The production of biodiesel generates soap impurities that hinder biodiesel performance and complicate its purification. This study presents a novel approach for soap removal from biodiesel using NiO–doped ZnO nanoparticle (NP) adsorbent. The NPs are synthesized using a gliding arc discharge (GAD) method as a non-thermal plasma source (NTP). NiO doping reduced the bandgap energy by 74%, reduced the crystallite size, and increased the surface area by 78%, entailing lattice strain and structural modifications. Soap removal efficiency was 99.7% for NiO–doped ZnO within 16 min, compared with 95.5% for ZnO. Soap uptake as high as 2320 mg/g NiO–doped ZnO was reported, which could be equally fitted by Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms su

Biodiesel is becoming one of the most attractive alternative biofuels for petroleum-based diesel fuels. The castor plant is one of the abundant non-edible oils found in many countries. This paper aims to study Libyan castor oil and its potential for diesel conversion. Experiments were carried out in the laboratories of the Specific Center for Training in the Oil Industries in Al-Zawiya. The oil was extracted using a Soxhlet extractor and n-hexane solvent at 60 °C. Transesterification reactions were conducted in a batch reactor (a three-neck flask was used, where the middle opening carries a reflux condensation unit) at 65 °C. The methanol-to-castor oil molar ratio was 6:1, with a catalyst concentration of 1 wt.% relative to the ca

The present study utilised date palm fibre (DPF) waste residues to adsorb Congo red (CR) dye from aqueous solutions. The features of the adsorbent, such as its surface shape, pore size, and chemical properties, were assessed with X-ray diffraction (XRD), BET, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM). The current study employed the batch system to investigate the ideal pH to adsorb the CR dye and found that acidic pH decolourised the dye best. Extending the dye-DPF waste mixing period at 25°C reportedly removed more dye. Consequently, the influence of the starting dye and DPF waste quantity on dye removal was explored in this study. At 5 g/L dye concentration, 48% d

Adsorption techniques are widely used to remove certain classes of pollutants from wastewater. Phenolic compounds represent one of the problematic groups. Na-Y zeolite has been synthesized from locally available Iraqi kaolin clay. Characterization of the prepared zeolite was made by XRD and surface area measurement using N2 adsorption. Both synthetic Na-Y zeolite and kaolin clay have been tested for adsorption of 4-Nitro-phenol in batch mode experiments. Maximum removal efficiencies of 90% and 80% were obtained using the prepared zeolite and kaolin clay, respectively. Kinetics and equilibrium adsorption isotherms were investigated. Investigations showed that both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms fit the experimental data quite well. On the

Electrocoagulation is an electrochemical method for treatment of different types of wastewater  whereby sacrificial anodes corrode to release active coagulant (usually aluminium or iron cations) into solution, while simultaneous evolution of hydrogen at the cathode allows for pollutant removal by flotation or settling. The Taguchi method was applied as an experimental design and to determine the best conditions for chromium (VI) removal from wastewater. Various parameters in a batch stirred tank by iron metal electrodes: pH, initial chromium concentration, current density, distance between electrodes and KCl concentration were investigated, and the results have been analyzed using signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio. It was found that the r

Development and population expansion have the lion's share of driving up the fuel cost. Biodiesel has considerable attention as a renewable, ecologically friendly and alternative fuel source. In this study, CaO nanocatalyst is produced from mango leaves as a catalysis for the transesterification of waste cooking oil (WCO) to biodiesel. The mango tree is a perennial plant, and its fruit holds significant economic worth due to its abundance of vitamins and minerals. This plant has a wide geographical range and its leaves can be utilized without any negative impact on its growth and yield. An analysis was conducted to determine the calcium content in the fallen leaves, revealing a significant quantity of calcium that holds potential fo