Summary

The principal objective of wastewater treatment is generally to allow human and industrial effluents to be disposed of without danger to human health or unacceptable damage to the natural environment. Typical processes that are investigated and applied to wastewater treatment can be the following: biological, adsorption, flocculation, oxidation, membranes, filtration, etc. This entry collection features information about many processes of wastewater treatment and many other related issues such as reuse, cost, fluid aspects, plants, etc.

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Entries
Topic Review
Silver Nanoparticles for Waste Water Management
Rapidly increasing industrialisation has human needs, but the consequences have added to the environmental harm. The pollution caused by several industries, including the dye industries, generates a large volume of wastewater containing dyes and hazardous chemicals that drains industrial effluents. The growing demand for readily available water, as well as the problem of polluted organic waste in reservoirs and streams, is a critical challenge for proper and sustainable development. Remediation has resulted in the need for an appropriate alternative to clear up the implications. Nanotechnology is an efficient and effective path to improve wastewater treatment/remediation. The effective surface properties and chemical activity of nanoparticles give them a better chance to remove or degrade the dye material from wastewater treatment. AgNPs (silver nanoparticles) are an efficient nanoparticle for the treatment of dye effluent that have been explored in many studies. The antimicrobial activity of AgNPs against several pathogens is well-recognised in the health and agriculture sectors.
  • 702
  • 05 May 2023
Topic Review
Ecosystem Services of Constructed Wetlands for Wastewater Treatment
Constructed wetlands (CWs) are nature-based solutions that utilize natural vegetation, soils, and microbes to treat domestic wastewater and industrial effluents. They are engineered treatment systems that mimic the functions of natural wetlands to capture stormwater, reduce nutrient loads, and create diverse wildlife habitats. As an ecosystem, CWs contribute to human well-being by providing certain ecosystem services that can be classified into four distinct categories, namely: provisioning services, regulating services, supporting services, and cultural services.
  • 651
  • 01 May 2023
Topic Review
Microbial-Based Flocculants to Enhance Wastewater Sludge Dewaterability
Various microorganisms (fungi, bacteria, and microalgae) are able to produce flocculating materials, such as polysaccharides, proteins, and glycoproteins. The ability of microorganisms to produce these molecules is identified based on many parameters, including the morphology and the existence of slimy extracellular polysaccharides. For this purpose, various methods (colorimetric, 16S rRNA gene sequence, etc.) and reagents (chelating agents, CuSO4 solution crystal violet, etc.) are applied to isolate suitable microorganisms from soil, rivers, seawater, sludge, etc. 
  • 330
  • 09 May 2023
Topic Review
Electrolysis of Industrial Wastewater
Water electrolysis is a powerful technology for producing high-purity H2, with negligible emission of greenhouse gases and compatibility with renewable energy sources. Additionally, the electrolysis of organic compounds, such as lignin, is a promising method for localised H2 production, as it requires lower cell voltages than conventional water electrolysis. Industrial wastewater can be employed in those organic electrolysis systems due to their high organic content, decreasing industrial pollution through wastewater disposal. Electrocoagulation, indirect electrochemical oxidation, anodic oxidation, and electro-Fenton are effective electrochemical methods for treating industrial wastewater.
  • 620
  • 27 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Biorefinery of Sewage Sludge
The disposal of excess biological sewage sludge from wastewater treatment is a growing environmental issue due to the vast quantities generated worldwide. Due to its composition, sewage sludge could be potentially exploited as a renewable carbon source, rather than being considered an inevitable “nuisance” linked to the main task of wastewater treatment. Biorefinery encompasses any technology used to process excess biological sewage sludge (EBSS) for biofuel and/or resource recovery: proper process integration can contribute to generating multiple possible final products (energy and/or materials).
  • 537
  • 10 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Enzymatic Biocatalysts Applied for Pharmaceutical Pollutants Degradation
Both the growth of the world’s population and the associated active use of various pharmaceutical compounds (PCPs) (antibiotics, hormones, cardiovascular, analgesics, , anti-inflammatory and antiepileptic drugs, etc.) have led to the problem of their contamination of water and the environment. PCPs are found in various concentrations in the wastewater of urban wastewater treatment plants. The physical-chemical processes of PCPs removal using membrane filtration, chlorination, ozonation and photocatalytic oxidation, sorption and microbiological degradation ensure the elimination of these pollutants, but have certain limitations in the effectiveness of these processes.Biological treatment has a number of significant advantages, which consist in the use of natural biocatalysts (enzymes, microorganisms) for the destruction of micropollutants. Analysis of recently published studies on the use of soluble and immobilized enzymes as biocatalysts for the biodegradation of various PCPs has shown the effectiveness of these applications.  
