Carbon metal nanoparticle composites for the removal of pollutants

Abstract

Pollution in the water bodies has been on the rise for several decades. To address this issue, many technologies involving physical, chemical, biological, and electrochemical processes are being utilised. Nevertheless, their commercial use is limited by a number of inherent drawbacks. Here, nanotechnology combined with material science has offered practical and economical ways to remove organic pollutants from the wastewater. This review will provide a detailed overview of the efficiency and applicability of various carbon-metal nanoparticle adsorbents such as heavy metals (mercury, lead, and cadmium), organic contaminants (benzene, insecticides, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon), and nitrogen and sulfur compounds from the wastewater by the adsorption process. The future research direction and the encouraging future of carbon composites loaded with metal nanoparticles for environmental applications are also discussed.