Invasive plants as biosorbents for environmental remediation: a review

Sustainable Methylene Blue dye removal with activated carbon from Prosopis juliflora stem

This study addresses the environmental challenge posed by the invasive Prosopis juliflora plant by converting its stem into activated carbon for the adsorption of Methylene Blue dye from water. The goal is to create an effective and sustainable wastewater treatment solution. Prosopis juliflora stems were harvested, cleaned, dried, carbonized, and activated with zinc chloride to create Prosopis Juliflora Stem Activated Carbon. This activated carbon was characterized using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscope imaging. Results revealed a significant surface area of 158.107 m2/g and the presence of functional groups essential for adsorption processes. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to determine the efficiency of activated carbon in removing Methylene Blue dye at various dosages and contact times. The highest adsorption efficiencies were 73.5% at 80 min, 90.1% at 60 min, and 90.65% at 50 min for dosages of 80, 100, and 120 mg, respectively. These findings show that Prosopis Juliflora Stem Activated Carbon is highly effective at removing Methylene Blue dye, providing a cost-effective and environmentally friendly method of wastewater treatment.

Synthesis of magnetic MFe2O4 (M = Ni, Co, Zn, Fe) supported on porous carbons derived from Bidens pilosa weed and their adsorptive comparison of toxic dyes

Bidens pilosa is classified as an invasive plant and has become a problematic weed to many agricultural crops. This species strongly germinates, grows and reproduces and competing for nutrients with local plants. To lessen the influence of Bidens pilosa, therefore, converting this harmful species into carbon materials as adsorbents in harm-to-wealth and valorization strategies is required. Here, we synthesized a series of magnetic composites based on MFe2O4 (M = Ni, Co, Zn, Fe) supported on porous carbon (MFOAC) derived from Bidens pilosa by a facile hydrothermal method. The Bidens pilosa carbon was initially activated by condensed H3PO4 to increase the surface chemistry. We observed that porous carbon loaded NiFe2O4 (NFOAC) reached the highest surface area (795.7 m2 g-1), followed by CoFe2O4/AC (449.1 m2 g-1), Fe3O4/AC (426.1 m2 g-1), ZnFe2O4/AC (409.5 m2 g-1). Morphological results showed nanoparticles were well-dispersed on the surface of carbon. RhB, MO, and MR dyes were used as adsorbate to test the adsorption by MFOAC. Effect of time (0-360 min), concentration (5-50 mg L-1), dosage (0.05-0.2 g L-1), and pH (3-9) on dyes adsorption onto MFOAC was investigated. It was found that NFOAC obtained the highest maximum adsorption capacity against dyes, RhB (107.96 mg g-1) < MO (148.05 mg g-1) < MR (153.1 mg g-1). Several mechanisms such as H bonding, π-π stacking, cation-π interaction, and electrostatic interaction were suggested. With sufficient stability and capacity, NFOAC can be used as potential adsorbent for real water treatment systems.

Sustainable synthesis of bionanomaterials using non-native plant extracts for maintaining ecological balance: A computational bibliography analysis

Biological approaches via biomolecular extracts of bacteria, fungi, or plants have recently been introduced as an alternative approach to synthesizing less or nontoxic nanomaterials, compared to conventional physical and chemical approaches. Among these biological methods, plant-mediated approaches (phytosynthesis) are reported to be highly beneficial for large-scale, nontoxic nanomaterial synthesis. However, plant-mediated synthesis of nanomaterials using native plant extract can lead to bioprospecting issues and deforestation challenges. On the other hand, non-native or invasive plants are non-indigenous to a particular geographic location that can grow and spread rapidly, ultimately disrupting the local and endogenous plant communities or ecosystems. Thus, controlling or eradicating these non-native plants before they damage the ecosystem is necessary. Even though mechanical, chemical, and biological approaches are available to control non-native plants, all these methods possess certain limitations, such as environmental toxicity, disturbance in the nutrient cycle, and loss of genetic integrity. Therefore, non-native plants were recently proposed as a novel sustainable source of phytochemicals for preparing nanomaterials via green chemistry, mainly metallic nanoparticles, as an alternative to native, agriculture-based, or medicinal plants. This work aims to cover a literature gap on plant-mediated bionanomaterial synthesis with an overview and bibliography analysis of non-native plants via novel data mining and advanced visualization tools. In addition, the potential of non-native plants as a sustainable, green chemistry-based alternative for bionanomaterial preparation for maintaining ecological balance, the mechanism of formation via phytochemicals, and their possible applications to promote their control and spread were also discussed. The bibliography analysis revealed that only an average of 4 articles have been published in the last 10 years (2013-2023) on non-native/invasive plants for nanomaterial synthesis, which shows the significance of this article.

