Researchers at Amirkabir University of Technology have developed a nanotechnology-based method to eliminate heavy metals, including mercury, cadmium, arsenic, chromium, thallium and lead, from industrial wastewater.
According to Mitra Bayat, the head of the research team, the new technology is an efficient and cost-effective solution for the extraction of heavy metals from water and takes advantage of iron-based nanoparticles for the remediations of contaminants from wastewater, IRNA reported.
“The treatment of heavy metal pollution in industrial wastewater is critical for protecting human health and the environment,” she said.
“The upgraded nanoparticles, produced in Iran for the first time, can be used in all industries and have proven to be more effective than foreign products.”
Bayat noted that comprehensive studies are underway to use the same technology to treat drinking water resources, especially in remote areas.
In certain areas, water contains elements toxic to humans and the ecosystem. Its treatment helps overcome the significant health risks posed by unclean water that cause 1.7 million deaths annually, of which over 90% are in developing countries.
Several water-related diseases, including cholera and schistosomiasis, remain widespread across many developing countries, where only a very small fraction (in some cases less than 5%) of domestic and urban wastewater is treated prior to its release into the environment3.
Wastewater treatment also help protect the ecosystem. When the water environment is laden with wastewater, fish and aquatic animals cannot survive.
If chemicals, such as nitrogen and phosphates, enter streams, rivers or large bodies of water in excessive amounts, it causes excessive plant growth that release toxins into the water. This leads to oxygen depletion and dead zones; areas where fish and other aquatic life can no longer exist.
