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Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 10153

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Technologies, Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Energy, Cracow University of Technology, Warszawska 24, 31-155 Kraków, Poland
Interests: advanced oxidation processes (AOPs); the application of ferrate (VI) for the removal of organic compounds from water and wastewater; industrial wastewater treatment technology; novel environmentally friendly coagulants; the removal of heavy metal ions; general analytical chemistry; green chemistry
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Guest Editor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, USA
Interests: chemical oxidants; remediation of soils, water and leachates; hazardous organic chemicals; heavy metals; pesticides; PAHs; toxicity; environmental engineering

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The presence of heavy metal ions in natural water has been increasing with the growth of industry and human activities. Heavy metal compounds are widely used among others in plating and electroplating industry (electrolytic processes, printed circuit boards industry), batteries, pesticides, mining, tanning, and textile industry, and also in metal smelting, petrochemical and paper manufacturing, and many others. It is clear, that heavy metal ions are non-biodegradable and, in some cases, can have carcinogenic properties. That is why the presence of heavy metal ions in natural water can indirectly threaten human health and other living organisms. This happens when untreated industrial wastewater with enormous heavy metal ions concentrations is discharged into the environment without prior treatment. Therefore, the removal of heavy metal ions from wastewater, especially from industrial wastewater is of prime importance not only for maintaining a clean environment but also for human health. Several methods have been reported for removal of heavy metal cations from various wastewater, e.g., chemical precipitation, ion exchange, chemical oxidation, reduction, membrane methods (reverse osmosis, ultrafiltration, electrodialysis), adsorption, and many others. All methods have their advantages and disadvantages and can be applied under specific conditions.

This Special Issue focuses not only on innovative methods but also on modifications and specific conditions of the use of existing methods applied to wastewater treatment. Therefore, the Special Issue aims at presenting review articles and research papers on the following topics:

  • Removal of heavy metal ions using conventional and innovative precipitation agents and/or methods;
  • Removal of heavy metals from industrial wastewater, especially from electroplating/galvanic wastewater;
  • Management of wastewater containing heavy metals on the small and global scale;
  • Recycling of heavy metals;
  • Economical and technical aspects of removal of heavy metal ions;
  • Environmental impact and toxicity of heavy metals;

and many others. Reviews and research papers are equally welcomed. We strongly encourage contributions focusing on combination of chemical-based methods and membrane processes, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, redox processes, electrodialysis etc. and also on ecofriendly approaches applied for synthetic and real wastewater.

Dr. Maciej Thomas
Prof. Dr. Susan J. Masten
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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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
  • industrial wastewater
  • heavy metals
  • precipitation methods
  • sulfide
  • thiocarbonate
  • trimercapto-s-triazine
  • toxicity

