Wastewater Treatment Research Articles

The discharge of dye-contaminated industrial wastewater from textile and dye manufacturing industries poses serious environmental and health risks due to the persistence and toxicity of synthetic dyes, particularly azo compounds. Conventional treatment methods are often ineffective for complete dye removal and may produce secondary pollutants. We developed a green biocatalytic approach using laccase immobilized in sodium alginate beads for efficient dye removal. In this study, a soil-derived fungal strain (A19), identified as Aspergillus fumigatus, was screened using sugarcane bagasse as the growth substrate under submerged fermentation. Crude enzyme exhibited a specific activity of 1.122mg/mL, which was purified through ammonium sulphate precipitation followed by Sephadex G-100 chromatography, resulting in a 1.92-fold increase in purity with a 75.57% recovery. SDS-PAGE confirmed the laccase molecular weight to be approximately 69kDa. The purified enzyme was immobilized in sodium alginate beads. This achieved 88.33% decolorization of Congo red and 80.15% of Bromophenol blue within 120h. Adsorption of both dyes followed the Langmuir isotherm model, indicating monolayer binding with maximum adsorption capacities of 0.09mg/g for Congo red and 1.16mg/g for Bromophenol blue. The stability and reusability of laccase were enhanced by immobilization in sodium alginate beads. FTIR analysis confirmed functional group shifts after treatment, and SEM-EDX data revealed elemental changes in dye-treated beads. This study demonstrates a green, cost-effective biocatalytic system using laccase immobilized in alginate beads for synthetic dye removal. The results highlight the enzyme's stability, efficiency, and potential for large-scale industrial wastewater treatment.

Urban infrastructure planning is central to advancing sustainable cities, but project success increasingly depends on public acceptance as well as technical, economic, and environmental performance. This study develops a fuzzy–grey multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework that embeds public opinion as a formal evaluation dimension. A novel POI, derived from online discourse data, integrates multi-dimensional emotions, polarization, and participation intensity to capture societal legitimacy. The framework employs entropy weighting and applies three established MCDM methods: TOPSIS, VIKOR, and EDAS, to evaluate project alternatives under uncertainty and incomplete information. An empirical case study in Nanjing demonstrates that incorporating Public Opinion Index (POI) significantly alters decision outcomes: the ecological park gained priority due to strong public support, while the wastewater treatment plant declined in ranking despite environmental benefits. These results underscore the decisive role of societal legitimacy in shaping sustainable infrastructure decisions. The framework contributes to sustainable urban planning by providing a replicable tool for balancing technical feasibility, environmental responsibility, and social acceptance in future infrastructure projects.

Wastewater pollution is a pressing global environmental issue, which is intensified by urbanization and agricultural expansion. Rapid urbanization has resulted in increased municipal wastewater generation, necessitating the development of sustainable and effective treatment methods. The current study examines vetiver grass (Vetiveria zizanioides) as a phytoremediation method for municipal wastewater treatment, focusing on its ability to remove biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P). Three vetiver plant densities (20, 40, and 60 plants/m2) were evaluated to determine the optimal configuration for pollutant removal over a 9-week treatment period. The results demonstrated that a high-planting density vetiver (60 plants/m2) achieved the highest overall removal efficiencies, reaching 89.7, 80.6, 60.5, and 40.8% for BOD, COD, nitrogen, and phosphate, respectively. These findings highlight the potential of high-planting density vetiver grass as a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable alternative for municipal wastewater treatment, providing valuable insights into planting density optimization under local Bahir Dar conditions and enabling scalable phytoremediation in resource-limited urban areas.

Water quality is crucial for the survival of living organisms and their environment. The Water Quality Index (WQI) is commonly used to monitor and minimize pollution . This study utilized The WQI was used to evaluate the water quality of the Fervença River in Bragança, Portugal , from January to June 2022. Water samples were collected monthly at five locations along the river. The WQI, which is based on physical, chemical, and biological parameters, provides a comprehensive numerical assessment , ranging from 0 to 100. In general, points 1 - 4 exhibited a good WQI and showed similar results. However, at point 5, reduced WQI values were consistently observed in all sampling campaigns, indicating a likely connection with discharge from the nearby wastewater treatment plant. The winter season, which is typically characterized by higher rainfall in the region, experienced severe dro ught during the study period. Consequently, the influence of rainfall on the WQI parameters could not be evaluated as expected, particularly from January to March. Comparing the obtained results, it is evident that as the Fervença River flows through th e city of Bragança, the water quality indices decrease in most campaigns, particularly after P oint 5. This finding highlights the negative influence of cit ies on the river water quality. This study highlights the importance of assessing water quality. Points 1 to 4 demonstrated good water quality, whereas point 5 showed reduced quality , linked to the wastewater treatment plant. Drought and city influence affect river water quality, which is crucial for the survival of living organisms and their environments.

