Preparation of silver nitroprusside nanoparticles for enhanced acid red 94 removal from effluent: A study on synergistic adsorption and photocatalytic processes, with toxicological assessment

Abstract

Toxic dye pollution in water is an urgent global environmental issue. The synergistic action of adsorption and degradation has shown great removal effects for treating toxic dyes in aqueous environments. Silver ions and nitroprusside salts exhibit excellent antimicrobial, anticancer, and biocompatibility properties and are widely used in the pharmaceutical field; however, their application in environmental treatment has not been extensively explored. Hence, we prepared novel and highly efficient silver nitroprusside nanoparticles (Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs) through a one-pot reaction using sodium nitroprusside and silver nitrate for the first removal of acid red dye (AR 94). Furthermore, Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs were characterized using various analytical techniques. The Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs have both cubic and rod-like structures with a size of 107.46 ± 34.54 d.nm, the PDI is 0.263 ± 0.018 and the zeta potential is −46.9 ± 0.026 mV. In addition, the synergistic adsorption and degradation performance of Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs was evaluated. The removal efficiencies of Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs on AR 94 can reach more than 95 % under natural light irradiation and optimal reaction conditions of 60 mg/L AR 94 dye concentration, pH 6, temperature 45 °C, and time 6 h. After 5 cycles of recycling, the removal efficiency remained above 90 %. The aqueous solution obtained after removing AR 94 demonstrated no adverse effects on Zea mays L. seed growth. It also exhibited low toxicity to Artemia salina. These results emphasize the potential of Ag2[Fe(CN)5NO] NPs as an efficient and environmentally friendly material for the removal of dyes from aqueous environments.