Optimization of hydrothermal synthesis conditions of Bidens pilosa-derived NiFe2O4@AC for dye adsorption using response surface methodology and Box-Behnken design

The presence of stable and hazardous organic dyes in industrial effluents poses significant risks to both public health and the environment. Activated carbons and biochars are widely used adsorbents for removal of these pollutants, but they often have several disadvantages such as poor recoverability and inseparability from water in the post-adsorption process. Incorporating a magnetic component into activated carbons can address these drawbacks. This study aims to optimizing the production of NiFe2O4-loaded activated carbon (NiFe2O4@AC) derived from a Bidens pilosa biomass source through a hydrothermal method for the adsorption of Rhodamine B (RhB), methyl orange (MO), and methyl red (MR) dyes. Response surface methodology (RSM) and Box-Behnken design (BBD) were applied to analyze the key synthesis factors such as NiFe2O4 loading percentage (10-50%), hydrothermal temperature (120-180 °C), and reaction time (6-18 h). The optimized condition was found at a NiFe2O4 loading of 19.93%, a temperature of 135.55 °C, and a reaction time of 16.54 h. The optimum NiFe2O4@AC demonstrated excellent sorption efficiencies of higher than 92.98-97.10% against all three dyes. This adsorbent was characterized, exhibiting a well-developed porous structure with a high surface area of 973.5 m2 g-1. Kinetic and isotherm were studied with the best fit of pseudo-second-order, and Freundlich or Temkin. Qmax values were determined to be 204.07, 266.16, and 177.70 mg g-1 for RhB, MO, and MR, respectively. By selecting HCl as an elution, NiFe2O4@AC could be efficiently reused for at least 4 cycles. Thus, the Bidens pilosa-derived NiFe2O4@AC can be a promising material for effective and recyclable removal of dye pollutants from wastewater.

Evaluation of zinc tolerance and accumulation in eight cultivars of bermudagrass (Cynodon spp.): implications for zinc phytoremediation

Zinc (Zn) is a vital element for plant growth and development, however, excessive Zn is toxic to plants. Common bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.) and hybrid bermudagrass (C. dactylon (L.) Pers. × C. transvaalensis Burtt-Davy) are widely used turfgrass species with strong tolerance to diverse abiotic stresses, including excessive Zn2+ stress. However, the variation of zinc tolerance and accumulation in different bermudagrass cultivars remain unclear. In this study, we systematically analyzed the growth performance, physiological index and ion concentration in eight commercial cultivars of common and hybrid bermudagrass under different concentration of Zn2+ treatments using pot experiments. The results indicated that four cultivars of common bermudagrass could tolerate 20 mM Zn2+, whereas four cultivars of hybrid bermudagrass could only tolerate 10 mM Zn2+. Among the four common bermudagrass cultivars, cultivar Guanzhong and Common showed stronger Zn tolerance and accumulation abilities than other two cultivars. Further analyses of the expression of selected Zn homeostasis-related genes indicated that bermudagrass cultivars with stronger tolerance to excessive Zn have at least one expression-elevated gene involved in Zn homeostasis. These results not only expanded our understanding of Zn tolerance and accumulation in bermudagrass but also facilitated the application of commercial bermudagrass cultivars in phytoremediation of Zn pollution.

Application of Taguchi method, response surface methodology, DFT calculation and molecular dynamics simulation into the removal of orange G and crystal violet by treated biomass

In this work, the efficiency of the treated plant Carpobrotus edulis (TPCE) as an effective biosorbent for removing the orange G (OG) and crystal violet (CV) dyes from aqueous solution was investigated. TPCE was characterized by FT-IR, Ss, pHz and SEM-EDX. The influence of parameters such as bioadsorbent dose, contact time, initial concentration, temperature and pH was tested using Taguchi experimental design (TED) with L8 orthogonal array (five parameters in two levels). The initial concentration, bioadsorbent dose and contact time are the main parameters for the removal of CV and OG dyes, while the effects of pH and temperature are minimal. The maximum removal efficiency of dyes under optimal operating conditions was 97.93 % and 92.68 %, respectively. which at the optimal conditions of 3 g/L, pH 10, 20 mg/L, 35 °C, 5 min and 15 g/L, pH 4, 20 mg/L, 35 °C, 60 min for CV and OG dyes, respectively. The results of response surface methodology (RSM) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the initial concentration Ci of CV dye was the most significant factor in the adsorption efficiency with a contribution of 51.56 %. On the other hand, the OG bioadsorbent dose is the most important factor in adsorption efficiency with a percentage contribution of 56.41 %. The Density Functional Tight Binding (DFTB) method shows that dyes strongly bind the adsorbent surface. Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations show significant interactions between dye and adsorbent surface. The reusability of biomaterial indicated that the adsorption performance dropped very slightly up to five cycles.

