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In this research, a total of 51 road dust samples were collected from three districts (Asaluyeh, Bushehr, and Goshoui) in the south of Iran from April to June 2022 and analyzed for the concentration of 7 phthalic acid esters (PAEs) compounds. Asaluyeh was considered as an industrial area (near gas and petrochemical industries), Bushehr as an urban area, and Goshoui as a rural area (far from pollution sources). The PAEs concentration of the street dust samples was determined using a mass detection gas chromatography (GC/MS). The mean ± SD levels of ƩPAEs in samples from industrial, urban, and rural sources were 56.9 ± 11.5, 18.3 ± 9.64, and 5.68 ± 1.85 μg/g, respectively. The mean concentration levels of ƩPAEs was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in samples from the industrial area than urban and rural areas. The mean levels of di(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) in industrial, urban, and rural areas were 20.3 ± 8.76, 4.59 ± 1.71, and 2.35 ± 0.98 μg/g, respectively. The results of the PCA analysis indicate that the likely major sources of PAEs in the road dust in the studied areas are the application of various plasticizers in industry, solvents, chemical fertilizers, waste disposal, wastewater (e.g., agricultural, domestic, and industrial), and the use of plastic films and plastic-based irrigation pipes in greenhouses. As well as, it was found that the non-cancer risk of exposure to dust-bound PAEs was higher for children than for adults. These values were <1 for both age groups (children and adults) and the exposure of inhabitants to PAEs in road dust did not pose a notable non-cancer risk. The cancer risk from exposure to DEHP in road dust was below the standard range of 10 -6 in all three areas. Further studies that consider different routes of exposure to these contaminants are needed for an accurate risk assessment. Moreover, since higher PAEs level was found in industrial area, decision-makers should adopt strict strategies to control the discharging of pollution from industries to the environment and human societies., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Purpose: Anaerobic-anoxic-aerobic process is one of the biological removal processes of nutrients in wastewater treatment. Phosphorus removal by biological method is a new and developed technique that is done by changing the design of suspended growth systems., Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study, which is a pilot workshop based in the first module, and chemistry, physics and microbiological tests were carried out at the wastewater treatment plant laboratory in one of the cities (Pardis) of Tehran province in 2020-2021 during a period of 12 months. Was completed. In this research, a total of 500 samples were taken from raw wastewater, aeration pond, effluent, secondary sedimentation and return activated sludge., Results: In this research, the internal decay coefficient and the growth efficiency coefficient are equal to d -1 0.1264 and 0.6579 gVSS/gCOD, respectively. And the maximum specific rate of consumption of food substance and the semi-saturation constant of food substance respectively were gCOD/gVSS.d 3.3467 gCOD/m 25.305. If the specific rate of consumption of food substance or efficiency factor in our research is 0.27 gCOD/gVSS.d and the semi-constant Ks saturation equal to 27.9 gCOD/m has been obtained, this actually shows that the organic matter (COD) in the waste water of Pardis city had a higher degradability (sbCOD)., Conclusion: According to the obtained results, the synthetic coefficients in the Lineweaver-Burk and Hanes models are suitable, but in the Hofstee model, the amount of K and K d is less than the optimal amount for the proper exploitation of the pilot., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that there is no conflict of interest in this paper., (© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Tehran University of Medical Sciences 2023. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.)

