sustainability-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Emerging Technologies for Wastewater Treatment, Pollution Control and Resource Recovery

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 9656

Special Issue Editors

Department of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Interests: waste water treatment; drinking water treatment; nanomaterials for environmental remediation
State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Interests: advanced oxidation processes; membrane water treatment; preparation and application of advanced nanomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Interests: ultrafiltration; nanofiltration; electrodialysis; heterogeneous material

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water security is closely associated with human survival and development. With the fast development of technology and industry, extremely large amounts of wastewater are produced and discharged into the environment; therefore, effective wastewater treatment is important for the protection of both human health and the ecological environment. At present, the main strategy for wastewater treatment is still the end-of-pipe treatment, in which the degradation of water pollutants requires a colossal input of energy and chemicals into the wastewater through methods such as aeration and external carbon sources. Moreover, the release of greenhouse gases during biological and chemical wastewater treatment processes is also a severe problem that has failed to attract widespread attention from researchers. Therefore, the development of emerging technologies for wastewater treatment and resource recovery is necessary and highly demanded.

The focus of this Special Issue, entitled “Emerging Technologies for Wastewater Treatment, Pollution Control and Resource Recovery” is on addressing these demands. By minimizing the cost and secondary pollution of wastewater treatment processes and maximizing the value of resources recovered from wastewater, we hope that the emerging technologies reported in this Special Issue will provide many feasible options for achieving the sustainable utilization of water resources and contribute to building a sustainable and environmentally friendly society.

We invite researchers from all around the world to submit original research articles, communications, and reviews to this Special Issue. The topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following aspects:

  • Novel functional materials for wastewater treatment;
  • Membrane systems for water treatment and the enrichment of pollutants;
  • Emerging technologies for the treatment of refractory pollutants;
  • Efficient methods for resource recovery from wastewater;
  • Water reuse technologies;
  • Hazardous waste management;
  • Technologies to promote sanitation and public health;
  • The sensing and monitoring of water quality;
  • Decentralized wastewater treatment;
  • The fate and transportation of pollutants in the environment.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Xu He
Dr. Zhiqiang Sun
Dr. Mingrui He
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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. Sustainability 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

  • wastewater treatment
  • pollution control
  • resource recovery
  • nanomaterials
  • membrane
  • environmental catalysis
  • decentralized water treatment

