Bioadsorción de plomo (II) presente en solución acuosa sobre residuos de fibras naturales procedentes de la industria ixtlera (Agave lechuguilla Torr. y Yucca carnerosana (TREL.) MCKELVEY)

"El plomo ha sido reconocido como uno de los metales más tóxicos por su efecto negativo sobre el ambiente. En el presente trabajo se evaluó el uso potencial de residuos de Agave lechuguilla Torr. (lechuguilla) y Yucca carnerosana (Trel.) McKelvey (yuca) procedentes de la industria ixtlera para remover iones Pb (II) presentes en solución acuosa. Los datos del equilibrio de bioadsorción mostraron que al aumentar el pH de la solución de 2.0 a 5.0, la capacidad de bioadsorción de ambos materiales se incrementa. Este efecto se explicó considerando que la carga superficial negativa de estos materiales es mayor al aumentar el pH y por ello se favorece la remoción de Pb (II). El efecto de la temperatura de la solución en las isotermas de bioadsorción, expuso la naturaleza endotérmica del proceso. La energía libre de Gibbs y la entropía calculada (ΔG° y ΔS°) indicaron la espontaneidad de la bioadsorción y la afinidad del Pb (II) en solución por los bioadsorbentes, respectivamente. La variación de las capacidades de bioadsorción de la lechuguilla y la yuca se atribuyó a la diferencia en el contenido de sitios ácidos y lignina, lo que condujo a la presencia de diversos mecanismos de bioadsorción. En ambos materiales, la bioadsorción de Pb (II) ocurre por los mecanismos de interacciones π-catión, atracciones electrostáticas e intercambio iónico; además en el caso de la lechuguilla se evidenció un proceso de microprecipitación.""Lead has been recognized as one of the most toxic metals due to its negative effect on the environment. In the present work, the potential use of Agave lechuguilla Torr. (lechuguilla) and Yucca carnerosana (Trel.) McKelvey (yucca) residues from the ixtle industry to remove Pb (II) ions in an aqueous solution was evaluated. The adsorption equilibrium data showed that when increasing the pH in the solution from 2.0 to 5.0, the biosorption capacity of both materials increases. This effect might be explained by the negative surface charge of these materials, which is greater at high pH, favoring the removal of Pb (II). The effect of the temperature of the solution on the biosorption isotherms revealed the endothermic nature of the biosorption process. The Gibbs free energy change and the calculated entropy (ΔG° and ΔS°) indicated the spontaneity of biosorption and the affinity of Pb (II) in the solution for biosorbents, respectively. The variation of the biosorption capacities of lechuguilla and yucca was attributed to the different content of acid sites and lignin, which resulted in the presence of different biosorption mechanisms. In both materials, the biosorption of Pb (II) occurs by π-cation interactions, electrostatic attractions and ion exchange; moreover, a microprecipitation process on lechuguilla was evinced.

Study on the Effectiveness of Two Biopolymer Coagulants on Turbidity and Chemical Oxygen Demand Removal in Urban Wastewater

The present study investigated the effectiveness of two biopolymer coagulants on turbidity and chemical oxygen demand removal in urban wastewater. The biopolymers were produced from vegetal biomass using the mucilage extracted from Opuntia robusta cladodes, and Uncaria tomentosa leaves. Opuntia robusta is an abundant species in Mexico, which is not edible. Uncaria tomentosa is an exotic invasive species in Mexico and other countries, which negatively affects the ecosystems where it is introduced. A combined experimental design of mixture–process was selected to evaluate the effectiveness of both biopolymer coagulants regarding aluminum sulfate (conventional chemical coagulant). Results showed turbidity and chemical oxygen demand removal efficiencies of 42.3% and 69.6% for Opuntia robusta and 17.2% and 39.4% for Uncaria tomentosa biopolymer coagulant, respectively, at a dose of 200 mg/L. Furthermore, optimum conditions from the experimental design to reach the maximum turbidity and chemical oxygen demand removal were obtained at an Opuntia robusta biopolymer coagulant concentration of 10 mg/L, showing removal efficiencies of 68.7 ± 1.7% and 86.1 ± 1.4%, respectively. These results support using Opuntia robusta as an alternative biopolymer coagulant in urban wastewater treatment

Synthesis and Characterization of α-Al₂O₃/Ba-β-Al₂O₃ Spheres for Cadmium Ions Removal from Aqueous Solutions