The durability of wastewater treatment plants has been a major concern for decades due to their significant economic and health importance. Structures built with concrete are subject to severe deterioration linked to aggressive chemical and biological exposure conditions. Portland cement concrete is particularly vulnerable to such attacks leading to major damages in the structures. One of the strategies to protect this concrete from the effects of biodeterioration is applying a thin coating based on calcium aluminate cement. These materials were proved to have a superior resistance to biodeterioration compared to ordinary Portland cement. However, the cracks initiated in the protected structure that might reach the coating raise questions on its ability to fulfill its protective role. This paper aims to study the effect of the crack on the durability of the coating using a biological laboratory test, the BAC test, which simulates the real conditions encountered in a sewer system. The calcium leached from the specimens exposed to the biogenic sulfuric acid attack was monitored in two campaigns of the BAC test. Each campaign was performed on reference OPC-based uncoated specimens and coated specimens with the CAC-based coating: uncracked and cracked with two ranges of crack width between 150 and 200 µm and between 400 and 500 µm. The leaching results demonstrate that the protective function was not altered by the effect of the cracks when comparing the reference uncoated specimen to the coated ones. The SEM-EDS observations show the existence of a newly-formed phase in the few hundreds of micrometers from the exposed surface of the coated specimens. This phase was composed mainly of calcium, sulfur and aluminum and was probably a mix of AH3 and ettringite. The formation of this phase near and inside the crack opening could possibly act as a physical barrier that prevents further deterioration.

Methylene blue, a widely used synthetic dye, poses significant environmental and health risks due to its non-biodegradable nature, toxicity, and persistence in aquatic systems. Addressing its removal has become a priority, with electrocatalytic systems gaining attention for their high efficiency in degrading such pollutants. These systems utilize reactive oxygen species generated at the electrodes to break down dyes. In this study, for the first time, conductive polymeric hollow fiber membranes were developed as anodes in electrocatalytic systems to enhance methylene blue degradation. The membranes were prepared using a phase inversion technique, incorporating polysulfone (PSf) and varying polyaniline (PANI) contents (0 wt.%, 1 wt.%, 3 wt.%, and 5 wt.%). Results demonstrated that increased PANI content significantly improved conductivity, with the highest conductivity of 0.0006 S/cm observed for 5 wt.% PANI, correlating with a maximum methylene blue degradation efficiency of nearly 70%. This study contributes by introducing an innovative membrane design, combining conductivity and electrocatalytic performance for sustainable wastewater treatment.

ABSTRACT Ultrafiltration membranes were fabricated from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polycarbonate (PC), then characterized using FESEM, porosity, contact angle, pure water flux (PWF) and oil separation in a cross‐flow system. Fouling behaviour was evaluated through cake filtration–pore blocking models. FESEM micrographs revealed that blending PC into PVC increased the size and number of finger‐like pores, enhancing membrane porosity. The presence of PC carbonate groups improved mechanical resistance compared to neat PVC. Incorporating 6 wt% PC produced an optimized membrane with a contact angle of 60.94°, PWF of 472.40 L·m −2 ·h −1 , oil rejection of 98.65% and antifouling performance (FR: 46.63%, IFR: 52.47%). Modelling results showed that the cake filtration–complete blockage model best fit neat PVC data, while the standard blockage model suited PVC/PC membranes. Although further long‐term and large‐scale studies are recommended, these blend membranes offer a cost‐effective, high‐performance and environmentally sustainable solution for oily wastewater treatment applications.

