Nanomaterials as endorsed environmental remediation tools for the next generation: Eco-safety and sustainability

Abstract

The increased peril of various environmental pollutants causing enormous damage to the environment and human beings has raised red flags worldwide. Despite the numerous attempts that are daily made to reduce the amounts of hazardous substances, still there is a need for urgent action toward finding successful solutions for pollutant removal. Therefore, we are witnessing that environmental safety is nowadays a prime global concern and challenge. In that light, nano-remediation is attracting increasing attention as a cutting-edge technology that has the potential to revolutionize the way of managing and remediating hazardous waste and environmental contamination with the potential of addressing environmental problems. However, despite numerous reports on the application of nanomaterials in environmental remediation, there are still many gaps in deciphering the mode of action, eco-safety, and sustainability of various nanomaterials for long-term application. Therefore, this review summarizes the current status of bio-based nanoparticles, and their synthesis over the last decade, from classical to modern innovative ways, where more research attention has been drawn toward environmentally friendly materials and the most recent trends in green direction for their fabrication. Further, it provides a comprehensive discussion to present insights into the state of the art of green-synthesized nanoparticles and emphasizes the key issues in their advantages over the traditional methods and potential obstacles and constraints for their implementation in cleaning up contaminated sites. Lastly, this review points to key steps that should advance current trends and enable further development in boosting the power of nanotechnology for a long-term and sustainable application in environmental remediation.