Ascorbic acid-mediated Fe/Cu nanoparticles and their application for removal of COD and phenols from industrial wastewater

Abstract

Industrial activities release a large number of pollutants in the environment, which deteriorate environmental quality, and human health. Organic and inorganic pollutants increase the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of the receiving water bodies, one such pollutant is phenol, which is an organic compound that is toxic even at low concentrations. The high COD leads to a lower amount of dissolved oxygen (DO) which is important factor for aquatic life. These pollutants are a serious threat to human health and the environment. In this study, economic and environmentally friendly synthesis of iron copper (Fe/Cu) nanoparticles are reported, which were characterized using UV visible spectroscopy, FT-IR, XRD, TGA, and SEM. The developed particles were then employed to treat industrial wastewaters containing phenol and for reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD). The average size reported by SEM analysis was between 140 nm and 160 nm. Batch experiments showed that a 83.33% mg/L reduction in COD and 76.91% of phenol removal was attained at pH 4, adsorbent dose of 0.5 g/100 mL, and contact time of 60 min, respectively. It was observed that the efficiency of phenol removal increased with an increase in the initial concentration of both, COD and phenols. The results demonstrated that the Fe/Cu nanoparticles are effective adsorbent material to remove phenols from industrial wastewaters as well as for the reduction of COD.