Innovative treatment of industrial effluents through combining ferric iron and attapulgite application

Zhenxiang Pan; Bizhen Zeng; Liguo Shen; Jiaheng Teng; Tongli Lai; Leihong Zhao; Genying Yu; Hongjun Lin

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142132

Innovative treatment of industrial effluents through combining ferric iron and attapulgite application

Chemosphere. 2024 Apr 24:358:142132. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142132. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Zhenxiang Pan¹, Bizhen Zeng², Liguo Shen³, Jiaheng Teng⁴, Tongli Lai⁵, Leihong Zhao⁶, Genying Yu⁷, Hongjun Lin⁸

Affiliations

¹ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: 838265202@zjnu.edu.cn.
² College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: 1900045193@qq.com.
³ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: lgshen@zjnu.cn.
⁴ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: tengjiaheng@zjnu.edu.cn.
⁵ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: 1045517064@qq.com.
⁶ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China.
⁷ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: yugenying@zjnu.cn.
⁸ College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China; Key Laboratory of Watershed Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Security, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China. Electronic address: hjlin@zjnu.cn.

PMID: 38670505
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142132

Abstract

The escalation of industrial activities has escalated the production of pharmaceutical and dyeing effluents, raising significant environmental issues. In this investigation, a hybrid approach of Fenton-like reactions and adsorption was used for deep treatment of these effluents, focusing on effects of variables like hydrogen peroxide concentration, catalyst type, pH, reaction duration, temperature, and adsorbent quantity on treatment effectiveness, and the efficacy of acid-modified attapulgite (AMATP) and ferric iron (Fe(III))-loaded AMATP (Fe(III)-AMATP) was examined. Optimal operational conditions were determined, and the possibility of reusing the catalysts was explored. Employing Fe₃O₄ as a heterogeneous catalyst and AMATP for adsorption, COD_Cr was reduced by 78.38-79.14%, total nitrogen by 71.53-77.43%, and phosphorus by 97.74-98.10% in pharmaceutical effluents. Similarly, for dyeing effluents, Fe(III)-AMATP achieved 79.87-80.94% COD_Cr, 68.59-70.93% total nitrogen, and 79.31-83.33% phosphorus reduction. Regeneration experiments revealed that Fe₃O₄ maintained 59.48% efficiency over three cycles, and Fe(III)-AMATP maintained 62.47% efficiency over four cycles. This work offers an economical, hybrid approach for effective pharmaceutical and dyeing effluent treatment, with broad application potential.

Keywords: Absorbent; Attapulgite; Deep treatment; Fenton-like reaction; Heterogeneous catalyst.