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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22 pages, 6497 KiB  
Article
Removal of Zinc from Concentrated Galvanic Wastewater by Sodium Trithiocarbonate: Process Optimization and Toxicity Assessment
by Maciej Thomas, Zuzana Melichová, Matej Šuránek, Joanna Kuc, Angelika Więckol-Ryk and Paweł Lochyński
Molecules 2023, 28(2), 546; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28020546 - 5 Jan 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2155
Abstract
In the present research, the removal of zinc from concentrated galvanic wastewater (pH 3.1, conductivity 20.31 mS/cm, salinity, 10.16 g/L, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) 2900 mg O2/L, Total Organic Carbon (TOC) 985 mg/L, zinc (Zn) 1534 mg/L and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) [...] Read more.
In the present research, the removal of zinc from concentrated galvanic wastewater (pH 3.1, conductivity 20.31 mS/cm, salinity, 10.16 g/L, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) 2900 mg O2/L, Total Organic Carbon (TOC) 985 mg/L, zinc (Zn) 1534 mg/L and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) 70 mg/L) by combination of lime (Ca(OH)2) and sodium trithiocarbonate (Na2CS3) as precipitation agents is studied. Central Composite Design (CCD) and response surface methodology (RSM) were applied for modelling and optimizing the designed wastewater treatment process. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and the experimental verification of the model confirmed the consistency of the experimental and estimated data calculated from the model (R2 = 0.9173, R2adj. = 0.8622). The use of Ca(OH)2 and Na2CS3 in the optimal condition calculated from the model (pH = 10.75 ± 0.10, V Na2CS3 dose 0.043 mL/L and time = 5 min) resulted in a decrease in the concentration of Zn in treated wastewater by 99.99%. Other physicochemical parameters of wastewater also improved. Simultaneously, the application of Ca(OH)2 and Na2CS3 reduced the inhibition of activated sludge dehydrogenase from total inhibition (for raw wastewater) to −70% (for treated wastewater). Under the same conditions the phytotoxicity tests revealed that the seed germination index for the raw and treated wastewater increased from 10% to 50% and from 90% to 100% for white mustard (Sinapis alba) and garden cress (Lepidium sativum L.), respectively. The parameters of root and shoot growth showed a statistically significant improvement. Treated wastewater (1:10) showed a stimulating effect (shoot growth) compared to the control sample (GI = −116.7 and −57.9 for S. alba and L. sativum L., respectively). Thus, the use of Na2CS3 is a viable option for the treatment of concentrated galvanic wastewater containing zinc. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater)
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13 pages, 1560 KiB  
Article
Development of Ion Character Property Relationship (IC-PR) for Removal of 13-Metal Ions by Employing a Novel Green Adsorbent Aerva javanica
by Fozia Batool, Ali Irfan, Sami A. Al-Hussain, Eida S. Al-Farraj, Shahid Iqbal, Jamshed Akbar, Sobia Noreen, Taslim Akhtar, Tunzeel Iqbal and Magdi E. A. Zaki
Molecules 2022, 27(23), 8213; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27238213 - 25 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1307
Abstract
The novel Aerva javanica absorbent was applied for the removal of thirteen selected metal ions from a distilled water solution of each metal by the batch adsorption method. The optimization remediation parameters of the metal ions for the batch adsorption approach were developed, [...] Read more.
The novel Aerva javanica absorbent was applied for the removal of thirteen selected metal ions from a distilled water solution of each metal by the batch adsorption method. The optimization remediation parameters of the metal ions for the batch adsorption approach were developed, which were the initial concentrations (60 ppm), contact time (60 min) and pH (7). The basic properties of metal ion affected the adsorption results; therefore, 21 properties of metal ions were selected, which are called “descriptors”. The most significant descriptors were selected that were vital for the adsorption results, such as covalent index, polarizability and ion charge. The developed model equation by the descriptors provided more than 80% accuracy in the predicted results. Furthermore, Freundlich and Langmuir adsorption models were also applied on the results. Constants of the Freundlich and Langmuir models were also used for model generation, and the results revealed the importance of a covalent index for the removal phenomenon of metal ions. The current study provided a suitable Ion Character Property Relationship (IC-PR) for the removal of metal ions, and future predictions can be achieved on the proposed adsorbent with significant accuracy. The ecofriendly and cost effective Aerva javanica absorbent in the batch experimental model of the current study predicted that this novel absorbent can be used for the removal of a wide spectrum of heavy metal ions from different sources of waste waters. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater)
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12 pages, 276 KiB  
Article
Defatted Seed Residue of Cucumis Melo as a Novel, Renewable and Green Biosorbent for Removal of Selected Heavy Metals from Wastewater: Kinetic and Isothermal Study
by Taslim Akhtar, Fozia Batool, Sajjad Ahmad, Eida S. Al-Farraj, Ali Irfan, Shahid Iqbal, Sami Ullah and Magdi E. A. Zaki
Molecules 2022, 27(19), 6671; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27196671 - 7 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1269
Abstract
The present work was aimed at studying the biosorption of two important heavy metals, viz. Pb and Cr, using defatted seed residue of Cucumis melo as biosorbent. As this study for the biosorption of the selected biosorbent is being carried out for the [...] Read more.
The present work was aimed at studying the biosorption of two important heavy metals, viz. Pb and Cr, using defatted seed residue of Cucumis melo as biosorbent. As this study for the biosorption of the selected biosorbent is being carried out for the first time, optimization of the% sorption was carried out with the help of Taguchi method. Three most influential experimental factors were taken into account for this purpose, including the amount of sorbent, amount of sorbate and shaking time. For Pb, maximum% sorption was found to be 94.1%, using 2 g of sorbent and 5 ppm of sorbate after 2 h of shaking. Similarly, for Cr, maximum% sorption was 92.5% using 2 g of sorbent, 10 ppm of sorbate and 3 h of shaking. For Pb, the highest% contribution, which was determined by ANOVA, was given by the amount of sorbate (54.7%) followed by the amount of sorbent (38.8%) and the least contribution was given by the shaking time (6.47%). Similarly, for Cr, the highest% contribution, which was determined by ANOVA, was given by the amount of sorbate (75%) followed by the amount of sorbent (16%) and the least contribution was given by the shaking time (8.65%). Kinetic and isothermal studies were also performed to understand the nature of adsorption mechanism. For this purpose, linear and non-linear forms of three sorption isotherms were employed including Freundlich, Langmuir and Dubnin–Radushkevich isotherm. From these observations, it can be concluded that the defatted seed residue of Cucumis melo can be regarded as a novel, renewable, green and cost-effective biosorbent for removal of heavy metals from wastewater. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater)
27 pages, 8884 KiB  
Article
Vanadium(V) Removal from Aqueous Solutions and Real Wastewaters onto Anion Exchangers and Lewatit AF5
by Anna Wołowicz and Zbigniew Hubicki
Molecules 2022, 27(17), 5432; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27175432 - 25 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1984
Abstract
Adsorption abilities of weakly (Purolite A830), weakly basic/chelating (Purolite S984), and strongly basic (Lewatit MonoPlus SR7, Purolite A400TL, Dowex PSR2, Dowex PSR3) ion exchange resins of different functional groups and microporous Lewatit AF5 without functional groups towards vanadium(V) ions were studied in batch [...] Read more.
Adsorption abilities of weakly (Purolite A830), weakly basic/chelating (Purolite S984), and strongly basic (Lewatit MonoPlus SR7, Purolite A400TL, Dowex PSR2, Dowex PSR3) ion exchange resins of different functional groups and microporous Lewatit AF5 without functional groups towards vanadium(V) ions were studied in batch and column systems. In the batch system, the influence of the sorbent mass (0.01–0.1 g), pH (2–10), the phase contact time (1–1440 min),and the initial concentration (5–2000 mg/L) were studied, whereas in the column system, the initial concentrations (50, 100, and 200 mg/L) with the same bed volume and flow rate (0.4 mL/min) were studied. Desorption agents HCl and NaOH of 0.1–1 mol/L concentration were used for loaded sorbent regeneration. The pseudo-first order, pseudo-second order and intraparticle diffusion kinetic models as well as the Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, and Dubinin–Radushkevich isotherm models were used to describe kinetic and equilibrium data to acquire improved knowledge on the adsorption mechanism. The desorption efficiency was the largest using 0.5 mol/L NaOH for all sorbents under discussion. Purolite S984, Purolite A830, and Purolite A400TL, especially Purolite S984, are characterized by the best removal ability towards vanadium(V) from both model and real wastewater. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater)
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Review

