Optimization, Nature, and Mechanism Investigations for the Adsorption of Ciprofloxacin and Malachite Green onto Carbon Nanoparticles Derived from Low-Cost Precursor via a Green Route

Rasmiah S Almufarij; Babiker Y Abdulkhair; Mutaz Salih; Haia Aldosari; Najla W Aldayel

doi:10.3390/molecules27144577

Optimization, Nature, and Mechanism Investigations for the Adsorption of Ciprofloxacin and Malachite Green onto Carbon Nanoparticles Derived from Low-Cost Precursor via a Green Route

Molecules. 2022 Jul 18;27(14):4577. doi: 10.3390/molecules27144577.

Authors

Rasmiah S Almufarij¹, Babiker Y Abdulkhair², Mutaz Salih³, Haia Aldosari⁴, Najla W Aldayel¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU), P.O. Box 90905, Riyadh 11623, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Chemistry-Hurrymilla, College of Science and Humanities, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU), P.O. Box 5701, Hurrymilla 11432, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Department of Physics, College of Science, Shaqra University, P.O. Box 5701, Shaqra 11961, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

The spread of organic pollutants in water spoils the environment, and among the best-known sorbents for removing organic compounds are carbonaceous materials. Sunflower seed waste (SFSW) was employed as a green and low-cost precursor to prepare carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) via pyrolysis, followed by a ball-milling process. The CNPs were treated with a nitric-sulfuric acid mixture (1:1) at 100 °C. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed a particle size range of 38 to 45 nm, and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area was 162.9 m² g^-1. The elemental analysis was performed using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and the functional groups on the CNPs were examined with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Additionally, an X-ray diffractometer was employed to test the phase crystallinity of the prepared CNPs. The fabricated CNPs were used to adsorb ciprofloxacin (CFXN) and malachite green (MLG) from water. The experimentally obtained adsorption capacities for CFXN and MLG were 103.6 and 182.4 mg g^-1, respectively. The kinetic investigation implied that the adsorption of both pollutants fitted the pseudo-first-order model, and the intraparticle diffusion step controlled the process. The equilibrium findings for CFXN and MLG sorption on the CNPs followed the Langmuir and the Fredulich isotherm models, respectively. It was concluded that both pollutants spontaneously adsorbed on the CNPs, with physisorption being the likely mechanism. Additionally, the FTIR analysis of the adsorbed CFXN showed the disappearance of some functional groups, suggesting a chemisorption contribution. The CNPs showed an excellent performance in removing CFXN and MLG from groundwater and seawater samples and possessed consistent efficiency during the recycle-reuse study. The application of CNPs to treat synthetically contaminated natural water samples indicated the complete remediation of polluted water using the ball-mill-fabricated CNPs.

Keywords: ball milling; carbon nanoparticles; ciprofloxacin; malachite green; sunflower seed waste.

MeSH terms

Adsorption
Carbon
Ciprofloxacin / chemistry
Kinetics
Nanoparticles*
Rosaniline Dyes
Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
Water
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / chemistry

Substances

Rosaniline Dyes
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Water
malachite green
Ciprofloxacin
Carbon

Grants and funding

PNURSP2022R316/Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University