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Processes
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Sustainable Remediation of Complex Wastewater: Challenges and Technologies
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Sustainable Remediation of Complex Wastewater: Challenges and Technologies

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Chemical Processes and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 3210

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Juan Manuel Peralta-Hernández

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Química, División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Guanajuato, Cerro de la Venada s/n, Pueblito de Rocha, Guanajuato 36040, Mexico
Interests: electrochemical and advanced oxidation processes, including Fenton and photo-Fenton reactions, electrooxida-tion, electro-Fenton, photoelectro-Fenton, as well as coupled processes among these technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Enric Brillas

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departament de Ciència de Materials i Química Física, Facultat de Química, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Interests: electrochemical reactions, advanced oxidation processes, and the study of reaction mechanisms and intermedi-ates

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water scarcity has become a pressing global concern, with wastewater treatment of complex matrices gaining increasing relevance worldwide. Water, an essential and limited resource, is continuously threatened by anthropogenic activities, including domestic, industrial, and agricultural practices, which generate effluents enriched with persistent, emerging, and recalcitrant contaminants. Conventional treatment methods are often insufficient for their complete removal, underscoring the urgent need for robust, innovative, and sustainable technologies to ensure water recovery and reuse.

Within this framework, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs)—including chemical, photochemical, and electrochemical strategies—are emerging as highly promising alternatives for addressing these challenges in real and complex wastewater systems. Their potential to achieve high pollutant mineralization levels, combined with technological advances in materials science and reactor design, positions them at the forefront of modern wastewater remediation research.

This Special Issue in Processes aims to gather contributions from the international scientific community to advance knowledge and foster technological solutions for the sustainable remediation of complex wastewater. We welcome original research articles and comprehensive review papers that address fundamental aspects, applications, and technological innovations in this field.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Fenton and photo-Fenton processes
  • Heterogeneous photocatalysis
  • Electrochemical advanced oxidation processes
  • Ozonation processes
  • Hybrid and combined treatments

In addition to the application of these technologies, manuscripts highlighting the following aspects will be highly valued:

  • Novel reactor design and scale-up approaches
  • Development of advanced photocatalytic and electrode materials
  • Analytical studies using liquid chromatography, total organic carbon (TOC), and reaction mechanism elucidation
  • Cost–benefit analyses and techno-economic assessments
  • Integration into circular economy models

This Special Issue seeks to serve as a platform to promote high-impact technological solutions that contribute to sustainable water management, environmental protection, and the responsible use of this critical resource.

Prof. Dr. Juan Manuel Peralta-Hernández
Prof. Dr. Enric Brillas
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • advanced oxidation processes (AOPs)
  • wastewater treatment
  • Fenton and photo-Fenton processes
  • electrochemical remediation and sustainable water management

