A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH FOR TREATMENT OF WASTEWATER USING CHICKEN FEATHERS

The presence of heavy metals in the industrial effluents has recently been a challenging issue for human health. Efficient removal of heavy metal ions from environment is one of the most important issues from biological and environmental point of view, and many studies have been devoted to investigate the environmental behavior of nanoscale zerovalent iron (NZVI) for the removal of toxic heavy metal ions, present both in the surface and underground wastewater. The aim of this review is to show the excellent removal capacity and environmental remediation of NZVI-based materials for various heavy metal ions. A new look on NZVI-based materials (e.g., modified or matrix-supported NZVI materials) and possible interaction mechanism (e.g., adsorption, reduction and oxidation) and the latest environmental application. The effects of various environmental conditions (e.g., pH, temperature, coexisting oxy-anions and cations) and potential problems for the removal of heavy metal ions on NZVI-based materials with the DFT theoretical calculations and EXAFS technology are discussed. Research shows that NZVI-based materials have satisfactory removal capacities for heavy metal ions and play an important role in the environmental pollution cleanup. Possible improvement of NZVI-based materials and potential areas for future applications in environment remediation are also proposed.

The removal of heavy metals from our environment especially industrial effluents is now shifting from the use of conventional adsorbents to the use of chemical precipitation. The presence of heavy metals in the environment is a major concern because of their toxicity, bioaccumulating tendency, and threat to human life and the environment. The main objective of this research is to study the effectiveness of the combination of hydrogen peroxide and activated bentonite clay in the removal of heavy metal ions from pharmaceutical industrial effluent. About 13.790 mg/l of Fe, 1.650 mg/l of Zn and 2.000 mg/l of Ni were detected in the digested sample and batch removal of heavy metals such as Fe, Zn and Ni from industrial wastewater effluent under different experimental conditions using hydrogen peroxide as precipitating agent in combination with activated bentonite clay as adsorbent. Appreciable differences in the level of heavy metals concentration were observed based on pH effect. The result shows higher effectiveness relatives to other treatments formulated for the effluent treatment such as Alum precipitation effect, effect of hydrogen peroxide concentration dose, contact time effect and temperature effect. Removal of heavy metals in effluent was optimum at pH 10 for zinc (Zn) and nickel (Ni) and at pH 8 for iron (Fe), at temperature of 50°C, 0.75% hydrogen peroxide concentration dose and 100 mins holding time, reducing the amounts from 13.790 to 1.436 mg/l of Fe, while 1.650 to 0.127 mg/l of Zn and 2.000 to 0.115 mg/l of Ni respectively. The percentage differences in concentration for the heavy metals removal in industrial wastewater are as follows: Fe (89.58%), Zn (92.30%) and Ni (94.22%). The result showed high level of Zn and Ni generated from this pharmaceutical industry is above 1 mg/l FEPA and WHO standard but only Fe showed low level concentration compared to 20 mg/l FEPA and WHO standard in this study. This study reveals the need for enforcing adequate effluent treatment methods before their discharge to surface water to reduce their potential environmental hazards.

Water is prime requirement for surviving of any living beings. The existence of surface water and groundwater sources are used for domestic, agriculture and industrial purposes in all over the world. Fresh water from both the water sources is highly contaminated in recent years because of rapid population growth, modern agriculture and industrial growth. Among them, contamination of water sources due to industrialization is high and it requires more attention to protect those water sources. In this study, nickel removal from electroplating industry wastewater was done with the help of bamboo activated carbon. The nickel removal from electroplating industry wastewater by bamboo activated carbon was done in this study at various adsorbent dosages (0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 g/L), agitation speeds (25, 50, 75 and 100 rpm), particle sizes (2.36, 1.18, 0.6 and 0.3 mm), and concentration dilutions (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100%). The maximum removal percentage of nickel from electroplating industry wastewater using bamboo activated carbon was found to be 98.7 % at an optimum adsorption dosage 1.5 g/L, agitation speed 25 rpm, particle size 0.6 mm and concentration dilution 75 % with 110 min. contact time and 5.5 pH. Functional groups available in a bamboo activated carbon before and after treatment were determined by fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis specified that alkanes, carboxylic acids, esters, amides, amines, aromatic compounds, alkyl halides, ethers, alcohols, carboxylic acids, aldehydes functional groups in bamboo activated carbon was contributed for removing nickel from the electroplating industry wastewater. Isotherm models were used to know the adsorption behaviour of bamboo activated carbon for removing nickel from electroplating industry wastewater. Isotherm results revealed that Langmuir model was best suited with the equilibrium data than Freundlich model. Finally, this study concluded that bamboo activated carbon was best suited for removing nickel from electroplating industry wastewater.

