Removing Challenging Pollutants from Wastewater: Effective Approaches

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the global population on the rise and industrial activities expanding, the issue of wastewater pollution has escalated, posing threats to both the environment and human health. Pollutants such as heavy metals, antibiotics, microplastics, and others not only contaminate water sources but also present risks to human health through the food chain. It is imperative that we take urgent action to effectively treat wastewater and mitigate the harm it poses to both the environment and public health. In response to these challenges, our focus is on effective approaches for removing pollutants from wastewater.

This Topic serves as a vital platform for sharing recent advancements in the removal of toxic substances such as heavy metals, radionuclides, microplastics, PFAS, and antibiotics. We aim to explore methods such as membrane separation, adsorption, and advanced oxidation technologies, offering both a venue for comprehensive reviews and a space for original research contributions. Insights into the economic aspects of green or clean technology for water treatment are also highly encouraged.

Dr. Shuting Zhuang
Dr. Jiang-Bo Huo
Dr. Suping Yu
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Clean Technologies cleantechnol	4.1	8.3	2019	33.5 Days	CHF 1600
Membranes membranes	3.3	7.9	2011	14.9 Days	CHF 2200
Nanomaterials nanomaterials	4.4	9.2	2010	14.1 Days	CHF 2400
Sustainability sustainability	3.3	7.7	2009	19.7 Days	CHF 2400
Water water	3.0	6.0	2009	17.5 Days	CHF 2600

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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All Clean Technol. Membranes Nanomaterials Sustainability Water

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23 pages, 2883 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Effectiveness of Rain Gardens for Managing Non-Point Source Pollution from Urban Surface Storm Water Runoff in Eastern Texas, USA

by Shradhda Suman Jnawali, Matthew McBroom, Yanli Zhang, Kevin Stafford, Zhengyi Wang, David Creech and Zhongqian Cheng

Sustainability 2025, 17(10), 4631; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17104631 - 18 May 2025

Viewed by 847

Abstract

Extreme precipitation events are one of the common hazards in eastern Texas, generating a large amount of storm water. Water running off urban areas may carry non-point source (NPS) pollution to natural resources such as rivers and lakes. Urbanization exacerbates this issue by [...] Read more.

Extreme precipitation events are one of the common hazards in eastern Texas, generating a large amount of storm water. Water running off urban areas may carry non-point source (NPS) pollution to natural resources such as rivers and lakes. Urbanization exacerbates this issue by increasing impervious surfaces that prevent natural infiltration. This study evaluated the efficacy of rain gardens, a nature-based best management practice (BMP), in mitigating NPS pollution from urban stormwater runoff. Stormwater samples were collected at inflow and outflow points of three rain gardens and analyzed for various water quality parameters, including pH, electrical conductivity, fluoride, chloride, nitrate, nitrite, phosphate, sulfate, salts, carbonates, bicarbonates, sodium, potassium, aluminum, boron, calcium, mercury, arsenic, copper iron lead magnesium, manganese and zinc. Removal efficiencies for nitrate, phosphate, and zinc exceeded 70%, while heavy metals such as lead achieved reductions up to 80%. However, certain parameters, such as calcium, magnesium and conductivity, showed increased outflow concentrations, attributed to substrate leaching. These increases resulted in a higher outflow pH. Overall, the pollutants were removed with an efficiency exceeding 50%. These findings demonstrate that rain gardens are an effective and sustainable solution for managing urban stormwater runoff and mitigating NPS pollution in eastern Texas, particularly in regions vulnerable to extreme precipitation events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Removing Challenging Pollutants from Wastewater: Effective Approaches)

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9 pages, 2749 KiB  

Open AccessCommunication

Carbonation of Ammonium Diuranate Filtrate to Enhance Uranium Rejection by Nanofiltration

by Runci Wang, Zhongwei Yuan, Xiang Meng, Taihong Yan and Weifang Zheng

Membranes 2025, 15(5), 133; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes15050133 - 1 May 2025

Viewed by 383

Abstract

A commercial polymeric nanofiltration membrane (NF270, DuPont) was employed for uranium removal from ammonium diuranate filtrate (ADUF). Carbonate supplementation through ammonium carbonate addition enhanced uranium rejection via formation of uranyl–carbonate coordination complexes. Systematic speciation analysis of uranium species in ADUF was conducted, coupled [...] Read more.