In this study, the performance of Ni-FSM-16 and TiO 2 -FSM-16 photocatalysts in phenol red removal was explored. The XRD, FE-SEM, and BET tests were used to characterize the catalysts. All experiments were performed at ambient temperature and under UV (20 W). The parameters including dye concentration (20-80 mg/L), photocatalyst concentration (0-8 g/L), UV exposure duration, and contact time (0-160 min) were optimized using RSM software. BET values of Ni-FSM-16 and TiO 2 -FSM-16 were 718.63 m 2 /g and 844.93 m 2 /g, respectively. TiO 2 -FSM-16 showed better performance in dye removal than Ni-FSM-16. At pH 3, the maximum dye removal by TiO 2 -FSM-16/UV and Ni-FSM-16/UV was obtained 87% and 64%, respectively. The positive hole species had the main role in photocatalytic phenol red removal. The reusability study was done for up to 7 cycles, but the catalysts can be reused effectively for up to 3 cycles. The synergistic factor for the TiO 2 -FSM-16 and TiO 2 -FSM-16/UV processes were calculated to be 1.55 and 2.12, respectively. The dye removal efficiency by TiO 2 -carbon and Ni-carbon was slightly lower than those obtained by the FSM-16 ones. The TiO 2 -FSM-16 and Ni-FSM-16 catalysts had a suitable surface and acceptable efficiency in phenol red removal., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Tetracycline (TTC) is an antibiotic commonly prescribed to treat bacterial infections in animals and humans because of its low toxicity and antibacterial activity. This study focuses on the removal of TTC from an aqueous media using an activated carbon of Chlorella vulgaris modified with Fe 3 O 4 magnetic composite (ACCV/Fe 3 O 4 mc). The isothermal and kinetic models were studied to understand the adsorption mechanism. The Box-Behnken model was used for experimental design, and the main research parameters were ACCV/Fe 3 O 4 mc mass (0.2-0.8 g/L), reaction time (10-60 min), TTC concentration (5-30 mg/L), and pH (3-11). The highest TTC removal rate of 90.47% was obtained at a pH of 7, a time of 60 min, an ACCV/Fe 3 O 4 mc mass of 0.5 g/L, and an antibiotic concentration of 5 mg/L. TTC removal was fitted with the pseudo-second-order and the Langmuir model. The Langmuir adsorption capacity of TTC was computed to be 26.18 mg/g. The results show that the ACCV/Fe 3 O 4 mc adsorbent significantly removes TTC from the aqueous solution., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors.)

In this study, Alginate@ Fe 3 O 4 /Bentonite nanocomposite was utilized to eliminate formaldehyde from wastewater. Structural features of bentonite, bentonite@Fe 3 O 4 , and Alginate@Fe 3 O 4 @Bentonite were determined using FT-IR, PXRD, Mapping, EDX, TEM, SEM, VSM, and BET analyses. The central composite design method was employed to find the optimal conditions for formaldehyde removal using Alg@Fe 3 O 4 @Bent nanocomposite. The maximum formaldehyde uptake efficiency (94.56%) was obtained at formaldehyde concentration of 10.69 ppm, the nanocomposite dose of 1.28 g/L, and pH of 9.96 after 16.53 min. Also, Alginate@Fe 3 O 4 @Bentonite composite was used to eliminate formaldehyde from Razi petrochemical wastewater and was able to eliminate 91.24% of formaldehyde, 70% of COD, and 68.9% of BOD 5 . The isotherm and kinetic investigations demonstrated that the formaldehyde uptake process by the foresaid adsorbent follows the Langmuir isotherm and quasi-first-order kinetic models, respectively. Also, the maximum uptake capacity was obtained at 50.25 mg/g. Moreover, the formaldehyde uptake process by the aforementioned nanocomposite was exothermic and spontaneous. Furthermore, the formaldehyde adsorption efficiency decreased slightly after six reuse cycles (less than 10%), indicating that Alginate@Fe 3 O 4 @Bentonite nanocomposite has remarkable recyclability. Besides, the influence of interfering ions like nitrate, carbonate, chloride, phosphate, and sulfate was studied on the formaldehyde removal efficiency and the results displayed that all ions except nitrate ion have low interaction with formaldehyde (less than 3% reduction in removal efficiency)., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The main goal of the current investigation was to decontaminate ibuprofen (IBP) from hospital wastewater using sea mud as an H 2 O 2 activator. Sea sludge was converted into catalysts at different temperatures and residence times in furnaces, and then tested in the removal of IBP, and the most efficient ones were reported for the production of catalysts. The catalyst