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

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

Published Papers (5 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

14 pages, 4044 KiB  
Article
Novel Application of MnO2–H2O2 System for Highly Efficient Arsenic Adsorption and Oxidation
by Qingliang Liu, Yu Wang, Ying Zhao, Zhiqiang Sun, Jun Ma and Xu He
Sustainability 2023, 15(11), 9080; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15119080 - 4 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1578
Abstract
A novel manganese dioxide–hydrogen peroxide (MnO2–H2O2) system was developed for effective Arsenic (As) removal. Under the specified conditions of no external mechanical stirring, a trace H2O2 concentration of 0.015 wt%, and a MnO2 [...] Read more.
A novel manganese dioxide–hydrogen peroxide (MnO2–H2O2) system was developed for effective Arsenic (As) removal. Under the specified conditions of no external mechanical stirring, a trace H2O2 concentration of 0.015 wt%, and a MnO2 concentration of 25 mg/L, high removal efficiency (88%) of As (100 µg/L) was achieved by the MnO2–H2O2 system within 30 min, which differs from conventional adsorption processes that require external mechanical stirring and conventional arsenite (As (III)) oxidation–adsorption processes that require high quantities of oxidants (such as ozone) and specially synthesized adsorbents/catalysts. The high removal efficiency of As (III) by the MnO2–H2O2 system was attributed to the turbulent conditions precipitated by the extensively generated oxygen (O2) from the catalytic decomposition of H2O2, the efficient adsorption of As on the surface of MnO2, and the effective generation of reactive radicals including hydroxyl and superoxide radicals (•OH and •O2). Moreover, the MnO2 adsorbents before and after As removal were characterized systematically, and the generated radicals were verified using electron spin resonance (ESR). The results showed that the formation of inner-sphere surface complexes by the surface hydroxyl groups of MnO2 particles and As was responsible for the effective As adsorption process, and the oxidation of As (III) to arsenate (As (V)) was achieved via the generated radicals. The influences of representative environmental factors on As removal performance and the application of the MnO2–H2O2 system in river water and ground water were further studied and tested. In conclusion, the MnO2–H2O2 system offers several advantages, including low cost, ease of operation, and strong environmental adaptability, making it highly promising for practical water treatment applications. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 2726 KiB  
Article
Efficient Degradation of 4-Acetamidoantipyrin Using a Thermally Activated Persulfate System
by Qinghong Wang, Siyu Li, Xin Wang, Zhuoyu Li, Yali Zhan and Chunmao Chen
Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 14300; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142114300 - 1 Nov 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1753
Abstract
The extensive use of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) causes high concentrations of pharmaceutical metabolites to exist in aquatic environments. Though the removal of parent PPCPs has raised concerns, the degradation of pharmaceutical metabolites was rarely investigated. In this study, the degradation [...] Read more.
The extensive use of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) causes high concentrations of pharmaceutical metabolites to exist in aquatic environments. Though the removal of parent PPCPs has raised concerns, the degradation of pharmaceutical metabolites was rarely investigated. In this study, the degradation of 4-acetylaminoantipyrine (4-AAA), a typical dipyrone metabolite frequently detected worldwide in surface water and wastewater, was initially studied using persulfate (PDS)-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs). Compared with commonly used activation methods of alkali, ultrasonic, ultraviolet, and Fe2+, 4-AAA achieved its best degradation (98.9%) within 30 min in a thermally activated PDS system due to the promotion of both radical production and the reaction rate with the rise in temperature. The optimum degradation of 4-AAA could be achieved with the temperature of 80 °C regardless of initial pH values, indicating a wide suitable pH range. Moreover, over 80% of the degradation of 4-AAA could be achieved with the presence of Cl (0–16 mM), HCO3 (0–8 mM), and humic acid (0–30 mg/L), further indicating the application potential of the system. Both sulfate radicals (SO4•−) and hydroxyl radicals (•OH) contributed to 4-AAA degradation and the contribution of •OH increased with the pH rising from 3 to 11 due to the transformation from SO4•− when reacting with OH. Three hydroxylated and ring-opening intermediates were detected during the 4-AAA degradation. The ECOSAR prediction indicated that the acute toxicity of most intermediates decreased than 4-AAA while the chronic toxicity increased, which suggested the transformation of intermediates should be further focused on in SO4•− and •OH based AOPs. This study would provide technical reference for the control of 4-AAA in wastewater treatment processes, raise concerns on the influence of PPCPs metabolites, and throw light on reducing the harm of PPCPs and their metabolites in aquatic environments. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 3747 KiB  
Article
Experimental and Theoretical Study on Mechanical Performance of a Sustainable Method to Simultaneously Generate Power and Fresh Water
by Abhijit Date, Oranit Traisak, Matthew Ward, Eliza Rupakheti, Eric Hu and Hamid Khayyam
Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 14039; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142114039 - 28 Oct 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1387
Abstract
Many regions around the world have limited access to clean water and power. Low-grade thermal energy in the form of industrial waste heat or non-concentrating solar thermal energy is an underutilized resource and can be used for water desalination and power generation. This [...] Read more.
