Investigating the removal of xylene from water by ZnO nanoparticles as an adsorbent for petroleum

Subject Areas : Water and Environment

Behnaz Salehi ¹ , amir hesam hassani ² , Homayon Ahmad Panahi ³ , Seyed Mahdi Borghei ⁴

1 - PhD, Student of Industrial, Department of Environmental and Energy, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2 - دانشیار دانشکده محیط زیست و انرژی، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، واحد علوم و تحقیقات، تهران، ایران * (مسوول مکاتبات)
3 - Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
4 - - Prof., School of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology

Received: 2016-06-06 Accepted : 2016-08-08 Published : 2018-09-23

Keywords: ZnO Nanoparticles, Modification, Adsorption, Petroleum Contaminants, Xylene,

Abstract :

Background and Objective: Considering the adverse environmental effects and irreparable damages of the chemicals in petroleum compounds, e.g. benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene, to living organisms, the efficient removal of these pollutants have received much more attention to be improved through innovative methods for enhancing the efficiency and impact of removal processes. In this study, the removal of xylene from aqueous solution by modified zinc oxide nanoparticles was investigated. Method: In this study, zinc oxide nanoparticles were synthesized and modified by a four-stage method. The removal of xylene as a toxic petroleum hydrocarbon from aqueous solution by nanoparticles was evaluated. Batch experiments were conducted at room temperature to evaluate the optimum conditions such as the effect of pH, contact time and zinc oxide concentration. Findings: It was found that the optimum adsorption condition can be achieved at pH=6 and contact time of 25 min. Moreover, the percentage of xylene adsorption increased with the increase in concentration of modified zinc oxide nanoparticles. Discussion and conclusion: This study showed that the modified zinc oxide nanoparticles could be used as an effective adsorbent for the removal of xylene from aqueous solution.  

References:

Reference

1. Lin SH, Huang CY. Adsorption of BTEX from aqueous solution by macroreticular resins. Journal of hazardous materials. 1999 Dec 23;70(1):21-37.


2. Garciapena I, Ortiz I, Hernandez S, Revah S. Biofiltration of BTEX by the fungus Paecilomyces variotii. International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation. 2008 Dec 31;62(4):442-7.


3. Lin CW, Chen LH, Yet-Pole I, Lai CY. Microbial communities and biodegradation in lab-scale BTEX-contaminated groundwater remediation using an oxygen-releasing reactive barrier. Bioprocess and biosystems engineering. 2010 Mar 1;33(3):383-91..


4. Hinwood AL, Rodriguez C, Runnion T, Farrar D, Murray F, Horton A, Glass D, Sheppeard V, Edwards JW, Denison L, Whitworth T. Risk factors for increased BTEX exposure in four Australian cities. Chemosphere. 2007 Jan 31;66(3):533-41.


5. Bielefeldt AR, Stensel HD. Evaluation of biodegradation kinetic testing methods and longterm variability in biokinetics for BTEX metabolism. Water Research. 1999 Feb 28;33(3):733-40.


6. de Mello JM, de Lima Brandão H, de Souza AA, da Silva A, Ulson SM. Biodegradation of BTEX compounds in a biofilm reactor—modeling and simulation. Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering. 2010 Jan 31;70(1):131-9.


7. Frisbie SH, Mitchell EJ, Sarkar B. Urgent need to reevaluate the latest World Health Organization guidelines for toxic inorganic substances in drinking water. Environmental Health. 2015 Aug 13;14(1):1.


8. Aivalioti M, Vamvasakis I, Gidarakos E. BTEX and MTBE adsorption onto raw and thermally modified diatomite. Journal of Hazardous Materials. 2010 Jun 15;178(1):136-43.


9. Mehlman MA. Dangerous and cancer causing properties of products and chemicals in the oil refining and petrochemical industries.Ann NY AcadSci 1991;643:368-89.


10. Kim JM, Le NT, Chung BS, Park JH, Bae JW, Madsen EL, Jeon CO. Influence of soil components on the biodegradation of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and o-, m-, and p-xylenes by the newly isolated bacterium Pseudoxanthomonas spadix BD-a59. Applied and environmental microbiology. 2008 Dec 1;74(23):7313-20.


11. Carmody O, Frost R, Xi Y, Kokot S. Adsorption of hydrocarbons on organo-clays—implications for oil spill remediation. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science. 2007 Jan 1;305(1):17-24..


12. Daifullah AA, Girgis BS. Impact of surface characteristics of activated carbon on adsorption of BTEX. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects. 2003 Mar 12;214(1):181-93..


13. Zhang F, Lan J, Yang Y, Wei T, Tan R, Song W. Adsorption behavior and mechanism of methyl blue on zinc oxide nanoparticles. Journal of nanoparticle research. 2013 Nov 1;15(11):1-0.


14. Panahi HA, Soltani ER, Moniri E, Tamadon A. Synthesis and characterization of poly [1-(N, N-bis-carboxymethyl) amino-3-allylglycerol-co-dimethylacrylamide] grafted to magnetic nano-particles for extraction and determination of letrozole in biological and pharmaceutical samples. Talanta. 2013 Dec 15;117:511-7.


15. Salehi B, Hasani AH, Panahi HA, Borghei SM. Adsorptive removal of petroleum hydrocarbons from aqueous solutions by novel zinc oxide nanoparticles grafted with polymers. Petroleum Science and Technology. 2016 Apr 17;34(8):778-84.


16. Njoku VO, Foo KY, Asif M, Hameed BH. Preparation of activated carbons from rambautan (Nephelium lappaceum) peel by microwaves-induced KOH activation for acid yellow 17 dye adsorption. Chemical Engineering Journal. 2004 Aug 15;250:198-204


17. Wang L, Li J. Adsorption of CL Reactive Red 228 dye from aqueous solution by modified cellulose from flax shive: Kinetics, equilibrium, and thermodynamics. Industrial Crops and Products. 2013 Mar 31;42:153-8.


18. APHA, AWWA, WEF. 2005. Standard Methods for the Examination of water and wastewater. 20th ed. American Public Health Association, Washington  Dc.