was optimized at 400 °C and 3 h. SEM-mapping, FTIR, EDX, BET, and BJH experiments were used to characterize the catalyst. Experiments were done at two pulsed and continuous ultrasonication modes in a photoreactor, and their efficiencies were statistically compared. The designed variables included IBP concentration (10-100 mg/L), the catalyst concentration (0-3 g/L), pH (4-9), and time (10-90 min). The oxidation process had the maximum efficiency at pH 4, treatment time of 60 min, catalyst quantity of 5 g/L, and IBP content of 50 mg/L. The catalyst was recycled, and in the fifth stage, the removal efficiency of IBP was reduced to 50%. The amount of energy consumed for treating IBP laden-wastewater using the evaluated catalyst in two modes of continuous and pulsed ultrasonic was calculated as 102 kW h/m 3 and 10 kW h/m 3 , respectively. IBP oxidation process was fitted with the first-order kinetic model. The system can be proposed for purifying hospital and pharmaceutical wastewaters., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Fresh tobacco or the smoke resulting from waterpipe and cigarette contains large amounts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which consumption can cause releasing of these contaminants into the indoor air of cigarette and waterpipe cafés. This study was conducted to investigate the urinary concentrations of unmetabolized PAH compounds among the employed workers as well as the customers in waterpipe and cigarette cafés along with its association with oxidative stress factors plus kidney injury biomarkers. For this, 35 staffs and 35 customers in these cafés (as an exposed group (EG)), 20 staffs in non-smoking cafés (as 1st control group (CG-1)), and 20 of the public population (as 2nd control group 2 (CG-2)) were chosen and their urine specimens were collected. The results indicated that there is a significant difference between urinary concentration of ƩPAHs in the exposed and control groups (P value < 0.05). Also, "type of tobacco" can be considered as an influential and determining factor for the urinary levels of PAHs among the subjects. Considering the contribution of PAHs to the total toxic equivalents, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), dibenzo[a,h]anthracene (DahA), and fluoranthene (Flrt) with 32.76%, 27.62%, and 18.65% claimed the largest share in waterpipe/cigarette cafés. The results also indicated a positive and significant relationship between some PAHs and oxidative stress biomarkers as well as uKIM-1 (biomarker for assessing and diagnosing glomerular damage) and TIMP-1 (biomarker of stress in primary steps of injury in tubular cell). Thus, it can be expressed that the workers of these smoking cafés are prone to the detrimental health impacts. Accordingly, proper policies and decisions should be taken to limit the activity of these cafés or proper protective strategies should be adopted to protect the health of exposed individuals., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The current work is documented as the first record of the characteristics, removal efficiency, partitioning behavior, fate, and eco-toxicological effects of paraben congeners in a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP, stabilization ponds) and hospital WWTPs (septic tank and activated sludge), as well as seawater-sediments collected from runoff estuarine stations (RES) and coastal stations (CS) of the north of the Persian Gulf. The median values of Σparabens at the raw wastewater and effluent of the studied WWTPs were 1884 ng/L and 468 ng/L, respectively. The activated sludge system had a greater removal efficiency (56.10%) in removing ∑parabens than the septic tank (45.05%) and stabilization pond (35.54%). The discharge rates of methyl paraben (MeP) was computed to be 2.23, 21.18, and 9.12 g/d/1000 people for stabilization ponds, septic tank, and activated sludge, respectively. Median concentrations of Σparabens in seawater (103.42 ng/L) and sediments (322.05 ng/g dw) from RES stations were significantly larger than from CS stations (61.2 and 262.0 ng/g dw in seawater and sediments, respectively) (P < 0.05). The median of field-based k oc for Σparabens was 130.81 cm 3 /g in RES stations and 189.51 cm 3 /g in CS stations. It was observed that the concentration of parabens could have negative impacts on some living aquatic populations (invertebrates and bacteria), but the risk was not significant for fishes and algae., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