Analysis and modeling of multicomponent sorption of heavy metals on chicken feathers using Taguchi’s experimental designs and artificial neural networks

This research paper delves into the efficacy of photochemically modified graphene oxide (GO) for the enhanced removal of heavy metal ions, specifically lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and chromium (Cr), from synthetic industrial effluents. The objective was to investigate whether photochemical modifications could augment the adsorptive properties of GO, making it a more effective and selective adsorbent for heavy metals prevalent in industrial wastewater. A series of batch adsorption experiments were designed and conducted, simulating industrial effluents with varying concentrations of the target heavy metals. The adsorption data were analyzed using the Langmuir isotherm model to quantify the adsorption capacity and understand the nature of the adsorption process. The key findings revealed a significant improvement in the adsorption capacities of photochemically modified GO, with maximum adsorption capacities reaching 225 mg/g for Pb, 85 mg/g for Cd, and 115 mg/g for Cr. These results underscore the enhanced efficacy and selectivity of modified GO towards specific heavy metals, attributed to the introduction of functional groups during the photochemical modification process. The study fills a critical gap in the literature by demonstrating the potential of photochemical modifications to tailor GO for specific environmental remediation applications. The implications of this research are far-reaching, offering a novel approach to the development of more efficient and selective adsorbents for the treatment of heavy metal-laden industrial effluents, thereby contributing to the advancement of sustainable water purification technologies

Heavy metals are posing a serious threat to public health. Due to leaching and widespread use in chemical industries, their concentration is continuously increasing in fresh water reservoirs and industrial effluents. To address the severity of this issue, there is a dire need to devise the economic and environment friendly strategies to remove or decrease the concentration of heavy metals in water reservoirs. In the current research work, an economic and environment friendly polymer, succinylated microcrystalline cellulose (MCCS) is synthesized and modified for the adsorption of Cd(II) ions from aqueous solution. The sodium salt of MCCS (MCCSNa) shows good adsorption capacity for Cd(II) ions through ion‐exchange phenomenon. Isothermal modeling using different adsorption isotherms is investigated to check the spontaneity and understand the insight phenomenon of adsorption. Kinetic modeling of sorption phenomenon is performed to optimize the adsorption conditions for efficient removal of heavy metal ions. Moreover, regeneration capacity of the sorbent is also determined for its reuse to remove heavy metals.

Biosorption process is a promising technology for the removal of heavy metals from industrial wastes and effluents using low-cost and effective biosorbents. In the present study, adsorption of Pb2+, Cu2+, Fe2+, and Zn2+ onto dried biomass of red seaweed Kappaphycus sp. was investigated as a function of pH, contact time, initial metal ion concentration, and temperature. The experimental data were evaluated by four isotherm models (Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, and Dubinin-Radushkevich) and four kinetic models (pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, Elovich, and intraparticle diffusion models). The adsorption process was feasible, spontaneous, and endothermic in nature. Functional groups in the biomass involved in metal adsorption process were revealed as carboxylic and sulfonic acids and sulfonate by Fourier transform infrared analysis. A total of nine error functions were applied to validate the models. We strongly suggest the analysis of error functions for validating adsorption isotherm and kinetic models using linear methods. The present work shows that the red seaweed Kappaphycus sp. can be used as a potentially low-cost biosorbent for the removal of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions. Further study is warranted to evaluate its feasibility for the removal of heavy metals from the real environment.

