Effective Elimination of Contaminant Antibiotics Using High-Surface-Area Magnetic-Functionalized Graphene Nanocomposites Developed from Plastic Waste

Abstract

The presence of pharmaceutical residues in aquatic environments represents a risk for the equilibrium of the ecosystem and may seriously affect human safety itself in the long term. To address this issue, we have synthesized functional materials based on highly-reduced graphene oxide (HRGO), sulfonated graphene (SG), and magnetic sulfonated graphene (MSG). The method of synthesis adopted is simple and inexpensive and makes use of plastic bottle waste as the raw material. We have tested the fabricated materials for their adsorption efficiency against two model antibiotics in aqueous solutions, namely Garamycin and Ampicillin. Our tests involved the optimization of different experimental parameters of the adsorption process, such as starting antibiotic concentration, amount of adsorbent, and time. Finally, we characterized the effect of the antibiotic adsorption process on common living organisms, namely Escherichia coli DH5α (E. coli DH5α) bacteria. The results obtained demonstrate the efficiency of the method in addressing the issue of the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which will help in preventing changes in the ecosystem.

Obtention of biochar-Fe/Ce using Punica granatum with high adsorption of ampicillin capacity

“…Whilst, for C-Fe/Ce they were 27.61, 27.18 and 23.49 mg g À1 at the same temperatures mentioned above, therefore, the adsorption of AMP in both materials is carried out in a monolayer on a homogeneous surface [66,67]. It should be noted that the presence of nanoparticles on the surface of the material [68] leads to an increase in the adsorption capacity of AMP. Langmuir's model is expressed in Eq.…”

Transport, fate, and bioavailability of emerging pollutants in soil, sediment, and wastewater treatment plants: potential environmental impacts

“…5.1). These products are also not completely metabolized and are detected in sewage from excreted human and animal body fluids (Elessawy et al, 2020). For example, aminoglycosides and β-lactams are not entirely biodegradable, and their residues may induce antibiotic resistance in microorganisms present in the environment (Davies, 2006;Elessawy et al, 2020).…”

Antibiotics Removal from Aqueous Environments: A Mini Review on Graphene Oxide-based Nanomaterials Application

“…MATERIAL Graphene has previously been utilized as an adsorbent in research to remove various antibiotics from environmental aqueous solutions [62]. However, its removal performance was still deemed mediocre in practical applications due to some drawbacks, such as surface hydrophobicity and facile aggregation in aqueous solutions [63], [64]. Thus, graphene is functionalized through a chemical or thermal approach and becomes an alternative material, such as GO and reduced GO (rGO), to address the drawbacks.…”