Many regions around the world have limited access to clean water and power. Low-grade thermal energy in the form of industrial waste heat or non-concentrating solar thermal energy is an underutilized resource and can be used for water desalination and power generation. This paper experimentally and theoretically examines a thermoelectric-based simultaneous power generation and desalination system that can utilize low-grade thermal energy. The paper presents concept design and the theoretical analysis of the proposed system followed by experimental analysis and comparison with the theoretical estimations. Experiments were carried out at three heat loads 50, 100 and 150 W to achieve varying temperature gradients across thermoelectric generators. During the experiments, thermoelectric generators were maintained at a hot to cold side temperature difference between 20 to 60 °C. The experiments showed that the power generation flux and freshwater mass flux increased with the increase in the thermal energy source temperature. The power flux varied between 12 to 117 W/m2 of thermoelectric generator area, while freshwater mass flux varied between 4.8 to 23.7 kg/m2⋅h. The specific thermal energy consumption varied between 3.6 to 5.7 MJ/kg of freshwater; this is comparable to the single-stage conventional distillation system. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 35637 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Mixing Chamber Configuration and Submersion Depth on Centrifugal Aerator Performance
by Zhen Zhang, Yuan Zheng, Xiwang Xu and Bin Peng
Sustainability 2022, 14(18), 11355; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811355 - 10 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1710
Abstract
Centrifugal aerators are a vital piece of equipment in water treatment. To improve the efficiency and economy of their operation, a study of their mixing chamber structure and submergence depth was carried out using a combination of numerical simulations and experiments. A centrifugal [...] Read more.
Centrifugal aerators are a vital piece of equipment in water treatment. To improve the efficiency and economy of their operation, a study of their mixing chamber structure and submergence depth was carried out using a combination of numerical simulations and experiments. A centrifugal aerator dissolved oxygen (DO) test bench was built and the numerical simulation was compared with the experiment, the inlet air flow rate showing only a 2.23% error, which verifies the reliability of the numerical simulation. The results show that the capacity of oxygen dissolved in the aeration tank increases and then decreases as the relative area ratio (ð) of the mixing chamber increases, reaching the best capacity at ð = 8.38. In the case of different submergence coefficients (β), the gas volume fraction increased by 31.29% on average at β = 0.15; the standard oxygen transfer rate (SOTR) increased and then decreased with the increase of β, with an average increase of 56.6%. Moreover, the oxygenation performance of centrifugal aerators was significantly improved by the reasonable submergence depth and the structure of the mixing chamber. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 1608 KiB  
Article
Phytoremediation of Composite Industrial Effluent using Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn): A Lab-Scale Experimental Investigation
by Arwa A. AL-Huqail, Piyush Kumar, Ebrahem M. Eid, Mostafa A. Taher, Pankaj Kumar, Bashir Adelodun, Željko Andabaka, Boro Mioč, Valentino Držaić, Archana Bachheti, Jogendra Singh, Vinod Kumar and Ivan Širić
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9500; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159500 - 2 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2518
Abstract
This study investigates the phytoremediation of composite industrial effluent (CIE) released from multiple industries within the SIIDCUL cluster, Haridwar, India, using the sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn) plant. Batch-mode phytoremediation experiments were conducted using three selected concentrations (0%: borewell water as control, [...] Read more.
This study investigates the phytoremediation of composite industrial effluent (CIE) released from multiple industries within the SIIDCUL cluster, Haridwar, India, using the sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn) plant. Batch-mode phytoremediation experiments were conducted using three selected concentrations (0%: borewell water as control, 50%, and 100%) of CIE for 45 days. Results show that the N. nucifera plant significantly reduced loads of physicochemical and heavy metal pollutants of CIE. In particular, the maximal removal of total dissolved solids (TDS: 89.56%), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD: 78.20%), chemical oxygen demand (COD: 79.41%), total Kjeldahl’s nitrogen (TKN: 86.48%), phosphorus (P: 76.37%), cadmium (Cd: 70.37%), copper (Cu: 85.82%), chromium (Cr: 68.61%), iron (Fe: 72.86%), lead (Pb: 76.92%), and zinc (Zn: 74.51%) pollutants was noted in the 50% CIE concentration treatment. Heavy metal bioaccumulation and translocation factor values (>1) for root and leaf parts show that the N. nucifera plant was a hyperaccumulator. However, the contents of heavy metals were higher in the root than the leaf part of the N. nucifera plant. Moreover, the selected plant growth attributes such as fresh plant biomass (760.70 ± 8.77 g/plant; without flowers), chlorophyll content (4.30 ± 0.22 mg/g fwt.), plant height (154.05 ± 4.55 cm), root length (70.35 ± 2.42 cm), leaf spread (41.58 ± 0.26 cm), number of leaves (10.00 ± 1.00 per plant), and number of flowers (16.00 ± 2.00) were also maximal in the 50% CIE concentration. This study provides a sustainable approach towards the effective biotreatment of noxious mixed effluent using plant-based green technology. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop