The Flotation Process Can Go Green

Origin, types, and contribution of emerging pollutants to environmental degradation and their remediation by physical and chemical techniques

The growing presence of emerging pollutants (EPs) in aquatic environments, as well as their harmful impacts on the biosphere and humans, has become a global concern. Recent developments and advancements in pharmaceuticals, agricultural practices, industrial activities, and human personal care substances have paved the way for drastic changes in EP concentrations and impacts on the ecosystem. As a result, it is critical to mitigate EP's harmful effects before they jeopardize the ecological equilibrium of the overall ecosystem and the sustainable existence of life on Earth. This review comprehensively documented the types, origins, and remediation strategies of EPs, and underscored the significance of this study in the current context. We briefly stated the major classification of EPs based on their organic and inorganic nature. Furthermore, this review systematically evaluates the occurrence of EPs due to the fast-changing ecological scenarios and their impact on human health. Recent studies have critically discussed the emerging physical and chemical processes for EP removal, highlighting the limitations of conventional remediation technologies. We reviewed and presented the challenges associated with EP remediation and degradation using several methods, including physical and chemical methods, with the application of recent technologies. The EP types and various methods discussed in this review help the researchers understand the nature of present-day EPs and utilize an efficient method of choice for EP removal and management in the future for sustainable life and development activities on the planet.

Biodegradable acids for pyrite depression and green flotation separation - an overview

Exponential increasing demands for base metals have made meaningful processing of their quite low-grade (>1%) resources. Froth flotation is the most important physicochemical pretreatment technique for processing low-grade sulfide ores. In other words, flotation separation can effectively upgrade finely liberated base metal sulfides based on their surface properties. Various sulfide surface characters can be modified by flotation surfactants (collectors, activators, depressants, pH regulators, frothers, etc.). However, these reagents are mostly toxic. Therefore, using biodegradable flotation reagents would be essential for a green transition of ore treatment plants, while flotation circuits deal with massive volumes of water and materials. Pyrite, the most abundant sulfide mineral, is frequently associated with valuable minerals as a troublesome gangue. It causes severe technical and environmental difficulties. Thus, pyrite should be removed early in the beneficiation process to minimize its problematic issues. Recently, conventional inorganic pyrite depressants (such as cyanide, lime, and sulfur-oxy compounds) have been successfully assisted or even replaced with eco-friendly and green reagents (including polysaccharide-based substances and biodegradable acids). Yet, no comprehensive review is specified on the biodegradable acid depression reagents (such as tannic, lactic, humic acids, etc.) for pyrite removal through flotation separation. This study has comprehensively reviewed the previously conducted investigations in this area and provides suggestions for future assessments and developments. This robust review has systematically explored depression performance, various adsorption mechanisms, and aspects of these reagents on pyrite surfaces. Furthermore, factors affecting their efficiency were analyzed, and gaps within each area were highlighted.

Application and development of foam extraction technology in wastewater treatment: A review

With the advancement of technology, wastewater treatment has become a significant challenge limiting the clean and sustainable development of chemical and metallurgical industries. Foam extraction, based on interfacial separation and mineral flotation, has garnered considerable attention as a wastewater treatment technology due to its unique physicochemical properties. Although considerable excellent accomplishments were reported, there still lacks a comprehensive summary of process features and contaminant removal mechanisms via foam extraction. According to the latest research progresses, the principles and characteristics of foam extraction technology, the classification and application of flotation reagents are systematically summarized in this work. Then comprehensively commented on the application fields and prospects of iterative flotation technology such as ion flotation, adsorption flotation and floating-extraction. The shortcomings and limitations of the current foam extraction technologies were discussed, and the feasible process intensification techniques were highlighted. This review aims to enchance the understanding of the foam extraction mechanism, and provides guidance for the selection appropriate reagents and foam extraction technologies in wastewater treatment.

Membrane process and adsorption on pine nut shell for removal of dye from synthetic wastewater

Purification methods such as membrane technology and adsorption have been studied for the purification of textile effluents. This article aimed to evaluate the membrane separation process and adsorption on pine nut shell, separately and sequentially, for reactive dye blue 5G removal from a synthetic effluent. The membrane separation process was carried out in a front filtration module using polymeric membranes. The maximum dye retention was 35.9% using a regenerated cellulose membrane, with agitation and a pressure of 0.5 bar. The permeate flux was fully restored after cleaning the membrane. In the adsorption using pine nut shell, the best results were at pH 2, 50°C, and 50 ppm, with 85% dye removal. The Freundlich isotherm showed the best fit to the data, as did the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The thermodynamic parameters indicated that the adsorption is of the physical type, with the process being endothermic and spontaneous. In the combined process, the permeate from the membrane separation process was subjected to adsorption on pine nut shell, achieving a removal rate of 98.7 for the initial concentration of 50 ppm. Therefore, this work shows the potential of pine nut shell as an adsorbent, not only to purify textile effluents but also to add value to a waste product, indicating that the combination of membrane technology and adsorption on pine nut shell could be an alternative for the treatment of textile effluents containing the reactive dye 5G blue.

