Advances in Technologies for Boron Removal from Water: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

Boron overabundance in aquatic environment raises severe concerns about the environment and human health because it is toxic to various crops and induces many human and animal diseases with long-term consequences. In response to the boron pollution of water resources and the difficulty of eliminating boron from water for production and living purposes, this article summarizes the progress in research on boron removal technology, addressing the following aspects: (1) the reasons for the difficulty of removing boron from water (boron chemistry); (2) ecological/biological toxicity and established regulations; (3) analysis of different existing processes (membrane processes, resin, adsorption, chemical precipitation, (electric) coagulation, extraction, and combined methods) in terms of their mechanisms, effectiveness, and limitations; (4) prospects for future studies and possible improvements in applicability and recyclability. The focus of this paper is thus to provide a comprehensive summary of reported deboronation processes to date, which will definitely identify directions for the development of boron removal technology in the future.

Contamination and Spatial Distribution of Metal(loid)s in the Stream Sediment near the Greenhouse

“…Boron(B) is one of the seven essential metal(loid)s in nature and is closely related to the survival of living things [104]. In agriculture, boron is used in products such as fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides [105,106]. Based on the results of the anomalous correlation analysis, it is judged that the need to investigate the cause of the occurrence of Cd-Zn and the accumulation of B is recognized.…”

“…The coefficients of variation for Cu, Pb, B, and Mn in Group 2 were relatively high compared to those in Group 1, with coefficients of variation greater than 50%. Furthermore, B and Mn are metal(loid)s that are commonly used in fertilizers and hydroponics in agriculture [44,104,105,109]. Group 3, Zn and Cd, includes groups 1 and 2, but their content is composed separately.…”

Evaluation of the Effect of Polyethylenimine on Boron Adsorption by Soil Minerals

“…[1] The recommended value for boron in drinking water established by the World Health Organisation is 2.4 mg dm À 3 , but this can vary from country to country depending on the standards they set. [2][3][4] Various methods have been used over the years to remove boron from aqueous solutions: adsorption, membrane, chemical, electrical and extraction, [5][6][7] but it can still be said to be a difficult and expensive task. [8] In recent years, the adsorption of toxic ions on the surface of various materials, including soil minerals, has been of steadily growing interest to researchers.…”

“…Various methods have been used over the years to remove boron from aqueous solutions: adsorption, membrane, chemical, electrical and extraction, [5–7] but it can still be said to be a difficult and expensive task [8] . In recent years, the adsorption of toxic ions on the surface of various materials, including soil minerals, has been of steadily growing interest to researchers.…”

Polymer-enhanced ultrafiltration–electrodeionization hybrid system for the removal of boron

“…22 The PEUF system can be adapted for boron removal by using a boron-selective sorbent, which generally contains diol-bearing moieties that form a potent complex with boron, such as N-methyl-D-glucamine (NMG)-containing functional groups. [23][24][25] For instance, Rivas, and Sanchez prepared poly(3(N-glycidol-N-methyl)-2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) to remove boron from aqueous solutions. 26 A blank test showed that the membrane without polymers could retain 20% of boron.…”