In the present work, saline leachate of the Bushehr coastal city (Iran) was purified using the ultraviolet/ultrasonication wave/periodate process. The initial TDS and TOC values of the leachate studied were 7390 mg/L and 975 mg/L, respectively. During the effect of various parameters on leachate purification, the experiments were optimized at pH 3, oxidizer concentration of 4 mM, and treatment time of 120 min. The initial BOD 5 /COD ratio of 0.66 was reduced to 0.42 at the end of the purification time (120 min). After leachate treatment under optimal conditions, the amount of BOD 5 , COD, and UV 254 were 451.5 mg/L, 1072 mg/L, and 12.69 cm -1 , respectively. Concentrations of heavy metals in crude leachate by ICP-OES were checked. Also, the concentration of organic compounds before and after purification was determined using GC-Mass. The leachate purification kinetics followed the first-order model using the designed method. Based on the COD factor, the system energy consumption for leachate treatment was calculated to be 11.4 kWh/m 3 . The results showed that the system explored (UV/US/IO 4 - ) can effectively purify high salinity waste leachate., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

This investigation aimed to remove phenol from real wastewater (taken from a petrochemical company) by activating peroxy-monosulfate (PMS) using catalysts extracted from pier waste sludge. The physical and chemical properties of the catalyst were evaluated by FE-SEM/EDS, XRD, FTIR, and TGA/DTG tests. The functional groups of O-H, C-H, CO 3 2- , C-H, C-O, N-H, and C-N were identified on the catalyst surface. Also, the crystallinity of the catalyst before and after reaction with petrochemical wastewater was 103.4 nm and 55.8 nm, respectively. Operational parameters of pH (3-9), catalyst dose (0-100 mg/L), phenol concentration (50-250 mg/L), and PMS concentration (0-250 mg/L) were tested to remove phenol. The highest phenol removal rate (94%) was obtained at pH=3, catalyst dose of 80 mg/L, phenol concentration of 50 mg/L, PMS concentration of 150 mg/L, and contact time of 150 min. Phenol decomposition in petrochemical wastewater followed the first-order kinetics (k> 0.008 min -1 , R 2 > 0.94). Changes in pH factor were very effective on phenol removal efficiency, and maximum efficiency (≈83%) was achieved in pH 3. The catalyst stability test was performed for up to five cycles, and phenol removal in the fifth cycle was reduced to 42%. Also, the energy consumption in this study was 77.69 kW h/m 3 . According to the results, the pier waste sludge catalyst/PMS system is a critical process for eliminating phenol from petrochemical wastewater., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Urban air contamination is one of the ten most dangerous parameters for human health, which causes cardiovascular disease, respiratory, metabolic diseases, and decreased lung function. Air Q is a reliable software for studying the impacts of atmospheric contaminants on human health, and today, it is widely used in the environment. The purpose of this research was to quantify the mortality and morbidity rates that corresponded to ambient particulate matter (PM) in Rigan City. To perform this, the Air Q software was used. The findings reflected that the yearly mean values of PM 10 and PM 2.5 are 264.83 and 50.45 μg/m 3 . The findings indicated that the PM 10 and PM 2.5 content in Rigan was above standard levels described by WHO. The total number of deaths, cardiovascular deaths, and respiratory deaths due to PM in Rigan were estimated as 70.3, 45.8, and 10.7 persons, respectively. Hospital admissions for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases correlated to PM 10 were estimated at 154.2 and 59 persons, respectively. Acute myocardial infarction associated with PM 2.5 was 2.7 persons. Overall, the data in this study may be helpful to national and regional policymakers who are responsible for managing and preventing atmospheric contamination and assessing the costs of health risks., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX) are a challenging group of volatile organic compounds in industrial and energy areas. Since these aromatics may cause serious diseases such as cancer and respiratory illnesses, they must be monitored. Pars Special Economic Energy Zone (PSEEZ) in Iran is the second largest energy zone of the world with numerous gas refineries and petrochemical complexes for producing a wide range of products. This study is focused on determination of BTEX concentration in the whole South Pars area (46 sampling points) which is the active site of PSEEZ using passive sampling. Then, the results of the passive sampling are used for providing spatial distribution of BTEX using GIS. The annual BTEX measurements revealed that benzene and toluene concentration violates the maximum permitted values at numerous points most of which are located in the vicinity of petrochemical complexes. Active sampling in these complexes not only confirms the results of passive sampling, but also suggests a more intensified BTEX pollution in the air quality of the area which reaches as high as 3500 μg.m -3 and 18,000 μg.m -3 for benzene and toluene, respectively, being far beyond the acceptable standards. Health risk analysis also confirms the intensity of BTEX at the selected points. This study suggests a reconsideration of the location of non-operational sites and personnel who are more vulnerable to BTEX contamination. Also, BTEX profile provided by GIS in this research gives a suitable plan for relocating., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

The current work was conducted to study the concentrations of heavy metals (HMs) in farming soil and wheat and compute their geological and health indexes, including geo-accumulation index (I geo ), chronic daily intake (CDI), hazard index (HI), hazard quotient (HQ), and cancer risk (CR). In general, 256 samples were collected from agriculture soil (AS) and wheat in Kalaleh and Aq Qala areas, northern Iran. The average rates of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn were detected to be 0.28, 25.24, 15.44, and 60.33 mg·kg -1 , respectively, for AS and 0.01, 8.85, 0.73, and 33.81 mg·kg -1 for wheat, respectively. Based on the results, the HQ and HI levels for investigated HMs were lower than l. So, the health risk of HMs exposure for adults and children was low. CR levels for Pb in AS for both children and adults were observed greater than the threshold value. Accordingly, lead-contaminated soil will be carcinogenic if ingested by children. On the other hand, the exposure to Pb (through wheat) and Cd (through both soil and wheat) had the acceptable CR level for all groups. As a result, for an extended period, there are no significant health consequences for children and adults., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

