Investigation of the potential of pomegranate peel as a treatment option for heavy metal contaminated wastewater: Experimental and modeling approaches
Javad Zareei,
Nizomiddin Juraev,
Sabir Tagelsir Hassan Widatalla,
M. Kerwad,
Dmitry Olegovich Bokov,
Khalid A. Alkhuzai,
Carlos Rodriguez-Benites,
Merwa Alhadrawi,
Salah Hassan Zain Al-Abdeen
Affiliations
Javad Zareei
Department of Biosystem Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran; Corresponding author.
Nizomiddin Juraev
Faculty of Chemical Engineering, New Uzbekistan University, Tashkent, Uzbekistan; Scientific and Innovation Department, Tashkent State Pedagogical University, Uzbekistan
Sabir Tagelsir Hassan Widatalla
Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
M. Kerwad
General Department, Faculty of Information Technology, Misurata University, Misurata, Libya
Dmitry Olegovich Bokov
Institute of Pharmacy Named After A.P. Nelyubin, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Russia; Laboratory of Food Chemistry, Federal Research Center of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety, Russia
Khalid A. Alkhuzai
Department of Civil Engineering, Al-Baha University, Al-Baha, Saudi Arabia
Carlos Rodriguez-Benites
Direccion de investigacion, Centro de investigacion de la Creatividad, Univesidad de Ciencias y artes de America Latina Lima, 15026, Peru
Merwa Alhadrawi
Department of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Techniques, College of Technical Engineering, The Islamic University, Najaf, Iraq; Department of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Techniques, College of Technical Engineering, The Islamic University of Al Diwaniyah, Al Diwaniyah, Iraq; Department of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Techniques, College of Technical Engineering, The Islamic University of Babylon, Babylon, Iraq
Salah Hassan Zain Al-Abdeen
Department of Medical Laboratories Technology, AL-Nisour University College, Baghdad, Iraq
Heavy metals can cause serious environmental and human health problems, and their removal from wastewater is critical to protect our planet and communities. This study investigated the ability of crushed pomegranate peel to remove mercury and cadmium ions from contaminated water as a function of different experimental parameters. The experimental results showed that the pH of the solution influenced the adsorptive removal of heavy metals, with the best performance observed at pH 4.8. Optimization studies and process balance modeling were performed to optimize the process for commercial use. The performance of pomegranate peel was compared with that of other materials, and the highest adsorption capacities for both cadmium (Ca (II)) and mercury (Hg (II)) ions were observed to be 89.59 and 42.125 mg/g, respectively. The results were interpreted using the Langmuir model, which provided the best fit to describe the behavior of the process.
