Wastewater discharge containing organic dyes may pose a hazard to the environment, which necessitates that dye removal must occur prior to wastewater release into water bodies. Herein, copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) were prepared by a green precipitation method to enable decolorization of a cationic dye (methyl violet; MV) from aqueous media. Complementary tools were employed to characterize the CuO NPs adsorbent: spectroscopy (FTIR and UV-VIS), microscopy (FESEM and TEM), XRD, BET surface area analysis, and point of zero charge (pHPZC) via potentiometry. The FTIR bands at 722, 663, 569, and 465 cm1 correspond to the vibrational modes of CuO NPs, along with the optical absorbance band at 275 nm that supports the formation of CuO NPs. The XRD and TEM analyses predicted single-phase CuO NPs with a monoclinic framework. BET was employed to assess the textural characteristics and accounted for the specific surface area (12.97 m2·g1). Batch adsorption studies were carried out to assess the role of initial pH (3.58–10.53), CuO NPs dose (0.02–0.25 g/L), initial MV concentration (20–140 mg/L), contact time (5–90 min), and temperature (298, 308, and 318 K) on the dye removal efficiency. The adsorption capacity of CuO NPs for MV was determined to be 5.06 mg/g at 45°C. The pseudo-second-order (PSO) model described kinetic isotherms, and equilibrium adsorption data were adequately fitted by the Freundlich model. Thermodynamic results revealed that adsorption was spontaneous, endothermic, and entropy driven at the solid–liquid interface. The CuO NPs further displayed good reusability with high efficiency for six successive cycles of adsorption–desorption using 0.1 M HCl as a desorbing agent. These findings validate the efficacy of CuO NPs as a green and effective adsorbent for wastewater treatment processes for cationic dye removal.
When the guard honey bees, Apis mellifera L., form a clump at the hive entrance or on the flight board, the oriental hornet, Vespa orientails L., either creeps toward the clump or hovers over it in order to take a bee. Once the hornet creeps, only few bees facing the hornet become alert, rock their heads and antennae, open their wings, and take a posture of defense. The rest of the clump stays listless without any signal of concern. However, the clump stays dense and the defending bees do not detach themselves neither from the rest of the clump nor from each other. For this reason, it is very difficult for the hornet to grab a bee unless the latter makes a “mistake” by detaching herself from other adjacent bees. If the hornet grabs s
... Show MoreDye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) create imitation photosynthesis by using chemical reactions to produce electricity from sunlight. DSSC has been pursued in numerous studies due to its capability to achieve efficiencies of up to 15% with artificial photosensitizer in diffuse light. However, artificial photosensitizers present a limitation because of the complex processing of metal compound. Therefore, various types of sensitizers were developed and synthesized to surpass the artificial sensitizer performances such as natural sensitizers from bio-based materials including plants, due to simple processing techniques and low environmental impact. Thus, this study examines the potential and properties of natural sensitizers from the was
... Show MoreThe current work discusses the removal of brilliant dyes. These dyes were Brilliant Cresyl Blue (BCB) and Brilliant Green (BG) by the use of poly acrylic acid hydrogel beads (PAA). We examined the adsorption isotherms and found that the factors preferring it are temperature and salt, shaking effects, wet PAA, (BCB) and (BG) follows Freundlich equation more than other equations. Based on the results, there is a positive correlation between adsorption of dyes (BCB and BG) and temperature (Endothermic process). We calculated the thermodynamic functions (ΔG, ΔS, and ΔH). The ion strength effects on the adsorptions at (20 °C) increased adsorption if the salt concentrations is high. We treated the kinetics outcomes based on Lagergren Equation
... Show MoreThe presence of residual antibiotics in water results in the development of antibiotics resistant genes. The available wastewater treatment systems are not capable of removing such antibiotics from sewage. Thus, antibiotics need to be removed before the discharge of wastewater. Adsorption is among the promising techniques for the wastewater treatment to aid the removal of a wide range of organic and inorganic pollutants. The present work is a contribution to the search for an economical method for the removal of low concentrations of amoxicillin (AMX) from water by adsorption on water treatment residue, WTR, taken from a local drinking water facility. The chemical composition and the adsorptive characteristics of the material were first
... Show MoreIn the last decades of the twentieth century, ideas emerged that were increasingly being floated, stating that the planet is suffering from a population explosion, depletion of resources, and environmental problems that require action to be addressed. Although these problems in practice need scientific solutions, the problem is that these solutions collide with ideologies. Here the green political thought emerges, based on the criticism of many ideological axioms. The owners of green thinking agree that most environmental damage is due to the humanist doctrine. It criticizes modernity accompanied by a scientific revolution, where this criticism centered around (the rationality of the scientific and technological mind), here the green pol
... Show More