Morocco is currently experiencing a severe drought, which has led to the implementation of wastewater reuse strategies to support sustainable development. Ibn Tofail University has installed a biological wastewater treatment plant, but the production of treated water is insufficient to irrigate the university’s green spaces. This study proposes the adoption of sequential batch reactor (SBR) technology to address these challenges, with a comparison to activated sludge (AS) treatment. The results show that the integration of SBR into the biological basin has significantly increased the volume and quality of treated water, while reducing energy consumption, enabling the system to meet irrigation criteria without wasting energy. Compared to AS, SBR demonstrated superior performance in pollutant removal, achieving 114.15 mg/l O2 for chemical oxygen demand, 23.88 mg/l O2 for five-day biochemical oxygen demand, and 74.66 mg/l for total suspended solids. The SBR reduced the pollutant load by 95% instead of 85% for AS, ensuring optimal oxygenation and producing high-quality effluent suitable for sustainable irrigation. This improvement enhances the environmental impact while contributing to the sustainable management of water and energy resources.

Bisphenol A (BPA) and other recently identified pollutants in water bodies are posing a hazard to the natural environment. To solve this problem, a straightforward one-pot solvothermal method was used to create the g-C3N4/CQDs/Bi4O5I2 Z-scheme heterojunction catalyst, and the rate at which BPA degraded under visible light was examined. Under ideal conditions, the degradation rate of BPA by g-C3N4/CQDs/Bi4O5I2 was 96.77% within 120 min. At the same time, g-C3N4/CQDs/Bi4O5I2 also showed excellent salt tolerance, versatility, and cycle stability. Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) test results show that the density of states of the composite catalyst increases. The construction of the Z-scheme heterojunction, which increases the separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers and expands the visible light response range, is responsible for the enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of g-C3N4/CQDs/Bi4O5I2, according to other relevant characterization data. Along with the toxicity of the degradation solution, the likely degradation pathway of BPA and the potential photocatalytic degradation mechanism of g-C3N4/CQDs/Bi4O5I2 were also investigated. This work broadens the potential use of bismuth-based catalysts in wastewater treatment.

Antibiotics underpin modern medicine and food production, but their indiscriminate use has accelerated antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Here we profile ARG dissemination in water, soil, air and anthropogenic niches such as wastewater treatment plants, intensive farms and landfills. We show that sulfonamide resistance genes (sul1/sul2) dominate aquatic systems, while tetracycline and macrolide genes prevail in livestock environments. Emerging evidence links airborne ARGs to seasonal PM2.5 peaks and long range dust transport. We evaluate state of the art detection platforms—high throughput qPCR, Hi-C metagenomics, nanopore long reads and CRISPR-Cas diagnostics—and discuss their complementarity. Finally, we outline integrated One Health policies that couple real time genomic surveillance with antibiotic stewardship incentives, and spotlight novel agents such as gepotidacin and sulopenem that help address the innovation gap. Coordinated adoption of these strategies is essential to avert a post-antibiotic era. Global cooperation and forward-looking One Health frameworks will be crucial to meeting this challenge.

The presence of multiple viral genotypes of rotavirus A (RAV) and norovirus (NV) circulating among human population and environment is of particular concern to global public health. Hence, the viral prevalence and genetic diversity presented in influent wastewater from Bangkok wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) was investigated. A total of 89 influent wastewater samples were collected by composite sampling from 10 Bangkok WWTPs between January and May 2023. The wastewater samples were concentrated and extracted for the total nucleic acid. Purified total viral RNA was subjected for cDNA synthesis, conventional PCR for detecting RAV, NV GI and GII, and DNA sequencing. The detection rate of RAV, NV GI and GII was 13.5% (12/89), 94.4% (84/89) and 89.9% (80/89), respectively. Co-detection was observed accounting 74.2% (66/89) and 13.5% (12/89) for NV GI + GII and NV GI + GII + RAV, respectively. A total of 76 viral sequences including 11 RAV, 33 NV GI, and 32 NV GII, were obtained and phylogenetically analyzed for viral genotyping. All RAV belonged to genotype G3 (100.0%). The 33 NV GI were identified in four distinct genotypes comprising GI.5 (72.7%), GI.3 (9.1%), GI.4 (9.1%), and GI.6 (9.1%). For NV GII, the genotype GII.17 was the most prevalent, accounting 87.5% followed by GII.2 (6.25%), GII.3 (3.13%), and GII.9 (3.13%). This study demonstrated the presence of RAV and multiple genotypes of NV GI and GII contaminating and co-circulating in community wastewater during COVID-19 situation in Bangkok. Viral dynamics between human population and environment raised potentially concerns for epidemiological patterns, affecting human health and safety.

