Magnetic nanocomposite-system for the remediation of lead-contaminated urban surface

¹ School of Environmental Sciences and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology, China
² Department of Irrigation and Drainage, University of Agriculture, Pakistan
³ Department of Environmental Sciences, International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan

Abstract

Lead pollution contributes 2% to environmental health and is found in air, dust, soil, and water. The presence of lead on the urban surface can put at risk human health and hinder sustainable urban development. The existing strategies are not feasible to remediate lead from the urban surface due to heavy infrastructure, long-term monitoring, and less space availability. Therefore, the magnetic nanocomposite-system is designed to remove lead from the urban surface regardless of contaminated sites within a short period of time and is immediately applicable. The magnetic nanocomposite is synthesized by hydrothermal treatment and has plenty of hydroxyl and carboxyl functional groups with mesoporous surfaces. The results showed that the leadremoval efficiency exceeded 97% even at a high concentration of 300 mg/L. pH has no significant effect on the removal efficiency. Also, it has shown stability and removal efficiency over 96% even after five reuse cycles. The proposed mechanism for the implication and separation of the magnetic nanocomposite system for the in-situ remediation approach has also highlighted the various applicable sites.