Efficient Removal of Heavy Metals, Dyes, and Contaminants from Industrial Wastewater Using Chitosan-Coated Fe3O4 Nanocomposites: Biosynthesis, Characterizations, and Performance Evaluation.

Industrial wastewater containing heavy metals, toxic compounds, and dyes poses significant environmental concerns. These substances harm aquatic and terrestrial life, making their removal essential for safeguarding biodiversity, ecosystems, and human health. This study focused on synthesizing Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (NPs) and their chitosan-coated composite (CS/Fe₃O₄ NC) for effective wastewater treatment. The NPs were synthesized using the aqueous leaf extract of Laurus nobilis and then coated with chitosan extracted from shrimp. Characterization analysis confirmed the spherical morphology of both Fe₃O₄ NPs and CS/Fe₃O₄ NC, with average sizes of 21.3 nm and 28 nm, respectively. The Fe₃O₄ NPs and CS/Fe₃O₄ NC exhibited optical bandgap energies of 2.62 eV and 1.81 eV, respectively, indicating their potential as efficient photocatalysts. Photocatalytic efficiency was evaluated using methylene blue (MB) and ortho-toluidine blue (O-TB) dyes. After 75 min, CS/Fe₃O₄ NC achieved degradation rates of 99% for MB and 98.4% for O-TB, surpassing the rates of 79% and 60.0% achieved by Fe₃O₄ NPs alone. This highlights the superior performance of CS/Fe₃O₄ NC in dye degradation. Moreover, Fe₃O₄ NPs and CS/Fe₃O₄ NC were effective in removing heavy metals from petroleum water, achieving a remarkable 100% removal efficiency within 30 min. The removal of oil in water was 86% for Fe₃O₄ NPs and 90% for CS/Fe₃O₄ NC, while the reduction in total suspended solids was 71% and 78%, respectively. Overall, the synthesized Fe₃O₄ NPs and CS/Fe₃O₄ NC demonstrate promising potential for wastewater treatment by efficiently degrading dyes and removing heavy metals, oil, and suspended solids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]