The search for adsorbent materials with a certain chemical inertness, mechanical resistance, and high adsorption capacity, as is the case with alumina, is carried out with structural or surface modifications with the addition of additives or metallic salts. This research shows the synthesis, characterization, phase evolution and Cd(II) adsorbent capacity of α-Al2O3/Ba-β-Al2O3 spheres obtained from α-Al2O3 nanopowders by the ion encapsulation method. The formation of the Ba-β-Al2O3 phase is manifested at 1500 °C according to the infrared spectrum by the appearance of bands corresponding to AlO4 bonds and the appearance of peaks corresponding to Ba-O bonds in Raman spectroscopy. XRD determined the presence of BaO·Al2O3 at 1000 °C and the formation of Ba-β-Al2O3 at 1600 °C. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of spherical grains corresponding to α-Al2O3 and hexagonal plates corresponding to β-Al2O3 in the spheres treated at 1600 °C. The spheres obtained have dimensions of 4.65 ± 0.30 mm in diameter, weight of 43 ± 2 mg and a surface area of 0.66 m2/g. According to the curve of pH vs. zeta potential, the spheres have an acid character and a negative surface charge of −30 mV at pH 5. Through adsorption studies, an adsorbent capacity of Cd(II) of 59.97 mg/g (87 ppm Cd(II)) was determined at pH 5, and the data were fitted to the pseudo first order, pseudo second order and Freundlich models, with correlation factors of 0.993, 0.987 and 0.998, respectively

Evaluation of the Potential of a Biocoagulant Produced from Prickly Pear Peel Waste Valorization for Wastewater Treatment

This study evaluated the potential of a biocoagulant produced from prickly pear peel waste valorization and its use as a biocoagulant aid mixed with aluminum sulfate to remove turbidity in domestic wastewater. A central composite design (CCD) and a simplex lattice design (SLD) of two components (biocoagulant and aluminum sulfate) were developed to determine the optimal doses and pH of the biocoagulant and optimal mixing proportions. Both designs optimized the coagulation process from an analysis of variance to fit the experimental data to mathematical models and an optimization analysis to obtain the highest percentage of turbidity removal. The results showed that a water pH of 4 and a biocoagulant dose of 100 mg/L are optimal conditions for a turbidity removal of 76.1%. The potential decreases to 51.7% when the wastewater pH is maintained at 7.8 and a dose of 250 mg/L is used. This efficiency could be increased to 58.2% by using a mixture with optimal proportions of 30% biocoagulant and 70% aluminum sulfate. The experimental data were fitted to two quadratic models, estimating model prediction errors of 0.42% and 2.34%, respectively. Therefore, these results support the valorization of prickly pear peel waste to produce a biocoagulant, which could be used in acid and alkaline wastewater or as a biocoagulant aid mixed with aluminum sulfate

Valorization of Sargassum Biomass as Potential Material for the Remediation of Heavy-Metals-Contaminated Waters

Sargassum algae has become a major environmental issue due to its abundance in the Pacific Ocean with hundreds of tons reaching the beaches of the Mexican Caribbean every year. This generates large quantities of decomposing organic matter that have a negative impact on the region’s economy and ecosystems. Sargassum valorization has turned out to be a fundamental aspect to mitigate its environmental impact. This study proposes the use and application of untreated Sargassum biomass for the decontamination of waters polluted with lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) through single and binary adsorption tests. Physicochemical and textural properties examined by SEM, XRD, and FT-IR elucidated that Sargassum biomass is viable to be used as a potential environmental benign adsorbent, exhibiting Cd(II) and Pb(II) adsorption capacities as high as 240 mg g−1 and 350 mg g−1, respectively, outperforming conventionally used adsorbents. This is attributed to its morphology, favorable surface charge distribution, and the presence of -OH and -COH groups. A strong affinity between the biomass and metal pollutants was evidenced by a thermodynamics study, showing a spontaneous and endothermic process. This work sets a practical route for the utilization of the Sargassum biomass, demonstrating its applicability as a potential material for heavy-metal-polluted water remediation, making a substantial contribution to a circular economy system

Effectiveness of a natural coagulant based on common mallow (<i>Malva sylvestris</i>) in urban wastewater treatment

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a natural coagulant based on common mallow (Malva sylvestris) to remove turbidity in urban wastewater. A 22 factorial design was selected to determine the optimal dose and the working pH of the natural coagulant. Its potential was studied in 50.0–450 mg/L and 4.00–10.0 ranges of doses and pH, respectively. A simplex lattice mixture evaluated its effectiveness as a coagulant aid combined with aluminum sulfate (conventional coagulant). Mixture proportions 0.000–1.00 were studied for each component, finding the proportion more effective. Results showed that the coagulation treatment could be feasible since a turbidity removal efficiency of 73.7% can be achieved under optimal conditions (50.0 mg/L and pH of 10.0). Likewise, a turbidity removal of 58.9% is obtained using 250 mg/L and maintaining wastewater pH (7.45). This efficiency can be increased using 31.0% natural coagulant mixed with 69.0% aluminum sulfate at 250 mg/L without modifying the wastewater pH. This improvement was associated with the natural coagulant’s high molecular weight and long-chained structure since these properties enhance settling time, floc size and strength, and low sludge production. These results support using common mallow as a natural coagulant, making its use more feasible in alkaline water pH or as a coagulant aid combined with aluminum sulfate for urban wastewater treatment. A cost of USD 370/Kg of natural coagulant was estimated, which is higher than conventional coagulants. However, a cost-effectiveness analysis of its implementation should be performed since process scaling costs could significantly reduce its price.</p