The pollution of toxic heavy metals is becoming an increasingly important issue in environmental remediation because these metals are harmful to the ecological environment and human health. Highly efficient selective removal of heavy metal ions is a huge challenge for wastewater purification. Here, highly efficient selective capacitive removal (SCR) of heavy metal ions from complex wastewater over Lewis base sites of S-doped Fe-N-C cathodes was originally performed via an electro-adsorption process. The SCR efficiency of heavy metal ions can reach 99% in a binary mixed solution [NaCl (100 ppm) and metal nitrate (10 ppm)]. Even the SCR efficiency of heavy metal ions in a mixed solution containing NaCl (100 ppm) and multicomponent metal nitrates (10 ppm for each) can approach 99%. Meanwhile, the electrode also demonstrated excellent cycle performance. It has been demonstrated that the doping of S can not only enhance the activity of Fe-N sites and improve the removal ability of heavy metal ions but also combine with heavy metal ions by forming covalent bonds of S- clusters on Lewis bases. This work demonstrates a prospective way for the selective removal of heavy metal ions in wastewater.

Substantial contamination of heavy metals in drinking water has been an issue to consumers since long. The persisting contamination level has been monitored by various agencies and researchers, which direct towards constant deterioration of water quality. The quality of water is degrading exponentially from rural to urban areas in a significant manner. Industrial effluents, sewage and agricultural waste are the prime sources of contamination of water resources. Various heavy metals such as nickel, chromium, lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury and copper may be present in industrial effluents. Though different methods such as chemical precipitation, ion exchange, membrane filtration, coagulation – flocculation and electro dialysis are known, amongst which adsorption being the most versatile and economically viable has been extensively adopted by various researchers for trace level of concentrations. In this review, several low cost adsorbents are reported in the literature have been studied at length. Different types of adsorbents like nanosorbent, biosorbents, carbonaceous material and metal based adsorbents have been considered for the review paper. The review paper evaluates the possibilities of utilizing various adsorbents for efficient removal of different heavy metals from water. Study reflected towards remarkable adsorption capacity, efficiency and cost effectiveness of adsorbents utilized by researchers. The boundless use of low cost adsorbents for treatment of wastewater are strongly recommended due to their availability,

In this article, the technical feasibility of raw and activated carbon hazelnut shells for the removal of heavy metals and dyes from wastewaters has been reviewed. Adsorption has been proved to be an excellent way to treat industrial waste effluents, offering significant advantages like the low-cost, availability, profitability, convenience in operation and efficiency. There is a great potential of hazelnut shells to be used in adsorption applications. Nanotechnology is an advanced field of science having the ability to solve the variety of environmental challenges by controlling the size and shape of the materials at a nanoscale. Carbon nanomaterials are unique because of their nontoxic nature, high surface area, easier biodegradation and particularly useful environmental remediation. Textile industry effluents and heavy metal contamination in water are major problems and pose a great risk to human health. Carbon nanomaterials namely carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene, graphene oxide and activated carbon have great potential for removal of heavy metals and dyes from water because of their large surface area, nanoscale size and availability of different functionalities and they are easier to be chemically modified and recycled. Activated carbon was also prepared using agricultural by-products such as palm-tree cobs, grape seeds, several nutshells (almond shell, hazelnut shell, walnut shell and apricot stone), olive-waste cakes and corn cob due to the fact that activated carbon made from conventional raw materials are expensive. This review reports the removal of heavy metals and dyes from wastewaters using raw and activated carbon hazelnut shells in order to provide useful information on various aspects of utilization of the agricultural waste materials and carbon nanomaterials. The adsorption capacities of raw and activated carbon hazelnut shells under different experimental conditions are also reported and compared with other agro-based adsorbents.KeywordsActivated carbonCarbon nanomaterialsHazelnut shellsLow-cost adsorbentsHeavy metalsTextile dyes

Presence of toxic heavy metals in the environment is of great concern due to their persistence in nature and chronic adverse effects on human health and the environment. Present paper tries to evaluate the efficiency of cactus leaves ( Opuntia f. indica ) and activated carbon made from acacia etbiaca as an adsorbent for the removal of heavy metal pollutants such as cadmium, lead and chromium from water. Adsorption properties such as size, dose, initial concentration and time of contact for cadmium, lead and chromium were studied through batch method. Before removing the toxic heavy metals (Cd, Pb and Cr), the fresh unpeeled cactus leaves (adsorbent) and activated carbon were washed with distilled water to eliminate the turbidity and smell from fresh unpeeled cactus. To describe the equilibrium isotherms, the experimental data were analyzed by the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. Thus, the Freundlich model gave the best correlation with the experimental data. Therefore, the findings indicated that the cactus and activated carbon made locally from acacia etbiaca were found to be effective and low-cost alternative adsorbents for the removal of toxic heavy metals from industrial effluents. The preparation method allowed the use of these materials by local industries for effective remediation of pollution by removing heavy metals from their effluents. Keywords : Cactus leaves; Acacia etbiaca ; Heavy metals; Adsorption, Industrial effluents; Water purification.

