Green synthesis of ZnO/αFe2O3 nano-photocatalyst for efficient removal of carbamate pesticides in wastewater: Optimization, mineralization, and financial analysis
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering
Publisher
Springer
School
School of Engineering
Abstract
As emerging organic agricultural pollutants, carbamate pesticides can react with other contaminants in aquatic environments to produce new toxic compounds threatening aquatic life and ecosystems. This study introduces a novel, nonhazardous, and greener method to synthesize a cross-linked ZnO/ Fe2O3 nano-photocatalyst to treat carbamate pesticides via ball milling. ZnO/ Fe2O3 was characterized through various methods, including XRD, EDX, XRF, DRS, BET, FE-SEM, PL, and FTIR analyses. Using the Response Surface Methodology (RSM), the ability of ZnO/ Fe2O3 nano-photocatalyst to remove carbamate from synthesized wastewater was assessed. The BET result indicated a decrease in the diameter of the nanocomposite size after the synthesis. At the same time, the BET surface area and total pores increased from 4.9871 m2.g−1 and 0.02806 cm3.g−1 to 6.8524 m2.g−1 and 0.069497 cm3.g−1, respectively. In addition, the band-gap energy decreased from 3.179 eV for ZnO to 1.907 eV for ZnO/ Fe2O3 and eventually reached 1.878 eV for heat-treated ZnO/ Fe2O3 nanocomposite. The catalyst concentrations used in the experiments were 0.5, 1, and 1.5 g/L. The solution pH was set to 5, 8, and 11, and three different residence times of 1, 2, and 3 h were used. The model’s results indicated a strong agreement between the experimental and predicted data (R2 = 0.99). When the nanocomposite’s concentration, pH, and retention time were set at 1 g/L ZnO/ Fe2O3, 8.51, and 3 h respectively, the optimized conditions predicted a removal efficiency of 89%. In addition, the cost of COD removal was reduced by 50% using ball milling and heat-treatment synthesis. The photocatalyst’s reusability was tested in three stages, and the outcomes demonstrated its stability throughout these three stages.
DOI
10.1007/s11814-024-00073-w
Access Rights
subscription content
Comments
Dehghan, A., Aliasghar, A., Rahmati, R., Delnavaz, M., & Khoshvaght, H. (2024). Green synthesis of ZnO/αFe2O3 nano-photocatalyst for efficient removal of carbamate pesticides in wastewater: Optimization, mineralization, and financial analysis. Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11814-024-00073-w