<p><strong>ABSTRACT</strong></p><p>In this study, the advanced treatment of biologically treated chemical industrial wastewater from organic peroxide production was investigated using Fenton and adsorption processes. In the Fenton oxidation process, wastewater treatment was performed at different Fe²⁺ and H₂O₂ concentrations, pH values, and oxidation times to determine the optimal treatment conditions and treatment kinetics. In the adsorption process, wastewater treatment was conducted using coconut-based activated carbon (Coconut-AC) and coal-based activated carbon (Coal-AC) at different pH values, activated carbon doses, and adsorption times to determine the best treatment conditions, adsorption kinetics, and isotherms. In Fenton oxidation, COD (4680 mg/L), TOC (1022 mg/L), and organic peroxide removal were 81.6%, 80.6%, and 77.3%, with 1 h oxidation at pH 3, 2 g/L Fe<sup>2+</sup>, and 17.5 g/L H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>,<sub> </sub>respectively. In the adsorption process, better wastewater removal was achieved with Coconut-AC than with Coal-AC. At pH 3, with a 20 g/L activated carbon dose, 88.8% COD, 88.9% TOC, and 86.4% organic peroxide removal were obtained with Coconut-AC after 24 h of adsorption, while 75.2% COD, 81.9% TOC, and 54.5% organic peroxide removal were observed with Coal-AC. Although the SO<sub>4</sub><sup>2-</sup> concentration in the wastewater increased with Fenton oxidation, 30.8% SO<sub>4</sub><sup>2-</sup> removal was observed with Coconut-AC and 10.6% with Coal-AC. The cost was 15.77 $/m<sup>3</sup> in Fenton oxidation under optimal conditions, compared to 15.87 $/m<sup>3</sup> in the adsorption processes with Coconut-AC and Coal-AC. As a result, the adsorption process with Coconut-AC achieved higher wastewater treatment efficiency than Fenton oxidation, while the cost per m³ of wastewater remained nearly the same. Moreover, SO₄ removal was effectively achieved in the adsorption process</p><p> </p><p><strong>Keywords</strong>: Adsorption, COD removal, cost analysis, Fenton oxidation, organic matter removal, TOC removal, organic peroxide, wastewater treatment </p>

Abstract Nitrate (NO 3 − ) pollution from industrial and agricultural sources poses significant threats to water quality and human health. The electrocatalytic nitrate reduction reaction (NIRR), which converts NO 3 − into high‐value ammonia (NH 3 ), offers an efficient approach for treating NO 3 − ‐containing wastewater while addressing energy‐related challenges. Generally, NIRR is a multi‐step reaction, and its core steps‐NO 3 − activation and hydrogenation‐correspond to the NO 3 − adsorption sites and hydrogenation sites on the catalyst, respectively. The tandem catalytic sites accelerate reaction kinetics by spatially separating NO 3 − adsorption sites from hydrogenation sites and leveraging multifunctional catalytic sites for tandem catalysis. Consequently, tandem catalytic sites have recently emerged as an effective strategy for electrocatalytic NIRR. Nevertheless, a comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanism remains limited. This review begins by outlining the advantages of tandem catalytic sites and recent advances in representative catalysts. It then highlights in situ characterization techniques used to elucidate reaction intermediates and tandem catalytic sites. Finally, applications and economic analysis in wastewater treatment, sustainable NH 3 synthesis, and energy conversion are systematically discussed. The review concludes with a perspective on complex NO 3 − wastewater treatment, NH 3 purification, environmental catalytic flow battery, and economic feasibility analysis, emphasizing their roles in sustainable energy solutions.