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20 pages, 1291 KiB  
Review
Hexavalent Chromium Removal from Water and Wastewaters by Electrochemical Processes: Review
by Işık Kabdaşlı and Olcay Tünay
Molecules 2023, 28(5), 2411; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28052411 - 6 Mar 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2465
Abstract
Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a toxic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic species. Its origin is in industrial activities. Therefore, its effective control is realized on a source basis. Although chemical methods proved effective in removing Cr(VI) from wastewaters, more economic solutions with a minimum [...] Read more.
Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a toxic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic species. Its origin is in industrial activities. Therefore, its effective control is realized on a source basis. Although chemical methods proved effective in removing Cr(VI) from wastewaters, more economic solutions with a minimum sludge production have been sought. Among them, the use of electrochemical processes has emerged as a viable solution to the problem. Much research was conducted in this area. The aim of this review paper is to make a critical evaluation of the literature on Cr(VI) removal by electrochemical methods, particularly electrocoagulation with sacrificial electrodes, and to assess the present data as well as to point out the areas that need further elaboration. Following the review of the theoretical concepts of electrochemical processes, the literature on the electrochemical removal of Cr(VI) was evaluated on the basis of important elements of the system. Among them are initial pH, initial Cr(VI) concentration, current density, type and concentration of supporting electrolyte, and the material of electrodes and their operating characteristics and process kinetics. Dimensionally stable electrodes that realize the reduction process without producing any sludge were evaluated separately. Applications of electrochemical methods to a wide spectrum of industrial effluents were also assessed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical-Based Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater)
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