In this study, an easily magnetically recoverable polydopamine (PDA)-modified hydroxyapatite (HAp)/Fe 3 O 4 magnetic composite (HAp/Fe 3 O 4 /PDA) was suitably synthesized to exploit its adsorption capacity to remove Zn 2+ from aqueous solution, and its structural properties were thoroughly examined using different analytical techniques. The effect of multiple parameters like pH, ultrasonic power, ultrasonic time, adsorbent dose, and initial Zn 2+ concentration on the adsorption efficiency was assessed using RSM-CCD. According to the acquired results, by increasing the adsorbent quantity, ultrasonic power, ultrasonic time, and pH, the Zn 2+ adsorption efficiency increased and the interaction between the variables of ultrasonic power/Zn 2+ concentration, pH/Zn 2+ concentration, pH/absorbent dose, and ultrasonic time/adsorbent dose has a vital role in the Zn 2+ adsorption. The uptake process of Zn 2+ onto PDA/HAp/Fe 3 O 4 followed Freundlich and pseudo-second order kinetic models. The maximum capacity of Zn 2+ adsorption ( q m ) obtained by PDA/HAp/Fe 3 O 4 , HAp/Fe 3 O 4 , and HAp was determined as 46.37 mg g -1 , 40.07 mg g -1 , and 37.57 mg g -1 , respectively. Due to its good performance and recoverability (ten times), the HAp/Fe 3 O 4 /PDA magnetic composite can be proposed as a good candidate to eliminate Zn 2+ ions from a water solution., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

The concentration of 19 metal and non-metal elements in two fishes (Liza subviridis and Sphyraena jello) and associated sediment-seawater from the northern part of the Persian Gulf was measured. The samples were gathered from two industrial ports, one commercial port, and one residential port. The metal accumulation in the muscle and liver of fishes was evaluated. Nickel (mean 362.07-712.83 μg/g) and chromium (mean 470.00-691.47 μg/g) in sediment and zinc (mean 9.01-31.15 μg/L) and arsenic (mean 18.22-22.14 μg/L) in seawater had the most abundancy among studied elements. The accumulation of elements in S. jello (a pelagic species) was higher than L. subviridis (a demersal species). For both species, major elements of S and Mg and trace elements of Fe, Al, Si, Zn, and Cu showed highest accumulation. Also, fish samples from Emam Hassan Port were more contaminated than other stations. Ecological indexes values have revealed a low to moderate elemental pollution of sediment and fish samples in the north part of the Persian Gulf.

This work aimed to explore the concentration of nickel, manganese, iron, copper, chromium, and lead in the milk of goat herds in the industrial area of Asaluyeh (southern Iran) and the non-industrial area of Kaki. The milk of 16 goat herds (each herd had at least ten goats) was collected in several villages in each area, and at the same time, the drinking water and forage of goats were sampled. The concentration of elements in the samples was determined by ICP-OES. The mean concentrations of chromium, copper, iron, manganese, lead, and nickel in milk samples of the Asaluyeh area were 16.423 ± 0.349, 0.146 ± 0.118, 6.111 ± 0.501, 0.239 ± 0.016, 0.141 ± 0.030, and 1.447 ± 0.101 mg/kg, respectively. Concentrations of heavy metals (except for copper) in the milk of goats in the industrialized area of Asaluyeh were significantly higher than that of Kaki (P < 0.05). Also, the content of heavy metals was significantly correlated with lactose levels (P < 0.05). The hazard index for drinking the goat milk was computed to be 0.444 and 0.386 for the Asaluyeh and Kaki area, respectively, which shows a minimal effect of this exposure pathway.

In this paper, the amount of 19 elements in three species of algae and associated sediment in the northern margin of the Persian Gulf was investigated. A sampling of algae was performed on the coast with a length of 5 km in each station and surface sediment was sampled at the same time in low and middle intertidal zones. The values of elements in the samples were measured by using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) device. Then, the amount of bioaccumulation factor in algae tissue relative to sediment (biota-sediment accumulation factor, BSAF) was determined. The value of BSAF was compared with the empirical cumulative entropy (ECE). ECE is based on comparing the element information in algae with those in sediments. The results showed that BSAF was very closely related to the ECE factor so that significant correlations were obtained for algae species of P. gymnospora (ECE = 0.477 BSAF, R 2 : 0.967), H. hamulosa (ECE = 0.542 BSAF, R 2 : 0.979), and C. membranacea (ECE = 0.356 BSAF, R 2 : 0.976). The ECE values > 0.4 were similar to those obtained for BSAF > 1, exhibiting that the element accumulation in algae was higher than in sediments. Based on ECE, to determine the vanadium accumulation in the environment, the C. membranacea algae are more appropriate than H. hamulosa. Overall, the data showed that ECE is a good alternative to BSAF in estimating marine pollution.

