A critical review of textile industry wastewater: green technologies for the removal of indigo dyes.

The denim textile industry represents an important productive sector. It generates wastewater with low biodegradability due to the presence of persistent pollutants, which can produce toxic and carcinogenic compounds; therefore, wastewater treatment reduces risks to aquatic life and public health. This paper presents a review of 172 papers regarding textile industry wastewater treatment for the removal of contaminants, especially indigo dyes used in the denim industry, in the context of green technologies. The physicochemical characteristics of textile wastewater, its environmental and health impacts, and the permissible limit regulations in different countries were reviewed. Biological, physicochemical and advanced oxidation processes for the removal of indigo dyes were reviewed. The goal of this study was to analyze the characteristics of green technologies; however, the research does not clearly demonstrate an effect on energy consumption savings, carbon footprint decreases, and/or waste generation. Advanced oxidation processes showed the highest color removal efficiency (95 and 97% in synthetic or real wastewater, respectively). Photocatalysis and Fenton reactions were the most efficient processes. None of the revised works presented results regarding upscaling for industrial application, and the results should be discussed in terms of the guidelines and maximum permissible limits established by international legislation. New technologies need to be developed and evaluated in a sustainable context with real wastewater.

Comparison of Fe-Al-modified natural materials by an electrochemical method and chemical precipitation for the adsorption of F- and As(V).

The adsorption of fluoride and arsenic ions by modified natural materials may have an impact on the removal of F- and As(V) from waters. In this work, a zeolitic material and pozzolan (commonly known as pumicite) were modified with aluminium an iron by an electrochemical method and chemical precipitation, respectively. The adsorbents were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy with energy X-ray disperse spectroscopy analysis and the point of zero charge (pHzpc). F- and As(V) adsorption properties of both materials were investigated. Adsorption kinetic data were best fitted to pseudo-second-order model and equilibrium data to the Langmuir isotherm model. The highest F- and As(V) sorption capacities were obtained for modified zeolitic (0.866 mg/g) and pozzolan (3.35 mg/g) materials, respectively, with initial F- or As(V) concentrations of 10 mg/L. It was found that the unmodified materials did not show either adsorption of F- ions or As(V), which indicated that Al and Fe in the adsorbents are responsible for the adsorption of these ions. In general, both modified materials show similar capacities for the adsorption of F- and As(V).

Chemical oxygen demand, total organic carbon and colour reduction in slaughterhouse wastewater by unmodified and iron-modified clinoptilolite-rich tuff.

In this study, reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD), colour, and total organic carbon in effluents from a slaughterhouse in central Mexico was performed using clinoptilolite-rich tuff. The experimental parameters considered were initial concentration of the adsorbate, pH, adsorbent dosage, and contact time. Surface morphology of the materials was tested by using scanning electron microscopy. Specific surface area was analysed by using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and phase composition was analysed by using X-ray diffraction. The experimental adsorption data were fitted to the first- and pseudo-second-order kinetic models. The highest COD removal was observed in slightly acidic pH conditions. The maximum reduction efficiency of COD was accomplished with unmodified clinoptilolite-rich tuff at a contact time of 1440 min. In these conditions, the adsorbent was efficient for treating wastewater from a slaughterhouse. Moreover, after several regeneration cycles with Fenton reagent or hydrogen peroxide, the regenerated zeolite with H2O2 (3%) showed the best reduction efficiencies.

Comparison of aluminum modified natural materials in the removal of fluoride ions.

The removal behaviors of fluoride ions from aqueous solutions and drinking water by aluminum modified hematite, zeolitic tuff and calcite were determined. Drinking water containing naturally 8.29 mg of fluoride ions per liter was characterized. The hematite, zeolitic tuff and calcite were aluminum modified by an electrochemical method. The effects of contact time and the dose of adsorbent were determined. The PZC (point of zero charge) values for aluminum modified hematite, zeolitic tuff and calcite were 6.2, 5.8 and 8.4, respectively. Adsorption kinetic data were best fitted to pseudo-second-order and Elovich models and equilibrium data to Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm model. The highest fluoride sorption capacities (10.25 and 1.16 mg/g for aqueous solutions and drinking water respectively) were obtained for aluminum modified zeolite with an adsorbent dosage of 10 g/L and an initial F(-) concentration of 9 and 8.29 mg/L for aqueous solutions and drinking water respectively (the final concentrations were 0.08 and 0.7 mg/L respectively). The main mechanism involved in the adsorption of fluoride ions is chemisorption on heterogeneous materials according to the results obtained by fitting the data to kinetic and isotherm models respectively. Aluminum modified zeolitic tuff showed the best characteristics for the removal of fluoride ions from water.

Removal of fluoride ions from drinking water and fluoride solutions by aluminum modified iron oxides in a column system.

The purpose of this work was to evaluate the potential of aluminum modified iron oxides, in a continuous flow for removal of fluoride ions from aqueous solutions and drinking water. The breakthrough curves obtained for fluoride ions adsorption from aqueous solutions and drinking water were fitted to Thomas, Bohart-Adams, and bed depth service time model (BDST). Adsorption capacities at the breakthroughs, Thomas model constant, kinetic constant and the saturation concentration were determined. The results show that in general, the adsorption efficiency decreases as the bed depth increases, and this behavior shows that the adsorption is controlled by the mass transport resistance. The adsorption capacity for fluoride ions by CP-Al is higher for fluoride aqueous solutions than drinking water.

The corrosive nature of manganese in drinking water.

Corrosion problems having to do with drinking water distribution systems are related to many processes and factors and two of them are ionic acidity and carbon dioxide, which were considered in this work. The corrosion character of water is determined by the corrosion indexes of Langelier, Ryznar, Larson, and Mojmir. The results show that pipes made of different materials, such as plastics or metals, are affected by corrosion, causing manganese to be deposited on materials and dissolved in water. The deterioration of the materials, the degree of corrosion, and the deposited corrosion products were determined by X-ray diffraction and Scanning Electron Microscopy. High levels of manganese and nitrate ions in water may cause serious damage to the health of consumers of water. Three wells were examined, one of them presented a high content of manganese; the others had high levels of nitrate ions, which increased the acidity of the water and, therefore, the amount of corrosion of the materials in the distribution systems.