Insight into the Binding Mechanisms of Quartz-Selective Peptides: Toward Greener Flotation Processes

Mining practices, chiefly froth flotation, are being critically reassessed to replace their use of biohazardous chemical reagents in favor of biofriendly alternatives as a path toward green processes. In this regard, this study aimed at evaluating the interactions of peptides, as potential floatation collectors, with quartz using phage display and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Quartz-selective peptide sequences were initially identified by phage display at pH = 9 and further modeled by a robust simulation scheme combining classical MD, replica exchange MD, and steered MD calculations. Our residue-specific analyses of the peptides revealed that positively charged arginine and lysine residues were favorably attracted by the quartz surface at basic pH. The negatively charged residues at pH 9 (i.e., aspartic acid and glutamic acid) further showed affinity toward the quartz surface through electrostatic interactions with the positively charged surface-bound Na⁺ ions. The best-binding heptapeptide combinations, however, contained both positively and negatively charged residues in their composition. The flexibility of peptide chains was also shown to directly affect the adsorption behavior of the peptide. While attractive intrapeptide interactions were dominated by a weak peptide-quartz binding, the repulsive self-interactions in the peptides improved the binding propensity to the quartz surface. Our results showed that MD simulations are fully capable of revealing mechanistic details of peptide adsorption to inorganic surfaces and are an invaluable tool to accelerate the rational design of peptide sequences for mineral processing applications.

Sustainable and efficient technologies for removal and recovery of toxic and valuable metals from wastewater: Recent progress, challenges, and future perspectives

Due to their numerous effects on human health and the natural environment, water contamination with heavy metals and metalloids, caused by their extensive use in various technologies and industrial applications, continues to be a huge ecological issue that needs to be urgently tackled. Additionally, within the circular economy management framework, the recovery and recycling of metals-based waste as high value-added products (VAPs) is of great interest, owing to their high cost and the continuous depletion of their reserves and natural sources. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art technologies developed for the removal and recovery of metal pollutants from wastewater by providing an in-depth understanding of their remediation mechanisms, while analyzing and critically discussing the recent key advances regarding these treatment methods, their practical implementation and integration, as well as evaluating their advantages and remaining limitations. Herein, various treatment techniques are covered, including adsorption, reduction/oxidation, ion exchange, membrane separation technologies, solvents extraction, chemical precipitation/co-precipitation, coagulation-flocculation, flotation, and bioremediation. A particular emphasis is placed on full recovery of the captured metal pollutants in various reusable forms as metal-based VAPs, mainly as solid precipitates, which is a powerful tool that offers substantial enhancement of the remediation processes' sustainability and cost-effectiveness. At the end, we have identified some prospective research directions for future work on this topic, while presenting some recommendations that can promote sustainability and economic feasibility of the existing treatment technologies.

Waste management in the mining industry of metals ores, coal, oil and natural gas - A review

Waste generated due to mining activity poses a serious issue due to the large amounts generated, even up to 65 billion tons per year, and is often associated with the risk posed by its storage and environmental management. This work aims to review waste management in the mining industry of metals ores, coal, oil and natural gas. It includes an analysis and discussion on the possibilities for reuse of certain types of wastes generated from mining activity, and discusses the benefits, disadvantages and the impact of waste management on the environment. The article presents current methods of waste management arising during the extraction and processing of raw materials and the threats resulting from its application. Furthermore, the potential methods of mining waste management are discussed through an in-depth characterization of the properties and composition of various types of rocks. The presented work addresses not only the issues of more sustainable management of waste from the mining industry, but also responds to the current efforts to implement the assumptions of a circular economy, which is aimed at closing the loop. The methods of recycling by-products and treating waste as a resource more and more often not only meet environmental expectations, but also become a legal requirement. In this respect, the presented work can serve as a valuable support in decision-making about waste management.

