Investigating the removal of cephalexin from aqueous environments by zinc nanoparticles adapted on magnetized activated carbon derived from the waste of aloe vera leaves
Subject Areas : Environment Pullotion (water and wastewater)Robab Samadyar 1 , Seyyedeh Hoda Rahmati 2 * , Homayon Ahmad Panahi 3 , Amirhessam Hassani 4
1 - Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources and Environment, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2 - Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources and Environment, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
3 - Department of chemistry, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University
4 - Department Environmental Pollution, Faculty of Energy and Environment, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Keywords: cephalexin removal, absorption, aloe vera, activated carbon, nanocomposite.,
Abstract :
Background and objective: Since the early 1940s, antibiotics have been widely used for treatment and prevention in humans and animals. The excessive use of antibiotics on the one hand and the resistance of antibiotics to decomposition on the other hand have caused their accumulation in the environment, especially in water sources, which is a very worrying issue all over the world. Therefore, their quick and easy removal with high efficiency is a basic need for the health of the global community.
Material and Methodology: The present study was developed in order to design a new and efficient adsorbent based on activated carbon derived from aloe vera fruit (AVAC) in order to remove cephalexin from the water environment. As a reliable adsorbent, AVAC is first functionalized with zinc oxide nanoparticles through surface modification and then magnetized using Fe 2+ and Fe 3+ ions. The correct synthesis of AVAC/ZnO/Fe3O4 nanocomposite was confirmed using FTIR, VSM, XRD, BET and FE-SEM analyses. The effective parameters on cephalexin removal including adsorbent dose, pH, contact time and pollutant concentration have been investigated.
Findings: The results showed that the removal percentage of cephalexin under optimal conditions (pH = 3, adsorbent dose 1.5 g, reaction time = 60 minutes and 5 mg/liter of cephalexin) was reported to be 96%. In addition, the absorption process followed the kinetics of the pseudo-second order model (R=0.99) and was consistent with the Langmuir isotherm model.
Discussion and conclusion: The above research showed that the synthesized AVAC/ZnO/Fe3O4 nanocomposite can be used as a biodegradable, cheap and environmentally friendly adsorbent to remove cephalexin antibiotic from the water environment.
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