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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 October 2022) | Viewed by 7470

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Dr. Zhongbing Chen

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Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague Kamýcká 129, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: wastewater treatment; constructed wetland; sludge treatment; aquatic ecosystem; anaerobic digestion; heavy metals; emerging pollutants
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pollution is ubiquitous and pollutants can consist of chemical compounds/elements, biological entities, particulate matter, or energy and they may be of natural or anthropogenic origin. Currently, persistent toxic pollutants and emerging pollutants bring more and more problems to the aquatic ecosystem. Therefore, a rigorous science-based integration of the physical, chemical, and biological technologies and processes are needed to eliminate or alleviate their adverse effect in the water environment.

This Special Issue will concentrate on highlighting timely research studies addressing the pollutant removal process in the aquatic environment. Topics include but are not limited to:

Assessment and behavior of various pollutants in the aquatic environment;
Removal process of heavy metals in the aquatic environment;
Removal process of emerging pollutants in the aquatic environment;
Biodegradation and bioremediation process;
Physical-chemical approaches for pollutants removal;
Modeling of pollutant removal in the aquatic environment.

Dr. Zhongbing Chen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

aquatic chemistry
anaerobic digestion
advanced oxidation processes
biodegradation and bioremediation
emerging pollutants
physical-chemical process
heavy metals
modeling
wastewater treatment

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 1359 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Green and Eco-Friendly Treatment of Textile Wastewater by Using Azadirachta indica Leaf Extract Combined with a Silver Nitrate Solution

by Muhammad Atif Irshad, Muhammad Ahmad Humayoun, Sami A. Al-Hussain, Rab Nawaz, Muhammad Arshad, Ali Irfan and Magdi E. A. Zaki

Sustainability 2023, 15(1), 81; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su15010081 - 21 Dec 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1796

Abstract

The present study was conducted to treat textile industrial wastewater through the combination of green and synthetic solutions. Two case studies were applied for the treatment of wastewater. In the first case, discharged industrial effluent was reacted with Azadirachta Indica leaf extract solution for a 4 to 72 h retention time. After the reaction, some pollutants were treated but most required higher retention time and concentration of A. indica extract, which could be a potential adsorbent for wastewater treatment. In the second case, the discharged industrial effluent was reacted with A. indica solution with silver nitrate AgNO₃ solution and was used as a treating agent for wastewater with a 4 to 72 h retention time. The second case was found to be better than the first case as it treated a greater number of pollutants. Moreover, treatment plant design feasibilities will be required for the application of findings of the present study on an industrial scale. This study can be useful to improve industrial estate’s environmental conditions for reducing pollution by industrial wastewater. There is also a need to raise environmental awareness regarding wastewater’s health effects in local communities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pollutant Removal Process in Water Environment)

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14 pages, 3724 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Heterocatalytic Proficiencies of ZnO Nanostructures in the Simultaneous Photo-Degradation of Chlorophenols

by Ali Dad Chandio, Abdul Hameed Pato, Iftikhar Ahmed Channa, Sadaf Jamal Gilani, Aqeel Ahmed Shah, Jaweria Ashfaq, Jamil A. Buledi, Imran Ali Chandio and May Nasser Bin Jumah

Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 14562; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su142114562 - 05 Nov 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1700

Abstract

The development of innovative technology for effective pollutant degradation is becoming more important as a result of major environmental issues. Here, ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using facile and aqueous chemical growth routes. Analytical techniques such as scanning electron micrographs (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Zeta Seizer (ZS), and Zeta Potential were used to analyze the resultant nanoparticles (ZP). The ZnO reveals a nanocluster texture that has a medium scale of 27 nm and a surface charge (17 ± 3 mV) with a wurtzite phase and crystalline nature. Photo catalysts have a higher potential for the thermal disposal of chlorophenols pollutants due to their low cost and simple synthesis procedure. The as-prepared sample underwent photocatalysis for the simultaneous photo-degradation of PCP and TCP as a model dye under sunlight. The ZnO nanostructure exhibited an exceptional degradation of around 85–90% for PCP and TCP in the aqua liquid, with the lowest amount of catalyst dosage of 240–250 μg individually and simultaneously, over 3 min beneath the sun ray. The greater productivity of the ZnO nanostructure for natural deterioration during solar irradiation indicates that the aqueous chemical growth enables the creation of effective and affordable photocatalysts for the photodegradation of a variety of environmental contaminants. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pollutant Removal Process in Water Environment)