Four common waste keratin biofibers (human hair, dog hair, chicken feathers, and degreased wool) have been used as biosorbents for the removal of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions. Different parameters of the biosorption processes were optimized in batch systems. For multiple-metal systems, consisting of a mixture of eight metal ions [Cr(III), Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), Cd(II), and Pb(II)], the total metal biosorption increased in the order: degreased wool > chicken feathers > human hair > dog hair. From the kinetic models tested, the pseudo-second-order model provided better results. Furthermore, biosorption isotherms of Pb(II) with the different keratin biofibers fitted the Langmuir model. Surface morphology of the biosorbents were analyzed before and after the sorption using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The keratin biofibers tested are potentially good sorbents of metal ions, with degreased wool and chicken feathers being the more efficient ones.

Adsorption of dye from industrial effluent before discharge into the environment has become a major challenge to the food, pharmaceutical, textile, photographic and cosmetic industries. This has led scientists to the search for suitable green solutions. Carbonized and zinc chloride activated Arachis hypogaea (groundnut husk) in a 1:1 ratio was used as an adsorbent for the removal of Rhodamine B from aqueous solution. The adsorbent was characterized by ash content, bulk density, moisture content, pH, Iodine number, surface area and functional group analyses. Key parameters such as initial pH, initial concentration of Rhodamine B dye, temperature and contact time were investigated. The equilibrium data obtained were correlated with Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherms. It was found that both the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms fit well to the data. The Langmuir isotherm model best describes the uptake of Rhodamine B onto zinc chloride activated groundnut husk biochar with R2 > 0.997. Maximum Rhodamine B. dye removal was observed at a pH of 11.0, with an adsorbent dosage of 1.0 g, a contact time of 125 min, an initial dye concentration of 20 mg/L and a temperature at 315 K. The efficiency of zinc chloride activated groundnut husk biochar for Rhodamine B removal was 99.55% for dilute solutions at 50 g/L. The Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectra recorded before and after activation showed the numbers of functional groups available for Rhodamine B. molecules to bind onto in the studied adsorbent. The kinetic data were best described by the pseudo-first-order and pseudo second-order models, while the thermodynamic studies indicated a spontaneous and endothermic nature in the adsorption of Rhodamine B by the zinc chloride modified groundnut husk. This research clearly details an innovative approach to utilizing carbonized and zinc chloride-activated Arachis hypogaea (groundnut husk) as an eco-friendly adsorbent for the removal of Rhodamine B from industrial effluents.

Non-iridescent structural plumage color is typically produced by coherent scattering of light within a matrix of keratin and air (a ;spongy layer') in feather barbs. It remains unclear what role, if any, the basal melanin layer underlying this spongy layer plays in the production of coloration. Amelanism in birds with structural color is a ;natural experiment' in which melanin pigmentation is lost, allowing us to identify the effects of the loss of melanin on structural color production. Here we use full-spectrum spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy and Fourier analysis to compare the color and nanostructure of an amelanotic Steller's jay (Cyanocitta stelleri Gmelin) feather with a normal blue Steller's jay feather. As a control, we also examined a white domestic chicken (Gallus gallus Linnaeus) feather. The pale amelanotic jay feather had a broad reflectance curve with a blue/green peak, while the typical blue feather had a typical distinct bell-shaped blue curve with a UV/violet peak. The white chicken feather had a typical white reflectance curve with no discrete peaks. Electron microscopy revealed that both the amelanotic and blue feather barbs contained well-formed spongy layers that were of the correct size and arrangement to produce their measured peak reflectance values, whereas the chicken feather had no spongy layer. The washed-out color of the amelanotic jay feather was thus most probably caused by the loss of the basal melanin layer, suggesting that melanin functions to absorb incoherently scattered white light from the feather barb thereby increasing the purity of the color produced by the spongy layer.

Adsorptive removal of heavy metal ions from industrial effluents using activated carbon derived from waste coconut buttons