Cadmium and copper heavy metal treatment from water resources by high-performance folic acid-graphene oxide nanocomposite adsorbent and evaluation of adsorptive mechanism using computational intelligence, isotherm, kinetic, and thermodynamic analyses.

In this paper, folic acid-coated graphene oxide nanocomposite (FA-GO) is used as an adsorbent for the treatment of heavy metals including cadmium (Cd2+) and copper (Cu2+) ions. As such, graphene oxide (GO) is modified by folic acid (FA) to synthesize FA-GO nanocomposite and characterized by the atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and C/H/N elemental analyses. Also, computational intelligence tests are used to study the mechanism of the interaction of FA molecules with GO. Based on the results, FA molecules formed a strong π-π stacking, chemical, and hydrogen bond interactions with functional groups of GO. Main parameters including pH of the sample solution, amounts of adsorbent, and contact time are studied and optimized by the Response Surface Methodology Based on Central Composite Design (RSM-CCD). In this study, the equilibrium of adsorption is appraised by two (Langmuir and Freundlich and Temkin and D-R models) and three parameter (Sips, Toth, and Khan models) isotherms. Based on the two parameter evaluations, Langmuir and Freundlich models have high accuracy according to the R2 coefficient (more than 0.9) in experimental curve fittings of each pollutant adsorption. But, multilayer adsorption of each contaminant onto the FA-GO adsorbent (Freundlich equation) is demonstrated by three parameter isotherm analysis. Also, isotherm calculations express maximum computational adsorption capacities of 103.1 and 116.3 mg g-1 for Cd2+ and Cu2+ ions, correspondingly. Kinetic models are scrutinized and the outcomes depict the adsorption of both Cd2+ and Cu2+ followed by the pseudo-second-order equation. Meanwhile, the results of the geometric model illustrate that the variation of adsorption and desorption rates do not have any interfering during the adsorption process. Finally, thermodynamic studies show that the adsorption of Cu2+ and Cd2+ onto the FA-GO nanocomposite is an endothermic and spontaneous process.

Photocatalytic mineralization of hard-degradable morphine by visible light-driven Ag@g-C3N4 nanostructures.

The entrance of some hard-degradable pharmaceutical contaminants can cause irreparable damage to humans and other organisms; therefore, removing these pollutants from water is one of the most important activities in water purification field. In this work, the mineralization of morphine was performed using photocatalytic degradation method. Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheets, due to their promising tunable characteristics, were chosen as visible-light-driven nanostructured heterogeneous photocatalyst. To enhance the photocatalytic activity, g-C3N4 was doped with Ag noble metal due to its surface plasmon resonance effect and acting as an electron sink. The photodegradation of morphine was evaluated under different pH values, the dosage of the photocatalyst, initial concentration of morphine, and Ag% loading under sunlight as green energy. The maximum efficiency was obtained in the very low concentration of Ag@g-C3N4 photocatalyst with the superior low value of 0.17 g L-1. Near complete mineralization of morphine was achieved by Ag@g-C3N4 with metal content percentage equal to 5 in 180 min and pH = 2. Also, using various active species scavengers, superoxide anion radical was identified as the main responsible species in the photocatalysis reaction of morphine degradation.