Insight into the influence of environmental factors on selenite removal from desulfurization wastewater by NZVI@AC: An experimental and theoretical study

Abstract

Nano zero-valent iron (NZVI) technology has shown good potential for the treatment of selenium in wastewater. In this study, NZVI was loaded on activated carbon (AC) by carbothermal reduction method to synthesize high-efficiency adsorbent (NZVI@AC). The agglomeration of NZVI was suppressed and its reactivity was improved. The optimum preparation temperature of NZVI@AC (600 °C) was determined by comparing its purity. Moreover, the synergistic effect between the active component (NZVI) and the support (AC) was investigated on the basis of the density functional theory method. The smaller HOMO-LUMO gap (0.87 eV) and charge distribution of NZVI@AC indicated favorable electron transfer and enhanced chemical reactivity. The adsorption and reduction to Se(0)/Se(-II) were elucidated as the underlying mechanisms for the removal of selenite by comparative analysis of the morphological transformation of iron and selenium species. Furthermore, the selenite removal performance of NZVI@AC was investigated on account of the impact of dissolved oxygen and pH values, and the interaction mechanism of these factors was revealed. The decrease of solution pH and dissolved oxygen concentration are effective ways to improve the removal efficiency of selenite.