Plants, animals, and fisheries waste-mediated bioremediation of contaminants of environmental and emerging concern (CEECs)-a circular bioresource utilization approach

The release of contaminants of environmental concern including heavy metals and metalloids, and contaminants of emerging concern including organic micropollutants from processing industries, pharmaceuticals, personal care, and anthropogenic sources, is a growing threat worldwide. Mitigating inorganic and organic contaminants, which can be coined as contaminants of environmental and emerging concern (CEECs), is a big challenge as traditional physicochemical processes are not economically viable for managing mixed contaminants of low concentrations. As a result, low-cost materials must be designed to provide high CEEC removal efficiency. One of the environmentally viable and energy-efficient approaches is biosorption, which involves using biomass or biopolymers isolated from plants or animals to decontaminate heavy metals in contaminated environments using inherent biological mechanisms. Among chemical constituents in plant biomass, cellulose, lignin, hemicellulose, proteins, polysaccharides, phenolic compounds, and animal biomass include polysaccharides and other compounds to bind heavy metals covalently and non-covalently. These functional groups include carboxyl, hydroxyl, carbonyl, amide, amine, and sulfhydryl. Cation-exchange capacities of these bioadsorbents can be improved by applying chemical modifications. The relevance of chemical constituents and bioactives in biosorbents derived from agricultural production such as food and fodder crops, bioenergy and cash crops, fruit and vegetable crops, medicinal and aromatic plants, plantation trees, aquatic and terrestrial weeds, and animal production such as dairy, goatery, poultry, duckery, and fisheries is highlighted in this comprehensive review for sequestering and bioremediation of CEECs, including as many as ten different heavy metals and metalloids co-contaminated with other organic micropollutants in circular bioresource utilization and one-health concepts.

Microbial biosorbent for remediation of dyes and heavy metals pollution: A green strategy for sustainable environment

Toxic wastes like heavy metals and dyes are released into the environment as a direct result of industrialization and technological progress. The biosorption of contaminants utilizes a variety of biomaterials. Biosorbents can adsorb toxic pollutants on their surface through various mechanisms like complexation, precipitation, etc. The quantity of sorption sites that are accessible on the surface of the biosorbent affects its effectiveness. Biosorption’s low cost, high efficiency, lack of nutrient requirements, and ability to regenerate the biosorbent are its main advantages over other treatment methods. Optimization of environmental conditions like temperature, pH, nutrient availability, and other factors is a prerequisite to achieving optimal biosorbent performance. Recent strategies include nanomaterials, genetic engineering, and biofilm-based remediation for various types of pollutants. The removal of hazardous dyes and heavy metals from wastewater using biosorbents is a strategy that is both efficient and sustainable. This review provides a perspective on the existing literature and brings it up-to-date by including the latest research and findings in the field.

A Green Approach Used for Heavy Metals 'Phytoremediation' Via Invasive Plant Species to Mitigate Environmental Pollution: A Review

Heavy metals (HMs) normally occur in nature and are rapidly released into ecosystems by anthropogenic activities, leading to a series of threats to plant productivity as well as human health. Phytoremediation is a clean, eco-friendly, and cost-effective method for reducing soil toxicity, particularly in weedy plants (invasive plant species (IPS)). This method provides a favorable tool for HM hyperaccumulation using invasive plants. Improving the phytoremediation strategy requires a profound knowledge of HM uptake and translocation as well as the development of resistance or tolerance to HMs. This review describes a comprehensive mechanism of uptake and translocation of HMs and their subsequent detoxification with the IPS via phytoremediation. Additionally, the improvement of phytoremediation through advanced biotechnological strategies, including genetic engineering, nanoparticles, microorganisms, CRISPR-Cas9, and protein basis, is discussed. In summary, this appraisal will provide a new platform for the uptake, translocation, and detoxification of HMs via the phytoremediation process of the IPS.

