Unravelling the mechanism of amitriptyline removal from water by natural montmorillonite through batch adsorption, molecular simulation and adsorbent characterization studies

Bimetallic mutual-doping magnetic aerogels for iodine reduction capture and immobilization

Adsorption is considered to be one of the most effective methods to remove radioiodine from the solution. However, developing highly efficient adsorbents and the rapid recovery of the used adsorbents is still a challenge. Here, a series of Cu/Fe3O4 bimetallic mutual-doping magnetic aerogels (Cu/Fe3O4-BMMA) were synthesized. Based on the in-situ bimetallic co-gelation process, the high dispersion of Cu in the aerogel was realized, providing conditions for the efficient elimination of I2. The Fe3+ in the initial gel was reduced to magnetic Fe3O4 during the preparation process, allowing for the quick recovery of the adsorbent through the application of a magnetic field. The adsorption experiments showed that Cu/Fe3O4-BMMA has good I2 adsorption capacity (631.3 mg/g) and fast capture kinetics (equilibrium time < 30 min). In addition, Cu/Fe3O4-BMMA was able to effectively remove trace I2 in the solution from ppm level (1.0 ppm) down to ppb level (≤30 ppb). The adsorbed I2 was converted into stable CuI, avoiding secondary pollution due to desorption. Overall, this study provides a potentially efficient iodine capture material for long-term decay storage of radioactive iodine.

Core-Labeled Reverse Micelle-Based Supramolecular Solvents for Assisted Quick and Sensitive Determination of Amitriptyline in Wastewater

In recent years, the issue of pharmaceutical contaminants in water bodies has emerged as a significant environmental concern owing to the potential negative impacts on both aquatic ecosystems and human health. Consequently, the development of efficient and eco-friendly methods for their determination and removal is of paramount importance. In this context, the development of a surfactant ensemble sensor has been explored for hard-to-sense amphiphilic drug, i.e., amitriptyline. Herein, a pyrene-based amphiphile chemoreceptor was synthesized and characterized through various spectroscopic techniques such as 1H, 13C NMR, single-crystal XRD, FTIR, and ES-mass spectrometry. Then, dodecanoic acid (DA) and a pyrene-based receptor in a THF/water solvent system were used to generate reverse micelle-based self-aggregates of SUPRAS (SUPRAmolecular Solvent). The structural aspects, such as morphology and size, along with the stability of the SUPRAS aggregates were unfolded through spectroscopic and microscopic insights. The present investigation describes a synergistic approach that combines the unique properties of premicellar concentration of supramolecular solvent with the promising potential of pyrene-based receptor for enhanced amitriptyline extraction with simultaneous determination from water (LOD = 12 nM). To evaluate the effectiveness of the developed aggregates in real-world scenarios, experiments were conducted to determine the sensing efficiency among various pharmaceutical pollutants commonly found in water sources. The results reveal that the synergistic nanoensemble exhibits remarkable sensing ability, toward the amitriptyline (AMT) drug outperforming conventional methods.

Evaluation of adsorption performance and mechanisms of a highly effective 3D boron-doped graphene composite for amitriptyline pharmaceutical removal

Three-dimensional heteroatom-doped graphene presents a state-of-the-art approach for effective remediation of pharmaceutical wastewater on account of its distinguished adsorption and physicochemical attributes. Amitriptyline is an emerging tricyclic antidepressant pollutant posing severe risks to living habitats through water supply and food chain. With ultra-large surface area and plentiful chemical functional groups, graphene oxide is a favorable adsorbent for decontaminating polluted water. Herein, a new boron-doped graphene oxide composite reinforced with carboxymethyl cellulose was successfully developed via solution-based synthesis. Characterization study revealed that the adsorbent was formed by graphene sheets intertwined into a porous network and engrafted with 13.37 at% of boron. The adsorbent has a zero charge at pH 6 and contained various chemical functional groups favoring the attachment of amitriptyline. It was also found that a mere 10 mg of adsorbent was able to achieve relatively high amitriptyline removal (89.31%) at 50 ppm solution concentration and 30 °C. The amitriptyline adsorption attained equilibrium within 60 min across solution concentrations ranging from 10 to 300 ppm. The kinetic and equilibrium of amitriptyline adsorption were well correlated to the pseudo-second-order and Langmuir models, respectively, portraying the highest Langmuir adsorption capacity of 737.4 mg/g. Notably, the predominant mechanism was chemisorption assisted by physisorption that contributed to the outstanding removal of amitriptyline. The saturated adsorbent was sufficiently regenerated using ethanol eluent. The results highlighted the impressive performance of the as-synthesized boron-doped adsorbent in treating amitriptyline-containing waste effluent.

A mechanistic insight into the shrinkage and swelling of Ca-montmorillonite upon adsorption of chain-like ranitidine in an aqueous system

Adsorption behavior of ranitidine hydrochloride (RT) on a Ca-montmorillonite (SAz-1) was studied in aqueous system through batch experiments. The adsorption kinetics revealed that the equilibrium reached within 0.25 h and the data fitted well to the pseudo-second order kinetic equation (R² = 0.98). The maximum RT adsorption capacity of SAz-1 was 369.2 mg/g and the adsorption isotherm data followed the Langmuir model (R² = 0.99). The adsorption of RT and desorption of exchangeable cations from the clay mineral were linearly correlated, suggesting that cation exchange was the dominant mechanism of RT adsorption. The XRD examination of RT-adsorbed SAz-1 samples (unsaturated/saturated) after heating enabled the calculation of RT occupied area in the interlayer of the clay mineral. The results suggested that adsorbed-RT at low loading rate could lay on the internal surfaces in a free style to reduce the basal spacing (d₀₀₁ value) of SAz-1. When the RT loading rate was increased, a limited surface space enforced more RT molecules to lay in a tilted style and caused interlayer swelling of SAz-1 increasing the d₀₀₁ value. The trend of rising decomposition temperature of RT with increasing RT loading rates confirmed intercalation of RT molecules in SAz-1. Infrared spectral analysis revealed the participation of amide and furan groups of RT in binding between RT and SAz-1. Thus, this study indicated that SAz-1 is an efficient adsorbent to remove RT from contaminated water, and the chain-like molecular structure of RT could cause an irregular change in the basal spacing of swelling type clay minerals.

Recovery, regeneration and sustainable management of spent adsorbents from wastewater treatment streams: A review

Adsorption is the most widely adopted, effective, and reliable treatment process for the removal of inorganic and organic contaminants from wastewater. One of the major issues with the adsorption-treatment process for the removal of contaminants from wastewater streams is the recovery and sustainable management of spent adsorbents. This review focuses on the effectiveness of emerging adsorbents and how the spent adsorbents could be recovered, regenerated, and further managed through reuse or safe disposal. The critical analysis of both conventional and emerging adsorbents on organic and inorganic contaminants in wastewater systems are evaluated. The various recovery and regeneration techniques of spent adsorbents including magnetic separation, filtration, thermal desorption and decomposition, chemical desorption, supercritical fluid desorption, advanced oxidation process and microbial assisted adsorbent regeneration are discussed in detail. The current challenges for the recovery and regeneration of adsorbents and the methodologies used for solving those problems are covered. The spent adsorbents are managed through regeneration for reuse (such as soil amendment, capacitor, catalyst/catalyst support) or safe disposal involving incineration and landfilling. Sustainable management of spent adsorbents, including processes involved in the recovery and regeneration of adsorbents for reuse, is examined in the context of resource recovery and circular economy. Finally, the review ends with the current drawbacks in the recovery and management of the spent adsorbents and the future directions for the economic and environmental feasibility of the system for industrial-scale application.