biosorption time (4–24 h) (X₃), in association with the considered dependent variable (Y). The proposed mathematical model was validated using a few statistical tools. (3) Results: The batch biosorption experiments were permitted to propose a mathematical model considering a basic value and variation step for each selected independent variable and then to validate it. The maximum experimental dye removal was 79.98% when 11 g/L immobilized biosorbent was applied in an 89.76 mg/L dye-containing solution at 15 °C and 20 h. The significance of each independent variable on dye removal was investigated and, most importantly, explained. (4) Conclusions: The residual Lactobacillus sp. biomass can be applied as an alternative biosorbent for anionic dye removal from an aqueous solution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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14 pages, 2611 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

The Influence of the Chemical Composition of Natural Waters about the Triclocarban Sorption on Pristine and Irradiated MWCNTs

by Georgeta Ramona Ivan, Ion Ion, Luiza Capra, Ovidiu Oprea and Alina Catrinel Ion

Separations 2023, 10(1), 46; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10010046 - 11 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1039

Abstract

The influence of the chemical composition of natural waters on triclocarban (TCC) sorption on pristine and irradiated multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) at different temperatures was studied. Natural waters have been characterized in terms of the concentrations of cations and anions, pH, and electric conductivity. The sorption process of TCC on MWCNTs is influenced by both the chemical composition of natural waters and the variation of the temperature. The adsorption capacity of TCC on pristine and irradiated MWCNTs in the studied natural waters increased by increasing the temperature. The increase of the concentration of monovalent cations (Na⁺ and K⁺) in natural waters determined a significant decrease of the adsorption capacity of TCC on both pristine and irradiated MWCNTs while the increase of the bivalent cations (Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺) determined an easy increase adsorption capacity. Freundlich and Langmuir models were selected to describe the steady adsorption of the TCC on the pristine and irradiated MWCNTs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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10 pages, 1065 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Testing Thymol-Based DES for the Elimination of 11 Textile Dyes from Water

by Lorena Villar, Óscar Martínez-Rico, Andrés Asla, Ángeles Domínguez and Begoña González

Separations 2022, 9(12), 442; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9120442 - 15 Dec 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1739

Abstract

Textile industries release dangerous wastewater that contain dyes into the environment. Due to their toxic, carcinogenic and mutagenic nature, they must be removed before the discharge. Liquid–liquid extraction has proven to be an efficient method for the removal of these dyes. As extractants, deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have shown excellent results in recent years, as well as presenting several green properties. Therefore, four different hydrophobic DESs based on natural components were prepared thymol:decanoic acid (T:D (1:1)), thymol:DL-menthol (T:M (1:1)), thymol:DL-menthol (T:M (1:2)) and thymol:coumarin (T:C (2:1)) for the extraction of Malachite Green (MG), Brilliant Blue G (BBG), Acid Yellow 73 (AY73), Reactive Red 29 (RR29), Acid Blue 113 (AB113), Reactive Black 5 (RB5), Remazol Brilliant Blue (RBB), Direct Yellow 27 (DY27), Acid Blue 80 (AB80), Direct Blue 15 (DB15) and Acid Violet 43 (AV43) dyes from water. The operational parameters of the liquid–liquid extraction were selected in order to save time and materials, resulting in 30 min of stirring, 15 min of centrifugation and an aqueous:organic ratio of 5:1. In these conditions, the highest values of extraction obtained were 99% for MG, 89% for BBG and 94% for AY73. Based on these results, the influence of the aqueous:organic phase ratio and the number of necessary stages to achieve water decolorization was studied. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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20 pages, 2980 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Removal of Patent Blue Dye Using Ananas comosus-Derived Biochar: Equilibrium, Kinetics, and Phytotoxicity Studies

by Riti Thapar Kapoor, Mohd Rafatullah, Ahmed Muteb Aljuwayid, Mohamed A. Habila, Saikh Mohammad Wabaidur and Mahboob Alam

Separations 2022, 9(12), 426; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9120426 - 10 Dec 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1655

Abstract

Patent Blue (PB) dye removal from an aqueous medium was investigated using pineapple fruit peel biochar (PFPB). The presence of functional groups and surface characteristics of PFPB was studied using Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A study was conducted to assess the pH effect, contact time, concentration of dye, biochar dose, speed of agitation, and temperature on removal of PB (Patent Blue) dye from an aqueous medium by PFPB. The highest 95% elimination of PB dye was reported at pH 2 by PFPB with 600 mg/L concentration of PB dye. Equilibrium studies divulged the favorable adsorption that followed the Langmuir isotherm with a monolayer uptake potential of 10.29 mg/g. Findings of kinetics disclosed that adsorption results were properly explained by the pseudo second-order model. The adsorption phenomenon was exothermic and spontaneous, as observed by thermodynamic variables. PFPB reflected a 37% uptake capacity of PB dye for up to five consecutive cycles in the adsorption and desorption study. A phytotoxicity study exhibited that PFPB-treated PB dye solution enhanced the growth of seedlings and biochemical constituents of lentils. The findings of the present study indicate the immense potential of pineapple fruit peel biochar for anionic dye removal from wastewater systems. Thus, pineapple fruit peel biochar can be utilized as a promising green sorbent for the elimination of Patent Blue dye in industrial effluents, as it is widely available and converts wastewater into reusable assets. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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13 pages, 613 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Potential Use of Low-Cost Agri-Food Waste as Biosorbents for the Removal of Cd(II), Co(II), Ni(II) and Pb(II) from Aqueous Solutions

by Lorena Sánchez-Ponce, Margarita Díaz-de-Alba, María José Casanueva-Marenco, Jesús Gestoso-Rojas, Marta Ortega-Iguña, María Dolores Galindo-Riaño and María Dolores Granado-Castro

