Magnetic nanoadsorbents for micropollutant removal in real water treatment: a review

Ackmez Mudhoo, Mika Sillanpää

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

67 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Pure water will become a golden resource in the context of the rising pollution, climate change and the recycling economy, calling for advanced purification methods such as the use of nanostructured adsorbents. However, coming up with an ideal nanoadsorbent for micropollutant removal is a real challenge because nanoadsorbents, which demonstrate very good performances at laboratory scale, do not necessarily have suitable properties in in full-scale water purification and wastewater treatment systems. Here, magnetic nanoadsorbents appear promising because they can be easily separated from the slurry phase into a denser sludge phase by applying a magnetic field. Yet, there are only few examples of large-scale use of magnetic adsorbents for water purification and wastewater treatment. Here, we review magnetic nanoadsorbents for the removal of micropollutants, and we explain the integration of magnetic separation in the existing treatment plants. We found that the use of magnetic nanoadsorbents is an effective option in water treatment, but lacks maturity in full-scale water treatment facilities. The concentrations of magnetic nanoadsorbents in final effluents can be controlled by using magnetic separation, thus minimizing the ecotoxicicological impact. Academia and the water industry should better collaborate to integrate magnetic separation in full-scale water purification and wastewater treatment plants.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4393-4413
Number of pages21
JournalEnvironmental Chemistry Letters
Volume19
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2021
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Magnetic nanoadsorbents
  • Magnetic separation
  • Wastewater treatment
  • Water purification

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Chemistry

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