Removal of uranium from contaminated groundwater using monorhamnolipids and ion flotation

Mining of uranium for defense-related purposes has left a substantial legacy of pollution that threatens human and environmental health. Contaminated waters in the arid southwest are of particular concern, as water resource demand and water scarcity issues become more pronounced. The development of remediation strategies to treat uranium impacted waters will become increasingly vital to meet future water needs. Ion flotation is one technology with the potential to address legacy uranium contamination. The green biosurfactant rhamnolipid has been shown to bind uranium and act as an effective collector in ion flotation. In this study, uranium contaminated groundwater (∼440 μg L-1 U) from the Monument Valley processing site in northeast Arizona was used as a model solution to test the uranium removal efficacy of ion flotation with biosynthetic (bio-mRL) and three synthetic monorhamnolipids with varying hydrophobic chain lengths: Rha-C10-C10, Rha-C12-C12, and Rha-C14-C14. At the groundwater's native pH 8, and at an adjusted pH 7, no uranium was removed from solution by any collector. However, at pH 6.5 bio-mRL and Rha-C10-C10 removed 239.2 μg L-1 and 242.4 μg L-1 of uranium, respectively. By further decreasing the pH to 5.5, bio-mRL was able to reduce the uranium concentration to near or below the Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level of 30 μg L-1. For the Rha-C12-C12 and Rha-C14-C14 collector ligands, decreasing the pH to 7 or below reduced the foam stability and quantity, such that these collectors were not suitable for treating this groundwater. To contextualize the results, a geochemical analysis of the groundwater was conducted, and a consideration of uranium speciation is described. Based on this study, the efficacy of monorhamnolipid-based ion flotation in real world groundwater has been demonstrated with suitable solution conditions and collectors identified.

Recent developments in physical, biological, chemical, and hybrid treatment techniques for removing emerging contaminants from wastewater

Emerging contaminants (ECs) in wastewater have recently attracted the attention of researchers as they pose significant risks to human health and wildlife. This paper presents the state-of-art technologies used to remove ECs from wastewater through a comprehensive review. It also highlights the challenges faced by existing EC removal technologies in wastewater treatment plants and provides future research directions. Many treatment technologies like biological, chemical, and physical approaches have been advanced for removing various ECs. However, currently, no individual technology can effectively remove ECs, whereas hybrid systems have often been found to be more efficient. A hybrid technique of ozonation accompanied by activated carbon was found significantly effective in removing some ECs, particularly pharmaceuticals and pesticides. Despite the lack of extensive research, nanotechnology may be a promising approach as nanomaterial incorporated technologies have shown potential in removing different contaminants from wastewater. Nevertheless, most existing technologies are highly energy and resource-intensive as well as costly to maintain and operate. Besides, most proposed advanced treatment technologies are yet to be evaluated for large-scale practicality. Complemented with techno-economic feasibility studies of the treatment techniques, comprehensive research and development are therefore necessary to achieve a full and effective removal of ECs by wastewater treatment plants.

A comprehensive review on magnetic carbon nanotubes and carbon nanotube-based buckypaper for removal of heavy metals and dyes

Industrial effluents contain several organic and inorganic contaminants. Among others, dyes and heavy metals introduce a serious threat to drinking waterbodies. These pollutants can be noxious or carcinogenic in nature, and harmful to humans and different aquatic species. Therefore, it is of high importance to remove heavy metals and dyes to reduce their environmental toxicity. This has led to an extensive research for the development of novel materials and techniques for the removal of heavy metals and dyes. One route to the removal of these pollutants is the utilization of magnetic carbon nanotubes (CNT) as adsorbents. Magnetic carbon nanotubes hold remarkable properties such as surface-volume ratio, higher surface area, convenient separation methods, etc. The suitable characteristics of magnetic carbon nanotubes have led them to an extensive search for their utilization in water purification. Along with magnetic carbon nanotubes, the buckypaper (BP) membranes are also favorable due to their unique strength, high porosity, and adsorption capability. However, BP membranes are mostly used for salt removal from the aqueous phase and limited literature shows their applications for removal of heavy metals and dyes. This study focuses on the existence of heavy metal ions and dyes in the aquatic environment, and methods for their removal. Various fabrication approaches for the development of magnetic-CNTs and CNT-based BP membranes are also discussed. With the remarkable separation performance and ultra-high-water flux, magnetic-CNTs, and CNT-based BP membranes have a great potential to be the leading technologies for water treatment in future.

