Issue 4, 2024

An environment friendly multifunctional ZnO/wood fiber composite for the treatment of wastewater mixed with emulsions and dye

Abstract

In general, oily wastewater is a complicated combination of dye wastewater, bacteria, and other pollutants. However, most of the materials used for treating oily wastewater are single-function. Effectively removing emulsions and dyes simultaneously from mixed wastewater is challenging. In this study, we chose wood fiber as a supporting material. ZnO was uniformly grown on the surface of the wood fiber by a one-step hydrothermal method. After freeze-drying, a ZnO/wood fiber composite was successfully created. The composite was hydrophilic and oleophobic and had excellent antibacterial characteristics (>99.94%). The effectiveness of the composite in the separation of oil-in-water emulsions stabilized with a surfactant could reach 99.31%, owing to ZnO's enhanced emulsion breaking and separation capabilities. In addition, ZnO may interact electrostatically with dye molecules, allowing for 99.92% efficiency in dye adsorption during emulsion separation. Then, ZnO provided ZnO/wood fiber composite photocatalytic degradation of dyes, which allowed for repeated recycling of the ZnO/wood fiber composite, resulting in 98.80% emulsion interception and 99.90% dye removal after five cycles. The environment friendly ZnO/wood fiber composite has remarkable multifunctionality for emulsion separation, dye adsorption, self-cleaning, and antibacterial properties, which provides a novel treatment option for mixed emulsion and dye wastewater.

Graphical abstract: An environment friendly multifunctional ZnO/wood fiber composite for the treatment of wastewater mixed with emulsions and dye

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
07 Nov 2023
Accepted
13 Jan 2024
First published
24 Jan 2024

Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2024,10, 836-846

An environment friendly multifunctional ZnO/wood fiber composite for the treatment of wastewater mixed with emulsions and dye

Q. Long, J. Li, H. Wu, Y. Lin, X. Zhou, Y. Huang, P. Zhang, Q. Zou and R. Zhang, Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2024, 10, 836 DOI: 10.1039/D3EW00821E

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