Efficient Removal of Cr(VI) Ions in Petrochemical Wastewater Using Fe3O4@Saccharomyces cerevisiae Magnetic Nanocomposite

Selenium and Bacillus proteolyticus SES increased Cu-Cd-Cr uptake by ryegrass: highlighting the significance of key taxa and soil enzyme activity

Many studies have focused their attention on strategies to improve soil phytoremediation efficiency. In this study, a pot experiment was carried out to investigate whether Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES promote Cu-Cd-Cr uptake by ryegrass. To explore the effect mechanism of Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES, rhizosphere soil physiochemical properties and rhizosphere soil bacterial properties were determined further. The findings showed that Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES reduced 23.04% Cu, 36.85% Cd, and 9.85% Cr from the rhizosphere soil of ryegrass. Further analysis revealed that soil pH, organic matter, soil enzyme activities, and soil microbial properties were changed with Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES application. Notably, rhizosphere key taxa (Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Patescibacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Chloroflexi, etc.) were significantly enriched in rhizosphere soil of ryegrass, and those taxa abundance were positively correlated with soil heavy metal contents (P < 0.01). Our study also demonstrated that in terms of explaining variations of soil Cu-Cd-Cr content under Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES treatment, soil enzyme activities (catalase and acid phosphatase) and soil microbe properties showed 42.5% and 12.2% contributions value, respectively. Overall, our study provided solid evidence again that Se and Bacillus proteolyticus SES facilitated phytoextraction of soil Cu-Cd-Cr, and elucidated the effect of soil key microorganism and chemical factor.

Adsorption of Cr(Ⅵ) polluted water by Fe3O4@SiO2-APTMS nanocomposites prepared in the presence of ultrasonic irradiation for sustainable water resources utilization

The research on developing a purification technology for Cr(Ⅵ) polluted water with high efficiency and the low energy consumption is crucial for achieving several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In order to achieve these goals, Fe₃O₄@SiO₂-APTMS nanocomposites were prepared by Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles modified with silica and 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane in the presence of ultrasonic irradiation. The nanocomposites were characterized by TEM, FT-IR, VSM, TGA, BET, XRD, XPS and these analytic results proved that the nanocomposites were successfully prepared. The influential factors of Fe₃O₄@SiO₂-APTMS on Cr(Ⅵ) adsorption have been explored and better experimental conditions have been obtained. The adsorption isotherm conformed to the Freundlich model. Pseudo-second-order kinetic model provided a better correlation for the experimental data compared to other kinetic models. Thermodynamic parameters for adsorption indicated that the adsorption of Cr(Ⅵ) was a spontaneous process. It was speculated that the adsorption mechanism of this adsorbent includes redox, electrostatic adsorption and physical adsorption. In summary, the Fe₃O₄@SiO₂-APTMS nanocomposites were of great significance to human health and the remediation of heavy ion pollution, contributing to achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG-3, SDG-6.