Abstract
Heavy metals are toxic and non-biodegradable environmental contaminants that seriously threaten human health. The remediation of heavy metal-contaminated water and soil is an urgent issue from both environmental and biological points of view. Recently, nanomaterials with excellent adsorption capacities, great chemical reactivity, active atomicity, and environmentally friendly performance have attracted widespread interest as potential adsorbents for heavy metal removal. This review first introduces the application of nanomaterials for removing heavy metal ions from the environment. Then, the environmental factors affecting the adsorption of nanomaterials, their toxicity, and environmental risks are discussed. Finally, the challenges and opportunities of applying nanomaterials in environmental remediation are discussed, which can provide perspectives for future in-depth studies and applications.
Highlights
As a result of extensive industrialization and urbanization over the past century, large amounts of heavy metal ions have been and continue to be discharged into the environment by human activities, such as electroplating, mining, chemical manufacturing, and the application of pesticides and fertilizers [1,2,3]
This review provides a reference for future large-scale applications of nanomaterials in remediation projects
The results showed that the highest removal rate (99.9%) was achieved at pH 10 and a carbon nanotubes (CNTs) dosage of 0.05 g
Summary
As a result of extensive industrialization and urbanization over the past century, large amounts of heavy metal ions have been and continue to be discharged into the environment by human activities, such as electroplating, mining, chemical manufacturing, and the application of pesticides and fertilizers [1,2,3]. During the past few decades, numerous treatment methods have been developed to deal with heavy metal contamination, including physical methods, such as adsorption, coagulation, evaporation, and filtration; chemical methods, such as chemical precipitation, oxidation, ion exchange, and electrochemical processes; and biological methods, such as biodegradation and phytoremediation [12,13,14,15]. Most of these treatment methods have significant drawbacks, such as high costs, complexity of operation, and secondary pollution [16,17,18]. The challenges and opportunities for the researchers who are working hard in this promising field of study are discussed
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