In recent decades, the urban population of Ecuador has grown, increasing the need for wastewater sanitation in cities. Wastewater treatment in this country generates sewage sludge (SS), which is mainly deposited on land near wastewater treatment plants or in sanitary landfills, generating significant environmental impacts. In view of this, composting or vermicomposting of SS can be suitable treatments for this waste, and the final materials obtained can be used as organic amendments. The objective of this study was to compare the agronomic and economic aspects of composting and vermicomposting using the same SS mixtures with different plant residues. For this purpose, the evolution of various physicochemical and biological parameters of both processes, the quality of the materials obtained, and the costs of their production were evaluated. The results revealed that all the amendments presented characteristics suitable for safe agricultural use. The vermicomposts had significantly lower levels of salts and higher levels of most macro- and micronutrients than the composts, thus increasing their economic value. However, the average production cost of composts was lower than that of vermicomposts, with faster stabilization of organic matter. All of this indicates that both techniques could be suitable for treating SS, but in order to choose the most appropriate technique for the study area, further studies with other waste mixtures and agricultural validation of the composts and vermicomposts obtained, as well as control of possible contaminants, would be required.

Coastal water quality is crucial for ecosystem services, supporting biodiversity and tourism. However, high tourist influxes often overwhelm wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) capacities, leading to untreated discharge and eutrophication, which severely impacts bathing water. Water quality monitoring is currently limited to selected points at the beach and oceanographic sampling, which requires depths >20 m offshore, leaving a gap of measurements between 1 and 50 m from the beach. To resolve this gap, our study proposes a low cost-effective sampling and monitoring method by using a kayak with a submersible fluorometer FlowCAM, as well as fecal bacteria detection and quantification. The kayak sampling was carried out during high- and low-tourism seasons in coastal bathing waters surrounded by Marine Protected Areas. The results show a patchy phytoplankton distribution, with chlorophyll a concentration up to 5.5 μg/L, indicating local fertilization. The observed floating organic matter patches were fecal bacteria free, while effluents of the WWTP to the Jate river and shore exceeded the legal limits for bathing water. These results suggest that wastewater treatment was overwhelmed during the high-tourism season, likely discharging wastewater into the river that flows into the shore. These findings are discussed in a sustainable development and socioeconomical context.

Organic pollutants such as dyes or colorants are water-soluble compounds produced by various industries, including textiles, food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, printing inks, paints, leather, and plastics. Dyes are of particular concern because their stable aromatic structures make them toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic to living organisms. Therefore, environmental scientists have focused on developing various physical, chemical, and biological treatment processes to remove these contaminants from wastewater. The conventional techniques such as coagulation, flocculation, precipitation, photocatalytic degradation, ion exchange, and membrane filtration have been widely adopted. More recently, biomass-based waste materials such as bagasse, green algal biomass, and household vegetable and agricultural residues have been investigated as promising, low-cost, and sustainable adsorbents for dye removal. In addition, nanomaterials such as zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, silica powder, carbon nanotubes, and well-structured biocomposite materials have also shown great potential in wastewater treatment. The present review not only emphasizes a detailed study of essential treatment technologies but also highlights their merits and limitations in a structured manner, supported by comparative tables and illustrative figures.

Although microbial immobilization has been widely applied in wastewater treatment, the functional differences between suspended sludge and carrier-attached biofilms remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the microbial community structure and potential metabolic differences between suspended sludge (MIS) and polyurethane foam (PUF)-attached biofilms (MIC) in an immobilized biochemical tank (MI) from a chemical fiber plant. Compared to the conventional activated sludge process (CAS), the MI demonstrated significantly enhanced removal efficiencies of 39.4% for COD and 83.3% for BOD. The richness, diversity and unique microorganisms of MIS were higher than those of MIC. The dominant genera in MIS were Aridibacter, Diaphorobacter, Nostocoida, Pirellulaceae, Mucilaginibacter, and Rhodanobacter, while the dominant genera in MIC were Mucilaginibacter, Aridibacter, Nostocoida, Gemmata, Meiothermus, and Mycobacterium. Although the major genera were consistent, their relative abundance varied. Metabolic pathway analysis indicated that MIS showed stronger contributions to the transport of organic pollutants, while their role in nitrogen removal in the wastewater was greater than that of attached microorganisms. In contrast, carbon removal primarily occurred on the MIC. Moreover, the intensity of stochastic processes in shaping bacterial communities was observed as CAS (R² = 0.427) > MIS (R² = 0.261) > MIC (R² = 0.26), suggesting that the carriers enhanced the exposure of microbial communities to deterministic processes. These findings offer concrete theoretical support for the engineering application of microbial immobilization technology in treating industrial wastewater by elucidating key mechanistic insights.

