Chapters authored
Nanoscale Zero Valent Iron for Environmental Cadmium Metal Treatment
In the course of developing methods to treat heavy metal contaminants in wastewater, nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) has been found to be an alternative approach. This nanoparticle has been used to remove metals such as Cr6+, Cu2+, Pb2+, Ba2+, As3+, As5+, and Co2+ from aqueous solutions. Iron nanoparticles are useful for decontamination purposes due to their smaller size, surface area-to-weight ratio, and capacity to remove groundwater contaminants. The large specific surface area of the iron nanoparticles further fosters enhanced reactivity for the transformation of environmental pollutants. Because of their smaller size, nanoscale-based iron materials are much more reactive than conventional iron powders, and they can be suspended in slurry and pumped straight to the contaminated site. The ZVI is often applied for the remediation of wastewater or groundwater with several kinds of reducible contaminants, which are near its surface reduction potential. This chapter seeks to present the efficiency of zerovalent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) to remedy the cadmium ion pollution in water as well as the use of the remediation product in photoelectrochemical devices.
Part of the book: Green Chemistry
The Role of Mangroves and Nanomaterials in the Heavy Metals’ Decontamination Process
Green Chemistry aims to make processes more efficient and create products that reduce environmental pollution. This chapter presents the results of the combined use of Rhizophora mangle (R. mangle) and nano zero-valent iron (nZVI) for cadmium (Cd) remediation in contaminated areas. Here, the phytoremediation process using a 40-ppm cadmium solution in combination with R. mangle and nZVI for 3 days was evaluated. We used 20 R. mangle samples with and without nZVI to assess the efficiency of the phytoremediation process for the removal of cadmium by inductively coupled plasma (ICP) analytical measurements and confocal imaging. Translocation factors (TFs) were calculated. TF< 1 indicates that R. mangle does not act as a hyperaccumulator but as an excluder of metallic Cd. The data obtained in the project suggests that the interaction of nZVI with R. mangle is an effective way to enhance the translocation of the metal by its aerial parts without affecting the stomatal opening.
Part of the book: Advances in Green Chemistry