  • 341
  • 29 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Immobilized Algae Bioremediation Technology
A green technology that immobilizes algae through a carrier to improve biosorbent’s stability and adsorption performance is immobilization technology. An environmentally friendly technology is bioremediation, which uses the metabolic potential of microorganisms to remove heavy metals through a series of physicochemical interactions which occur between the functional groups of microorganisms and the heavy metals.
  • 850
  • 27 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Photocatalysis for Water Purification
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the aquatic environment have garnered a lot of attention during the past few years. Due to their toxic behavior, which interferes with endocrine functions in both humans and aquatic species, these types of compounds have been recognized as major polluting agents in wastewater effluents. Therefore, the development of efficient and sustainable removal methods for these emerging contaminants is essential. Photocatalytic removal of emerging contaminants using silver carbonate (Ag2CO3)-based photocatalyst is a promising process due to the unique characteristics of this catalyst, such as absorption of a larger fraction of the solar spectrum, wide band gap, non-toxicity, and low cost. The photocatalytic performance of Ag2CO3 has recently been improved through the doping of elements and optimization variation of operational parameters resulting in decreasing the rate of electron–hole pair recombination and an increase in the semiconductor’s excitation state efficiency, which enables the degradation of contaminants under UV or visible light exposure. This entry summarized some of the relevant investigations related to Ag2CO3-based photocatalytic materials for EDC removal from water. The inclusion of Ag2CO3-based photocatalytic materials in the water recovery procedure suggests that the creation of a cutting-edge protocol is essential for successfully eliminating EDCs from the ecosystem.
  • 436
  • 24 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Membrane Bioreactor for Removal of Dyes
Access to clean water is crucial for human health and the advancement of society. However, the decline in water quality has become a serious global issue due to human activities. The United Nations introduced 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the aim of creating a sustainable future for all humankind. One of the most significant of these goals is “Clean Water and Sanitation for All”. However, the discharge of various contaminants into aquatic environments impedes progress towards achieving SDG6. Among industrial effluents, the textile and dye industries are considered to be major contributors to wastewater production. Dyestuffs, which are synthetic, complex aromatic compounds, and ionizing agents, are widely used as coloring agents in industries such as paper, textiles, food, dyeing, and cooking. Following the dyeing process, approximately 15% of the used dyes remain in the wastewater stream, making the colored wastewater effluent a major concern. Conventional wastewater treatment plants have difficulty in removing such chemicals, resulting in over 200,000 tons of dyes being discharged each year in the environment. The release of dyes results in water pollution with resistant compounds that are not easily broken down by natural degradation processes. Several methods have been established for treating dyes from water bodies, including physicochemical and biological approaches. Physicochemical methods, such as membrane filtration, adsorption, ion exchange, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), and coagulation, have limitations in the removal of dyes due to high cost, inefficiency, and the potential for secondary pollution. In contrast, biological treatment methods, such as membrane bioreactors (MBRs), are cost-effective, safe, environmentally friendly, and efficient for removing dyes. Among the various biological treatment methods, MBRs are regarded as one of the most effective methods for treating wastewater. MBRs are a combination of units for biological degradation and physical filtration
  • 299
  • 21 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Pectin-Based Material for Applications in Water Treatment
Climate change and water are inseparably connected. Extreme weather events cause water to become more scarce, polluted, and erratic than ever. Pectin is a biodegradable polymer, extractable from vegetables, and contains several hydroxyl and carboxyl groups that can easily interact with the contaminant ions. In addition, pectin-based materials can be prepared in different forms (films, hydrogels, or beads) and cross-linked with several agents to change their molecular structure. Consequently, the pectin-based adsorbents can be tuned to remove diverse pollutants such as divalent metals. 
  • 727
  • 22 Mar 2023
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