Biosorbent Based on Poly(vinyl alcohol)-Tricarboxi-Cellulose Designed to Retain Organic Dyes from Aqueous Media

Methylene Blue, a cationic dye, was retained from aqueous solutions using a novel biosorbent made of poly(vinyl alcohol) reticulated with tricarboxi-cellulose produced via TEMPO oxidation (OxC25). The study of the Methylene Blue biosorption process was performed with an emphasis on operational parameters that may have an impact on it (such as biosorbent concentration, pH of the aqueous media, and temperature). The current study focused on three areas: (i) the physic-chemical characterization of the biosorbent (scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX)); (ii) biosorption data modeling to determine the quantitative characteristic parameters employing three equilibrium isotherms (Langmuir, Freundlich, and Dubinin-Radushkevich-DR); and (iii) the study of temperature influence. The results of the study showed that the Langmuir model provided a good fit for the experimental data of biosorption, realizing a maximum capacity of 806.45 mg/g at 20 °C. The free energy of biosorption (E) evaluated by the DR equation was in the range of 6.48-10.86 KJ/mol. The values of the thermodynamic parameters indicated an endothermic process because the free Gibbs energy ranged from -9.286 KJ/mol to -2.208 KJ/mol and the enthalpy was approximately -71.686 KJ/mol. The results obtained encourage and motivate the further study of this biosorption process by focusing on its kinetic aspects, establishing the biosorption's controlled steps, identifying the mechanism responsible for the retention of textile dyes presented in moderate concentration in aqueous media, and studying the biosorption process in a dynamic regime with a view to applying it to real systems.

New frontiers of invasive plants for biosynthesis of nanoparticles towards biomedical applications: A review

Above 1000 invasive species have been growing and developing ubiquitously on Earth. With extremely vigorous adaptability, strong reproduction, and spreading powers, invasive species have posed an alarming threat to indigenous plants, water quality, soil, as well as biodiversity. It was estimated that an economic loss of billions of dollars or equivalent to 1 % of gross domestic product as a consequence of lost crops, control efforts, and damage costs caused by invasive plants in the United States. While eradicating invasive plants from the ecosystems is practically infeasible, taking advantage of invasive plants as a sustainable, locally available, and zero-cost source to provide valuable phytochemicals for bionanoparticles fabrication is worth considering. Here, we review the harms, benefits, and role of invasive species as important botanical sources to extract natural compounds such as piceatannol, resveratrol, and quadrangularin-A, flavonoids, and triterpenoids, which are linked tightly to the formation and application of bionanoparticles. As expected, the invasive plant-mediated bionanoparticles have exhibited outstanding antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, and antioxidant activities. The mechanism of biomedical activities of the invasive plant-mediated bionanoparticles was insightfully addressed and discussed. We also expect that this review not only contributes to efforts to combat invasive plant species but also opens new frontiers of bionanoparticles in the biomedical applications, therapeutic treatment, and smart agriculture.

A critical review on pineapple (Ananas comosus) wastes for water treatment, challenges and future prospects towards circular economy

Each year, nearly 30 million tons of pineapple fruit are harvested for food and drinking industries, along with the release of a huge amount of pineapple wastes. Without the proper treatment, pineapple wastes can cause adverse impacts on the environment, calling for new technologies to convert them into valuable products. Here, we review the production and application of adsorbents derived from pineapple wastes. The thermal processing or chemical modification improved the surface chemistry and porosity of these adsorbents. The specific surface areas of the pineapple wastes-based adsorbents were in range from 4.2 to at 522.9 m²·g^-1. Almost adsorption systems followed the pseudo second order kinetic model, and Langmuir isotherm model. The adsorption mechanism was found with the major role of electrostatic attraction, complexation, chelation, and ion exchange. The pineapple wastes based adsorbents could be easily regenerated. We suggest the potential of the pineapple wastes towards circular economy.