Separations 2022, 9(10), 309; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9100309 - 14 Oct 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2420

Abstract

We evaluated the potential use of agri-food waste for the removal of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions and its application in different processes (e.g., water remediation, in the production of biomass enriched in nutritionally significant elements, etc.). Biomasses from grape seed, grape pomace, loquat seed, Calabrese broccoli stem, empty pods of carob and broad bean pods, unripe bitter orange peel, kumquat, orange pulp and Canary Island banana pulp were prepared. The percentages and biosorption capacities were evaluated and compared with those refe-renced using Valencia orange peel (Citrus sinensis Valencia late). These studies allow for easily providing added value to different agri-food wastes. The results show that the proposed biomasses were able to retain the studied metal ions and obtained different percentages, being in some cases above 90%. The highest values were obtained using broad bean pod (Pb(II) (91.5%), Cd(II) (61.7%), Co(II) (40.7%) and Ni(II) (39.7%)). Similar values were observed using grape seed, broccoli stem, carob pod and unripe bitter orange peel. Carob pod for biosorption of Cd(II) is also of great interest. These studies suggest that the agri-food residues evaluated can be applied to prepare effective biosorbents of divalent metal ions from aqueous solutions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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19 pages, 6821 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Antioxidant and Bioinsecticidal Activity of Spontaneous Flora Vegetal Extracts for Plant Protection and Prevention of Soil Contamination

by Gabriel Mihăiță Daraban, Lăcrămioara Rusu, Rodica Mihaela Dinica, Mihaela Roşca, Marinela Badeanu, Maria Daniela Ionica Mihaila and Daniela Suteu

Separations 2022, 9(9), 260; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9090260 - 13 Sep 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1803

Abstract

The purpose of this article was to evaluate the application of different plant extracts with bioinsecticidal action and antioxidant activity for plants and soil protection, by substitution of the application of synthetically formulated pesticides with eco-friendly compounds. In this framework, this research focused on the utilization of plant extracts from the spontaneous flora of Moldova (Romania) as bioinsecticides for the control of field pests of the species Leptinotarsa decemlineata and their antioxidant activity. Plant extracts of oregano (Origanum vulgare), yarrow (Achillea millefolium), wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), and cowslip (Primula veris) were assessed for their antioxidant activity by the microplate spectrophotometric-based method (for polyphenols and flavonoids content and for 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenger activity) and were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy spectra. To evaluate the bioinsecticidal properties of the plant extracts, the mortality (%) and neuroleptic manifestations appearing in the middle of the monitoring period for larvae and adults of the Leptinotarsa decemlineata species were identified. Mortality (%) was statistically analyzed using a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the resulting experimental results were compared with the LSD-Fisher’s test (p < 0.05). The highest mortality (%) was observed after 24 h of treatment with extracts of Origanum vulgare at 100% concentration, while the maximum effect was recorded after 48 h for Origanum vulgare at 60% and 100% concentrations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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Review

Jump to: Research

20 pages, 3214 KiB

Open AccessReview

Review of Artificial Nacre for Oil–Water Separation

by Apriliana Cahya Khayrani, Nonni Soraya Sambudi, Hans Wijaya, Yose Fachmi Buys, Fitri Ayu Radini, Norwahyu Jusoh, Norashikin Ahmad Kamal and Hazwani Suhaimi

Separations 2023, 10(3), 205; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10030205 - 15 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2257

Abstract

Due to their extraordinary prospective uses, particularly in the areas of oil–water separation, underwater superoleophobic materials have gained increasing attention. Thus, artificial nacre has become an attractive candidate for oil–water separation due to its superhydrophilicity and underwater superoleophobicity properties. Synthesized artificial nacre has successfully achieved a high mechanical strength that is close to or even surpasses the mechanical strength of natural nacre. This can be attributed to suitable synthesis methods, the selection of inorganic fillers and polymer matrices, and the enhancement of the mechanical properties through cross-linking, covalent group modification, or mineralization. The utilization of nacre-inspired composite membranes for emerging applications, i.e., is oily wastewater treatment, is highlighted in this review. The membranes show that full separation of oil and water can be achieved, which enables their applications in seawater environments. The self-cleaning mechanism’s basic functioning and antifouling tips are also concluded in this review. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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27 pages, 1161 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Renewable Resource Biosorbents for Pollutant Removal from Aqueous Effluents in Column Mode

by Lavinia Tofan and Daniela Suteu

Separations 2023, 10(2), 143; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations10020143 - 19 Feb 2023

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2355

Abstract

The present work deals with the continuous flow systems based on renewable resource biosorbents towards the green removal of various categories of chemical pollutants from aqueous media. The opening discussions are focused on: (a) renewable resources; (b) biosorbents based on renewable resources; (c) dynamic biosorption. After these, the renewable resources biosorbents are reviewed according to the parameters of breakthrough curves. Subsequently, the targeted biosorbents are systematized and analyzed according to the following criteria: (a) their ability to work as remediation agents for heavy metal ions and dyes, respectively; (b) their relevancy for continuous biosorption processes applied both to synthetic aqueous solutions and real wastewaters. The perspective directions of research for the implementation of biosorbents from renewable resources in practical column strategies for wastewater treatment are recommended. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Removal of Emerging Pollutants and Environmental Analysis)

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