Biopurification systems are designed for the treatment of pesticide-containing agricultural wastewater; their biologically active matrix, the biomixture, can be modified to enhance the pesticide removal capacity. Two approaches, fungal bioaugmentation with Trametes versicolor and amendment with biochar, were applied for the potential improvement of biomixtures’ capacity to remediate myclobutanil-contaminated wastewater. The conventional biomixture (B) and its modifications, either bioaugmented with Trametes versicolor (biomixture BT) or supplemented with pineapple biochar (5% v/v) (biomixture BB), were spiked with myclobutanil at a very high concentration (10,000 mg/kg) to simulate extreme on-farm events such as the disposal or leakage of commercial formulations. The dissipation followed a bi-phasic behavior in every case. Both modifications of the conventional biomixture increased the dissipation rates, resulting in estimated DT50 values of 61.9 (BB) and >90 days (BT) compared to biomixture B (DT50 = 474 days). The assessment of biomixtures’ detoxification was carried out with two different bioindicators: a seed germination test in Lactuca sativa and an algal growth inhibition test. Some degree of detoxification was achieved for all biomixtures in both indicators, with the exception of the biochar-containing biomixture, which, despite showing the fastest myclobutanil dissipation, was unable to maintain a steady detoxification trend towards the algae over the course of the treatment, probably due to biochar adverse effects. This approach seems promising for removing persistent myclobutanil from agricultural wastewater and demonstrates the dissipation capacity of biomixtures at extremely high pesticide concentrations likely to take place at an on-farm level.

Micro-nano bubbles (MNBs) have been widely used in water treatment due to their large specific surface area, long retention time, and high zeta potential. This study investigated the degradation of bisphenols by activating persulfate (PDS, an oxidizing agent) with air MNBs (MNBs/PDS). The removal rate of bisphenol A (BPA) in the MNBs/PDS process was 98.3% within 25 min, while there was almost no degradation observed by PDS or MNBs alone. This enhancement was attributed to the huge amount of energy released during the collapse of MNBs, sufficient to break the O–H bonds of water molecules or the O–O bond of PDS to induce the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS, such as HO• and SO4•−). To qualitatively analyze ROS generated in this system, electron paramagnetic resonance and quenching experiments were conducted, and the HO• and SO4•− were detected in MNBs/PDS. Furthermore, the degradation percentages of bisphenols after 25 min of MNBs/PDS treatment followed the order of bisphenol B (100%) > BPA (98.3%) > bisphenol E (87.9%) > bisphenol F (86.5%) > bisphenol AF (84.9%) > bisphenol S (51%). Higher PDS dosage, higher gas flow rate, and lower pH values were preferred for the degradation. Moreover, the MNBs/PDS treatment reduced the TOC of secondary effluent containing BPA by 45.8% in one hour, indicating the application potential of MNBs/PDS in the advanced treatment of wastewater.

With the rapid expansion of the nuclear industry, the safe and efficient management of nuclear waste has emerged as a pressing global imperative that is crucial for protecting both the environment and future generations. The release of hazardous radionuclides such as uranium (U), americium (Am), technetium (Tc), rhenium (Re), iodine (I), selenium (Se), thorium (Th), cesium (Cs), and strontium (Sr) into the environment may pose serious threats to human health and can significantly disrupt the ecological balance. Addressing these issues requires the development of advanced materials capable of selectively adsorbing these hazardous radionuclides. This review highlights the potential of modular advanced functional porous materials (AFPMs), specifically those based on metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and porous organic polymers (POPs), as the next-generation adsorbents for radionuclide remediation. We provide comprehensive outlines of the modular porous materials along with an in-depth analysis of their adsorption efficiency, selectivity, stability, and reusability, offering insights into their sorption mechanisms and structural advantages. Furthermore, we discuss the latest advancements in the synthesis, functionalization, and application of these materials in nuclear waste treatment. Additionally, we evaluate the chemical toxicity, radiation hazards, and detection strategies for key radionuclides. With their exceptional tunability and superior performance, these advanced porous materials hold significant promises for advancing sustainable nuclear waste management strategies, positioning them as the pivotal sorbent materials in both environmental and industrial applications. This comprehensive review underscores the transformative potential of tailor-made porous materials in mitigating the risks associated with radioactive contamination, marking a significant step toward achieving a cleaner and safer nuclear future.