A commercial polymeric nanofiltration membrane (NF270, DuPont) was employed for uranium removal from ammonium diuranate filtrate (ADUF). Carbonate supplementation through ammonium carbonate addition enhanced uranium rejection via formation of uranyl–carbonate coordination complexes. Systematic speciation analysis of uranium species in ADUF was conducted, coupled with calculation of the concentration polarization modulus to optimize ammonium carbonate dosage. The experimental results demonstrated that with 680 mg/L ammonium carbonate addition, the permeate uranium concentration decreased from 1.2 mg/L to 0.64 mg/L. This study confirms the technical feasibility of ADUF carbonation pretreatment for improving uranium retention efficiency in nanofiltration processes, achieving 46.7% reduction in uranium permeation flux. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Removing Challenging Pollutants from Wastewater: Effective Approaches)

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16 pages, 2720 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Ultrapure Water Production by a Saline Industrial Effluent Treatment

by Adriana Hernández Miraflores, Karina Hernández Gómez, Claudia Muro, María Claudia Delgado Hernández, Vianney Díaz Blancas, Jesús Álvarez Sánchez and German Eduardo Devora Isordia

Membranes 2025, 15(4), 116; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes15040116 - 7 Apr 2025

Viewed by 550

Abstract

A membrane system was applied for ultrapure water production from the treatment of saline effluent from the canned food industry. The industrial effluent presented a high saline concentration, including sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, calcium sulfates, and magnesium. The effluent was treated using a [...] Read more.

A membrane system was applied for ultrapure water production from the treatment of saline effluent from the canned food industry. The industrial effluent presented a high saline concentration, including sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, calcium sulfates, and magnesium. The effluent was treated using a system of reverse osmosis (RO) and a post-treatment process consisting of ion exchange resins (IEXRs). The RO was accompanied by the addition of a hexametaphosphate dose (2, 6, and 10 mg/L) as an antiscalant to avoid the RO membrane scaling by minerals. In turn, IEXRs were used for water deionization to produce ultrapure water with a reduced concentration of monovalent ions. The antiscalant dose was 6 mg/L, producing clean water from RO permeates with an efficiency of 65–70%. The brine from RO was projected for its reuse in food industry processes. The clean water quality from RO showed 20% total dissolved solids (TDS) removal (equivalent to salts). The antiscalant inhibited the formation of calcium salt incrustation > 200 mg/L, showing low fouling. In turn, anionic resins removed 99.8% of chloride ions, whereas the monovalent salts were removed by a mix of cationic–anionic resin, producing ultrapure water with electrical conductivity < 3.3 µS/cm. The cost of ultrapure water production was 2.62 USD/m³. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Removing Challenging Pollutants from Wastewater: Effective Approaches)

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12 pages, 5559 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Potassium-Based Solid Sorbents for CO₂ Adsorption: Key Role of Interconnected Pores

by Yuan Zhao, Jiangbo Huo, Xuefei Wang and Shunwei Ma

Nanomaterials 2024, 14(22), 1838; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano14221838 - 17 Nov 2024

Viewed by 1189

Abstract

Industrial CO₂ emissions contribute to pollution and greenhouse effects, highlighting the importance of carbon capture. Potassium carbonate (K₂CO₃) is an effective CO₂ absorbent, yet its liquid-phase absorption faces issues like diffusion resistance and corrosion risks. In this [...] Read more.

Industrial CO₂ emissions contribute to pollution and greenhouse effects, highlighting the importance of carbon capture. Potassium carbonate (K₂CO₃) is an effective CO₂ absorbent, yet its liquid-phase absorption faces issues like diffusion resistance and corrosion risks. In this work, the solid adsorbents were developed with K₂CO₃ immobilized on the selected porous supports. Al₂O₃ had an optimum CO₂ adsorption capacity of 0.82 mmol g⁻¹. After further optimization of its pore structure, the self-prepared support Al₂O₃-2, which has an average pore diameter of 11.89 nm and a pore volume of 0.59 cm³ g⁻¹, achieved a maximum CO₂ adsorption capacity of 1.12 mmol g⁻¹ following K₂CO₃ impregnation. Additionally, the relationship between support structure and CO₂ adsorption efficiency was also analyzed. The connectivity of the pores and the large pore diameter of the support may play a key role in enhancing CO₂ adsorption performance. During 10 cycles of testing, the K₂CO₃-based adsorbents demonstrated consistent high CO₂ adsorption capacity with negligible degradation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Removing Challenging Pollutants from Wastewater: Effective Approaches)

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