Landfill leachate, as a complex medium with a high concentration of organic and mineral materials, is a serious problem for the environment. In the current study, the saline landfill leachate of Bushehr coastal city (Iran) was treated using ultraviolet/ultrasonic waves/peroxymonosulfate system. The initial TOC and TDS of the studied leachate was 915 mg/L and 7390 mg/L, respectively. The system had the maximum efficiency at conditions of pH 3, peroxymonosulfate (PMS) of 4 mM, and reaction time of 150 min. Based on the findings, the initial ratio of BOD 5 /COD (0.66) was reduced to 0.38 using the developed system. After treatment of the landfill leachate at the optimal condition, the values of COD, BOD 5 , and UV 254 were reached to 983 mg/L, 348 mg/L, and 10.16 cm -1 , respectively. The concentration of all studied elements (except Pb, As, and Ca) increased after purification. According to the GC-mass spectrometry, the molecular weight and concentration of organic matter in raw leachate were higher than that of the treated one. The studied system had an energy consumption value of 86 kW·h/m 3 for the treatment of landfill leachate. The results confirm the effectiveness of the ultraviolet/ultrasonic waves/PMS system for the treatment of high saline landfill leachate., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing personal relationships or financial interests that could have appeared to influence the work stated in this investigation., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In the present work, biological hydroxyapatite (Bio-HAp) was generated from waste poultry bone and modified with magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles (Bio-HAp/MgO) and used in the adsorption process of methyl violet (MV). The Bio-HAp and Bio-HAp/MgO mesoporous composites were characterized using physicochemical techniques. Bio-HAp and Bio-HAp/MgO composites had crystalline and mesoporous structures. The specific surface area of Bio-HAp/MgO mesoporous composites (14.7 m 2 /g) was higher and lower than that of Bio-HAp (4.6 m 2 /g) and MgO (154.9 m 2 /g), respectively. The effect of pH (2-10), temperature (25-45 °C), contact time (10-50 min), initial MV concentration (5-25 mg/L), and Bio-HAp/MgO quantity (0.5-2.5 g/L) on the adsorption efficiency was optimized through response surface methodology-central composite design (RSM-CCD). Among four isotherm models, the Freundlich isotherm (R 2  > 0.98) was better matched with the equilibrium data. Based on the isotherm parameters (E, n, and R L ), the MV adsorption process using Bio-HAp particles and Bio-HAp/MgO mesoporous composites is physical and desirable. The pseudo-second-order (R 2  > 0.97) was more potent than the other models for modeling kinetic data. According to the thermodynamic investigation, the MV adsorption was an exothermic and spontaneous process. The mesoporous composite had good reusability to remove MV dye from liquid media up to 5 steps. Bio-HAp particles and Bio-HAp/MgO mesoporous composites were tested for treatment, which significantly reduced the dye content of the real sample.

Indoor dust samples were collected from 42 microenvironments of residential buildings (RB, 15 samples), official buildings (OB, 10 samples), laboratory rooms (LR, 7 samples), and school classroom (SCR, 10 samples) in Bushehr, whereby the concentration of zinc, copper, lead, cadmium, nickel, and chromium was studied. The results of this study indicated that the mean concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Cr, and Ni in the indoor dust samples were 567.18, 186.09, 209.01, 5.31, 143.20, and 57.09 mg/kg in RB, 1077.34, 539.67, 274.89, 8.12, 155.30, and 92.55 mg/kg in OB, 246.40, 149.56, 127.2, 1.96, 43.45, and 91.09 mg/kg in LR and 271.43, 189.84, 164.44, 3.06, 124.20, and 70.09 mg/kg in SCR. The results of principal cluster analysis showed that the heavy metals in indoor environments were mostly originated from smoking tobacco and cigarette, traffic sources, old building materials, and building paint colors. The results of this study also revealed that the concentration of heavy metals in indoor dust had a negative and significant relationship (P value < 0.05 in most cases) with rate of ventilation, and a positive and significant relationship with smoking inside buildings (P value < 0.05 in most cases). The bioaccessibility for zinc, copper, lead, cadmium, nickel, and chromium was 69.12, 40.08, 43.33, 79.81, 31.10, and 6.31%, respectively, in indoor dust. Further, risk assessment showed that the risk values of carcinogenicity and non-carcinogenicity resulting from heavy metals inside the studied microenvironments had exceeded the recommended safe limit by EPA. In terms of potential ecological risks, it was found that heavy metals in these microenvironments have exceeded the hazardous ecological levels presented by different indices and can have considerable negative ecological effects. Thus, it is essential that further and better studies and monitoring be performed on these environments, and suitable control recommendations and solutions should be regulated for this public health threat.

