Outstanding Performance of a New Exfoliated Clay Impregnated with Rutile TiO2 Nanoparticles Composite for Dyes Adsorption: Experimental and Theoretical Studies

Pure rutile TiO2 nanoparticles (Rt) were combined with exfoliated black clay (BC) to prepare a new composite for water decontamination, in particular, for the uptake of methylene blue (MB) and methyl orange (MO) dyes. The as-prepared Rt/BC was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) techniques, and the dyes’ adsorption isotherms at three temperatures (i.e., 25, 40, and 50 °C) were studied. The results indicated that Rt/BC displayed a high removal performance for MO (96.7%) and MB (91.4%) at pH 3.0 and 8.0, respectively. Adsorption data of MB and MO were adjusted by a double layer model at all temperatures. The theoretical parameters of this statistical physics model were interpreted to understand the MO and MB adsorption mechanisms at the molecular level. The removed molecules per active site (n) of Rt/BC ranged from 1.12 to 1.29 for MB and 1.47 to 1.85 for MO, thus representing parallel orientation and multi-interactions mechanisms (i.e., van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonding, and electrostatic interactions were involved). The Rt/BC composite had a density of surface adsorption sites of 100 mg/g. The aggregation of MO molecules was high and increased their adsorption capacities (Qsat = 294–370 mg/g) compared to that of MB (Qsat = 214–249 mg/g). Adsorption energies were 9.70–20.15 kJ/mol, and these values indicated that MO and MB adsorption processes were endothermic and occurred via physical interactions. Overall, the low cost, high regeneration performance, and stability of Rt/BC support its application as a promising adsorbent for organic pollutants from wastewaters.

Equilibrium, Kinetic, and Thermodynamic Studies of Cationic Dyes Adsorption on Corn Stalks Modified by Citric Acid

The modification of agricultural wastes and their use as low-cost and efficient adsorbents is a prospective pathway that helps diminish waste and decrease environmental problems. In the present research, the natural adsorption capacity of corn stalks (CS) was improved by modification of their surface with citric acid. The adsorption capacity of the modified corn stalks (CS-C) was determined with the help of cationic dyes (methylene blue and malachite green). The equilibrium, kinetics, and thermodynamics of the cationic dyes on CS-C were studied. The Langmuir isotherm model best fitted the data both for methylene blue and malachite green adsorption on CS-C. The adsorption kinetics of the cationic dyes was well described by the pseudo-second order model. Thermodynamic studies revealed that adsorption of the cationic dyes on CS-C was an endothermic process. Negative results of ΔGo (between −31.8 and −26.3 kJ mol−1) indicated that the adsorption process was spontaneous in all the tested temperatures. The present study verified that citric acid-modified corn stalks can be used as a low-cost and effective adsorbent for removal of cationic dyes from aqueous solutions.

Carbon Nanotubes Hybrid Hydrogels for Environmental Remediation: Evaluation of Adsorption Efficiency under Electric Field

The performance of Carbon Nanotubes hybrid hydrogels for environmental remediation was investigated using Methylene Blue (MB), Rhodamine B (RD), and Bengal Rose (BR) as model contaminating dyes. An acrylate hydrogel network with incorporated CNT was synthesized by photo-polymerization without any preliminary derivatization of CNT surface. Thermodynamics, isothermal and kinetic studies showed favorable sorption processes with the application of an external 12 V electric field found to be able to influence the amount of adsorbed dyes: stronger interactions with cationic MB molecules ( and of 19.72 and 33.45 mg g−1, respectively) and reduced affinity for anionic RD ( and of 28.93 and 13.06 mg g−1, respectively) and neutral BR ( and of 36.75 and 15.85 mg g−1, respectively) molecules were recorded. The influence of pH variation on dyes adsorption was finally highlighted by reusability studies, with the negligible variation of adsorption capacity after five repeated sorption cycles claiming for the suitability of the proposed systems as effective sorbent for wastewater treatment.

Factors Affecting Synthetic Dye Adsorption; Desorption Studies: A Review of Results from the Last Five Years (2017–2021)

The primary, most obvious parameter indicating water quality is the color of the water. Not only can it be aesthetically disturbing, but it can also be an indicator of contamination. Clean, high-quality water is a valuable, essential asset. Of the available technologies for removing dyes, adsorption is the most used method due to its ease of use, cost-effectiveness, and high efficiency. The adsorption process is influenced by several parameters, which are the basis of all laboratories researching the optimum conditions. The main objective of this review is to provide up-to-date information on the most studied influencing factors. The effects of initial dye concentration, pH, adsorbent dosage, particle size and temperature are illustrated through examples from the last five years (2017–2021) of research. Moreover, general trends are drawn based on these findings. The removal time ranged from 5 min to 36 h (E = 100% was achieved within 5–60 min). In addition, nearly 80% efficiency can be achieved with just 0.05 g of adsorbent. It is important to reduce adsorbent particle size (with Φ decrease E = 8–99%). Among the dyes analyzed in this paper, Methylene Blue, Congo Red, Malachite Green, Crystal Violet were the most frequently studied. Our conclusions are based on previously published literature.