A critical review on the bio-mediated green synthesis and multiple applications of magnesium oxide nanoparticles

Nowadays, advancements in nanotechnology have efficiently solved many global problems, such as environmental pollution, climate change, and infectious diseases. Nano-scaled materials have played a central role in this evolution. Chemical synthesis of nanomaterials, however, required hazardous chemicals, unsafe, eco-unfriendly, and cost-ineffective, calling for green synthesis methods. Here, we review the green synthesis of MgO nanoparticles and their applications in biochemical, environmental remediation, catalysis, and energy production. Green MgO nanoparticles can be safely produced using biomolecules extracted from plants, fungus, bacteria, algae, and lichens. They exhibited fascinating and unique properties in morphology, surface area, particle size, and stabilization. Green MgO nanoparticles served as excellent antimicrobial agents, adsorbents, colorimetric sensors, and had enormous potential in biomedical therapies against cancers, oxidants, diseases, and the sensing detection of dopamine. In addition, green MgO nanoparticles are of great interests in plant pathogens, phytoremediation, plant cell and organ culture, and seed germination in the agricultural sector. This review also highlighted recent advances in using green MgO nanoparticles as nanocatalysts, nano-fertilizers, and nano-pesticides. Thanks to many emerging applications, green MgO nanoparticles can become a promising platform for future studies.

Determination and Quantification of Phytochemicals from the Leaf Extract of Parthenium hysterophorus L. and Their Physio-Biochemical Responses to Several Crop and Weed Species

This current investigation was undertaken both in laboratory and glasshouse for documentation and quantification of phytochemicals from different parts of the parthenium (Parthenium hysterophorus L.) plant through LC-MS and HPLC to study their effect on two crops namely, Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranean L.) and maize (Zea mays L.), and six different types of weed e.g., Digitaria sanguinalis, Eleusine indica, Ageratum conyzoides, Cyperus iria, Euphorbia hirta, and Cyperus difformis. The parthenium methanolic leaf extracts at 25, 50, 75, and 100 g L^-1 were sprayed in the test crops and weeds to assess their physiological and biochemical reactions after 6, 24, 48, and 72 h of spraying these compounds (HAS). The LC-MS analysis confirmed seven types of phytochemicals (caffeic acid, ferulic acid, vanillic acid, parthenin, chlorogenic acid, quinic acid, and p-anisic acid) in the parthenium leaf extract that were responsible for the inhibition of tested crops and weeds. From the HPLC analysis, higher amounts in leaf methanol extracts (40,752.52 ppm) than those of the stem (2664.09 ppm) and flower extracts (30,454.33 ppm) were recorded. Parthenium leaf extract at 100 g L^-1 had observed higher phytotoxicity on all weed species except C. difformis. However, all crops were found safe under this dose of extraction. Although both crops were also affected to some extent, they could recover from the stress after a few days. The photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, carotenoid and chlorophyll content were decreased due to the application of parthenium leaf extract. However, when parthenium leaf extract was applied at 100 g L^-1 for 72 h, the malondialdehyde (MDA) and proline content were increased in all weeds. Enzymatic antioxidant activity (e.g., superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD) contents) were also elevated as a result of the sprayed parthenium leaf extract. The negative impact of physiological and biochemical responses as a consequence of the parthenium leaf extract led the weed species to be stressed and finally killed. The current findings show the feasibility of developing bioherbicide from the methanolic extract of parthenium leaf for controlling weeds, which will be cost-effective, sustainable, and environment friendly for crop production during the future changing climate.

Adsorptive Optimization of Crystal Violet Dye Using Central Composite Rotatable Design and Response Surface Methodology: Statistical Analysis, Kinetic and Isotherm Studies

Water contamination is emerging as the most critical global issues in the world, calling for the treatment eco-techniques. Taking advantage of biowastes as adsorbent materials is not only in accordance with the purpose of environmental protection but also enhance the higher value-added products. In this work, water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) powder was used as an efficient adsorbent for the removal of crystal violet from aqueous solutions. The structure of water hyacinth powder adsorbent was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy analysis. Based on the central composite rotatable design and response surface methodology, the effect of different parameters such as initial pH solution, contact time, adsorbent dosage, and initial crystal violet concentration was optimized. The maximum adsorption capacity of 180.336 mg/g was achieved under the optimum condition as initial pH solution of 6.246, contact time of 125.698 min, the adsorbent dosage of 1.382 g/L, and initial dye concentration of 615.865 mg/L. Moreover, the Langmuir isotherm provided the best fit with a high correlation coefficient of 0.9981 and a maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of 181.818 mg/g at 30 °C. The kinetic studies indicated that the pseudo-second-order model was adequately applied for the adsorption kinetic of crystal violet on the water hyacinth powder adsorbent. The utilization of the water hyacinth plant, an abundant species, as a low-cost biosorbent to remove crystal violet using the central composite rotatable design combined with response surface methodology approach is recommended for the real treatment of organic dyes.