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 9232 KB  
Article
Algae Utilization for Sustainable Treatment of Potato Chip Processing Wastewater and Production of Protein-Rich Biomass
by Omar Ashraf Abdulazim, Eman Y. Tohamy, Dong-Fang Deng and Saber A. El-Shafai
Processes 2026, 14(11), 1723; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr14111723 - 26 May 2026
Viewed by 458
Abstract
The potato chip processing (PCP) industry generates huge amounts of wastewater heavily polluted with organic matter and nutrients. The current treatment technology of PCP wastewater uses dissolved air flotation (DAF) and an activated sludge sequential batch reactor (SBR); both consume large amounts of [...] Read more.
The potato chip processing (PCP) industry generates huge amounts of wastewater heavily polluted with organic matter and nutrients. The current treatment technology of PCP wastewater uses dissolved air flotation (DAF) and an activated sludge sequential batch reactor (SBR); both consume large amounts of chemicals and represent energy-intensive systems. This study explores the utilization of algae for the sustainable treatment of PCP wastewater, nutrient recovery, and algal biomass production. Conical flasks (1-L) and 6-L transparent plastic bottles were used as lab-scale algae photobioreactors (APBRs). Raw wastewater, an anaerobically pre-treated effluent and a DAF–SBR or shortly SBR effluent were used in the first, second, and third APBR. Three feed volumes from each source (150 mL, 300 mL, and 500 mL for first and second APBR and 400 mL, 600 mL, and 800 mL for third APBR) to a fixed volume of algal seed (200 mL) were tested to select the optimal feed volume and harvest time using a 1-L APBR. System performance and impact of water characteristics on quantity and quality of algal biomass were explored at pre-selected feed volume and harvest time in 6-L APBRs. All experiments were carried out in a growth chamber with continuous light (148.75 μmol.m−2.S−1). The results showed that 150 mL is the optimal feed volume for the first and second APBR at 10 days and 9 days growth cycles. An amount of 500 mL and 6 days were selected as the optimal feed volume and growth cycle for the third APBR. The average dry biomass yields at the pre-selected optimal conditions were 65.3 ± 11.4, 69.9 ± 12.0, and 100.6 ± 11.7 mg/L.d in the first, second, and third APBR, respectively. The first APBR achieved removals of 99.2 ± 0.4%, 98.7 ± 0.8%, 89.1 ± 4.3%, and 97.5 ± 1.4% for turbidity, COD, TKN, and TP, respectively, on average. Corresponding removal in the second APBR is 97.6 ± 2.6%, 91.6 ± 7.5%, 93.6 ± 4.5%, and 96.1 ± 1.4%, respectively, while the third APBR achieved 98.5%, 76.2%, and 97.0%, respectively. Additionally, the results of protein content and amino acids profiles indicate significant impacts of feed water quality on both parameters. The protein content was 30.64%, 32.53%, and 35.65% in the first, second, and third APBR, respectively. Similarly, the amino acids profile indicated a significant higher percentage of the amino acids in the third reactor compared with the first and second reactor. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Remediation of Complex Wastewater: Challenges and Technologies)
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17 pages, 2595 KB  
Article
Magnetic Field-Assisted Electro-Fenton System Using Magnetite as a Sustainable Iron Source for Wastewater Treatment
by Evelyn A. Hernández-Rodríguez, Josué D. García-Espinoza, José Treviño-Resendez, Mónica Razo-Negrete, Gustavo Acosta-Santoyo, Luis A. Godínez and Irma Robles
Processes 2026, 14(2), 264; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr14020264 - 12 Jan 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 929
Abstract
The Electro-Fenton (EF) process is a promising technology for the sustainable remediation of organic contaminants in complex wastewater. In this study, a weak magnetic field (~150 G) was applied to enhance the performance of an EF system using magnetite (Fe3O4 [...] Read more.
The Electro-Fenton (EF) process is a promising technology for the sustainable remediation of organic contaminants in complex wastewater. In this study, a weak magnetic field (~150 G) was applied to enhance the performance of an EF system using magnetite (Fe3O4) synthesized by a controlled co-precipitation route as a recyclable solid iron source. The magnetite was characterized by FTIR, SEM/EDS, and XPS, confirming the coexistence of Fe2+/Fe3+ species essential for in situ Fenton-like reactions. Under the selected operating conditions (90 min reaction time), magnetic-field assistance improved methylene blue decolorization from 14.2% to 46.0% at pH 3. FeSO4 was used only as a homogeneous benchmark, whereas the magnetite-based system operated without soluble iron addition, minimizing sludge formation and secondary contamination. These results demonstrate the potential of magnetite-assisted and magnetically enhanced EF systems as a low-cost, sustainable alternative for the treatment of dye-containing industrial wastewater and other complex effluents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Remediation of Complex Wastewater: Challenges and Technologies)
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18 pages, 1955 KB  
Article
Hybrid Solar Photoelectro-Fenton and Ozone Processes for the Sustainable Removal of COVID-19 Pharmaceutical Contaminants
by Sonia Herrera-Chávez, Martin Pacheco-Álvarez, Luis A. Godínez, Enric Brillas and Juan M. Peralta-Hernández
Processes 2025, 13(10), 3234; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13103234 - 10 Oct 2025
Viewed by 1287
Abstract
This study explores a hybrid advanced electrochemical oxidation process (EAOP) intensified by solar irradiation and ozone for the treatment of wastewater containing COVID-19-related pharmaceuticals. Pilot-scale trials were performed in a 30 L compound parabolic collector (CPC)-type photoreactor with a boron-doped diamond (BDD–BDD) electrode [...] Read more.
This study explores a hybrid advanced electrochemical oxidation process (EAOP) intensified by solar irradiation and ozone for the treatment of wastewater containing COVID-19-related pharmaceuticals. Pilot-scale trials were performed in a 30 L compound parabolic collector (CPC)-type photoreactor with a boron-doped diamond (BDD–BDD) electrode configuration. Under optimal conditions (50 mg L−1 paracetamol, 0.05 M Na2SO4, 0.50 mM Fe2+, pH 3.0, and 60 mA cm−2), the solar photoelectro-Fenton (SPEF) process achieved 78% chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction within 90 min, with catechol and phenol detected as the main aromatic intermediates. When applied to a four-drug mixture (dexamethasone, paracetamol, amoxicillin, and azithromycin), the solar photoelectro-Fenton (SPEF–ozone (O3)) system reached 60% degradation and 41% COD removal under solar conditions. The results highlight the synergistic effect of ozone and solar energy in enhancing the electrochemical oxidation process (EAOP) performance and demonstrate the potential of these processes for scalable and sustainable removal of pharmaceutical contaminants from wastewater. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Remediation of Complex Wastewater: Challenges and Technologies)
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