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14 pages, 2030 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Purification Effects on β-HCH Removal and Bacterial Community Differences of Vertical-Flow Constructed Wetlands with Different Vegetation Plantations

by Qing Chen, Honghu Zeng, Yanpeng Liang, Litang Qin, Guangsheng Peng, Liangliang Huang and Xiaohong Song

Sustainability 2021, 13(23), 13244; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su132313244 - 30 Nov 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1406

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the removal of β-hexachlorocyclohexane (β-HCH) at realistic concentration levels (10 µg/L) in different plant species in constructed wetlands (Acorus calamus, Canna indica, Thalia dealbata, and Pontederia cordata) and the structure of the rhizosphere microbial community response of each group during summer and winter. Results showed that all groups of constructed wetlands had very good decontamination efficiency against β-HCH in water (90.86–98.17%). The species that most efficiently purified β-HCH in water was A. calamus in summer (98.17%) and C. indica in winter (96.64%). Substrate sorption was found to be the major pathway for β-HCH removal from water in the constructed wetlands. The ability of the wetland plants to absorb and purify β-HCH was limited, and C. indica had the strongest absorptive capacity among the four plant species. The mean β-HCH removal from the matrix of the planted plants increased by 5.8% compared with that of the control treatment (unplanted plants). The average β-HCH content in the plant rhizosphere substrate was 4.15 µg/kg lower than that in the non-rhizosphere substrate. High-throughput sequencing analysis revealed significant differences (P < 0.05) in the Chao1 and ACE indices of microbes in the substrate of four wetlands during summer and winter. At the genus level, the constructed wetlands with vegetation plantations showed higher microbial abundance than the constructed wetlands without vegetation plantations. In winter, the bacterial community structure of each constructed wetland was quite different, but no dominant flora in the bacterial community structure obviously changed. In summer, the bacterial community structure at the same stage was relatively small. The abundance of Actinobacteria and Sphingomonas remarkably increased over time in summer. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pollutant Removal Process in Water Environment)

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16 pages, 5440 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatial and Temporal Variations of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Surface Water and Groundwater of Mudong River Watershed in Huixian Karst Wetland, Southwest China

by Linyan Pan, Junfeng Dai, Zhiqiang Wu, Liangliang Huang, Zupeng Wan, Junlei Han and Zhangnan Li

Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10740; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su131910740 - 27 Sep 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1775

Abstract

When considering the factors affecting the spatial and temporal variation of nitrogen and phosphorus in karst watersheds, the unique karst hydrogeology as an internal influencing factor cannot be ignored, as well as natural factors such as meteorological hydrology and external factors such as human activities. A watershed-scale field investigation was completed to statistically analyze spatial and temporal dynamics of nitrogen and phosphorus through the regular monitoring and collection of surface water and shallow groundwater in the agricultural-dominated Mudong River watershed in the Huixian Karst Wetland over one year (May 2020 to April 2021). Our research found that non-point source pollution of nitrogen (84.5% of 239 samples TN > 1.0 mg/L) was more serious than phosphorus (7.5% of 239 samples TP > 0.2 mg/L) in the study area, and shallow groundwater nitrogen pollution (98.3% of 118 samples TN > 1.0 mg/L) was more serious than surface water (68.6% of 121 samples TN > 1.0 mg/L). In the three regions with different hydrodynamic features, the TN concentration was higher and dominated by NO₃⁻-N in the river in the northern recharge area, while the concentrations of TN and TP were the highest in shallow groundwater wells in the central wetland core area and increased along the surface water flow direction in the western discharge area. This research will help improve the knowledge about the influence of karst hydrodynamic features on the spatial patterns of nitrogen and phosphorus in water, paying attention to the quality protection and security of water in karst areas with a fragile water ecological environment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pollutant Removal Process in Water Environment)

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