Evaluation of physicochemical properties of Nopal (Opuntia Ficus-Indica) as bio coagulant-flocculant for water treatment

Abstract

Due to population growth, together with anthropogenic activities have polluted and depleted drinking water worldwide. Therefore, efforts have been made to develop physico-chemical operations for its reuse. However, the traditional implementation of inorganic compounds has generated collateral effects on human health and the environment. Consequently, plant species have been used to remove pollutants from water asan economical and efficient alternative. For the above, the present research carried out a characterization of Nopal (Opuntia Ficus-Indica) as a potential biocoagulant-flocculant. To evaluate these properties, a taxonomic evaluation was carried out to determine the type of species evaluated, followed by bromatological and thermogravimetric analyses to identify physicochemical properties related to their adsorption capacities. Subsequently, the Nopal mucilage was extracted and pulverized by heating techniques for its chemical evaluation through functional groups by vibrational spectroscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy with scanning electron microscopy, together with its morphology. The results made it possible to identify the potential use of nopal as a biocoagulant-flocculant, due to the physicochemical phenomena for the molecular content made up of polysaccharides, proteins and other compounds that allow the adsorption of minerals and heavy metals for the elimination of pollutants in water.