Pretreatment of industrial wastewater by natural flotation: application to pollution reduction from vegetable oil refinery wastewaters

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the natural flotation process in reducing pollution with reasonable investment and operating costs of an industrial effluent of refining vegetable oils. Flotation tests were carried out in separating funnels and in drums of 30 l. The results obtained have shown that the volume of sludge produced during flotation is related to the pollutant load of the wastewater studied (process wastewater and acidic wastewater). The sludge volume is respectively 600, 12, and 120 ml/l for heavy, light, and medium loads respectively. Therefore, it is essential to find an effective way to remove oils and greases from polluted waters. Natural flotation eliminates on average 88% of COD for acid wastewater and 50% for process wastewater. However, the reduction of BOD5 showed 28 and 43% respectively for acid wastewater and process wastewater. In addition, the yield of fats and oils, TSS, and turbidity varies around 85%, 45%, and 88% respectively for acidic wastewater, while for process wastewater, elimination yields vary around 58%, 46%, and 46% respectively for the grease and oil parameters, the MES, and the turbidity. Flotation allows the elimination of 10659 Kg/day of greases and oils for process wastewater while it eliminates 5765 Kg/day for acidic wastewater. This reduces the cost of treatment related to chemicals and energy. Reducing pollution of wastewater by natural flotation could therefore help reduce the costs of treating wastewater, and recycling would then be more attractive for this purpose for the company.

Extraction of protein from food waste: An overview of current status and opportunities

The chief intent of this review is to explain the different extraction techniques and efficiencies for the recovery of protein from food waste (FW) sources. Although FW is not a new concept, increasing concerns about chronic hunger, nutritional deficiency, food security, and sustainability have intensified attention on alternative and sustainable sources of protein for food and feed. Initiatives to extract and utilize protein from FW on a commercial scale have been undertaken, mainly in the developed countries, but they remain largely underutilized and generally suited for low-quality products. The current analysis reveals the extraction of protein from FW is a many-sided (complex) issue, and that identifies for a stronger and extensive integration of diverse extraction perspectives, focusing on nutritional quality, yield, and functionality of the isolated protein as a valued recycled ingredient.

Effect of flotation and vegetal fining agents on the aromatic characteristics of Malvasia del Lazio (Vitis vinifera L.) wine

BACKGROUND

Flotation is a process to reduce the must turbidity after grape pressing. The use of fining agents to reduce the polyphenol content is essential for white wine, but their impact on volatile compounds must be considered. Malvasia del Lazio juice (Vitis vinifera L.) was treated before flotation with animal gelatin (GEL), legume protein plus chitin (LEGCHIT), and legume protein plus yeast extract (LEGYEAST). The clarification efficiency, total polyphenols, and total proteins were determined in the grape must before and after flotation, as well as the volatile composition and sensory characteristics of the resulting wines.

RESULTS

The LEGCHIT trial was the most efficient, it being the fastest and achieving the lowest turbidity values. The GEL trial was the slowest, showing grape must turbidity values similar to LEGYEAST but also the highest total protein content. The vegetal protein treatments caused a decrease in the concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with respect to gelatin, which resulted in a reduction of aroma intensity, particularly for fruity and floral notes, but also for green notes. Furthermore, LEGCHIT wines were appreciated by panelists for their greater body and reduced astringency perception.

CONCLUSION

The use of legume protein combined with chitin as a fining agent for flotation is advantageous in terms of clarification efficiency for grape must. Furthermore, the wines obtained showed high perceived global quality, even though a higher loss (38% and 27% respectively for LEGYEAST and LEGCHIT) of VOCs occurred when compared with gelatin. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Industrial Processes Management for a Sustainable Society: Global Research Analysis

Few decades ago, the development of the industrial sector was disconnected from society’s protection. Negative effects awareness emerges from the current industrial processes through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), considering the causal implications to build up a more sustainable society. The aim of this study is to analyze the state of the art in industrial processes management to obtain positive and sustainable effects on society. Thus, a bibliometric analysis of 1911 articles was set up during the 1988–2019 period, bringing up the authors’ productivity indicators in the scientific field, that is, journals, authors, research institutions, and countries. We have identified environmental management; the impact assessments of industrial processes on the environment and its relation with a more sustainable society; as well as the study of the sustainable management of water resources as the related axes in the study of environmental protection with political, economic, and educational approaches. The growing trend of world scientific publications let us observe the relevance of industrial processes management in the implementation of efficient models to achieve sustainable societies. This research contributes to the academic, scientific, and social debate on decision-making both in public and private institutions, and in multidisciplinary groups.

Green Separation and Extraction Processes: Part I

Supercritical fluid extraction comprises a known technology applied to obtain volatile compounds from flowers, i [...]