The present study aimed to remove tetracycline (TET) antibiotic molecule from an aqueous medium using adsorbents prepared from Rhizopus oryzae biomass. The TET adsorption process was discontinuous and the adsorbent biomass was crude and NaOH-sonication-modified Rhizopus oryzae fungi. Specific active surface area for crude and modified Rhizopus oryzae was 10.38 m 2 /g and 20.32 m 2 /g, respectively. The results showed that the maximum TET adsorption efficiency was determined at pH 4, temperature 25 °C, initial TET concentration 10 mg/L, contact time 80 min, and biomass quantity 2 g/L. The equilibrium behavior showed that the Langmuir model suitably described the process. The maximum TET adsorption capacity was determined to be 38.02 mg/g and 67.93 mg/g, respectively, indicating that the method of biomass modification promoted the bio-adsorption capacity. A higher correlation coefficient (R 2 ) and lower RMSE for the pseudo-first-order kinetic than other models showed its ability to describe the behavior of TET bio-adsorption. The enthalpy thermodynamic parameter (ΔH°) for the TET adsorption process was determined - 63.847 kJ/mol and - 85.226 kJ/mol for the raw and modified Rhizopus oryzae, respectively. Therefore, it can be suggested that the biomass of Rhizopus oryzae especially the modified version can be effectively used for the TET removal from aqueous environments.

The current investigation evaluates metal (loid)s biomonitoring using algae as well as the metal(loid) pollution of seawaters and sediments in the northern part along the Persian Gulf. Algae, seawater, and sediment samples were collected from four coastal areas with different land applications. The concentration of Ni, V, As, and Cd in abiotic samples (seawater and sediment) and four species of algae (Enteromorpha intestinalis, Rhizoclonium riparium, Cystoseira myrica, and Sargassum boveanum) was measured using an ICP-AES device. Concentrations of potentially toxic elements in seawater, sediments, and algae species followed the trend of "Ni˃V˃As˃Cd." The area of Asaloyeh (with the highest industrial activity) and the Dayyer area (with the lowest industrial activity) provided the highest and lowest amounts of metal(loid)s pollution, respectively. The average concentrations of V and As in four algae species significantly differed for all sampled areas. Obtaining the bio-concentration factor (BCF) > 1 for seawater and < 1 for sediment indicated that the studied algae have the ability to efficiently concentrate metal(loid)s from seawater and the limited accumulation of metals in sediments. According to the Nemerow pollution index, the order of metal(loid)s pollution for the studied areas estimated as Asaloyeh>Ganaveh>Bushehr>Dayyer. Algae species of C. myrica and E. intestinalis can often serve as suitable biological tools for monitoring seawater and sediment quality.

Bushehr, a port along the northern part of the Persian Gulf, has repeatedly encountered dust storms in recent years but there is not been a comprehensive study on the PM 2.5 contents in this region. The present study reports the characteristics and health risks of atmospheric PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals (HMs) in Bushehr from December 2016 to September 2017. A total of 46 samples were analyzed, and a high volume air sampler equipped with quartz fiber filters was used for sampling. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was also used for HMs analyses. Risk assessment and hazard index (HI) of these metals were computed by using USEPA's exposure parameters. The results showed that the average 24-h mass concentration of PM 2.5 ranged from 22.09 to 292.45 μg/m 3 . The results also indicated that 95.65 and 82.61% of the samples were higher than WHO and EPA guidelines for 24-h PM 2.5 . Also there was no statistically significant relationship between wind direction and PM 2.5 .The average concentration levels of seven measured metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Fe, Ni, Pb, and V) in the PM 2.5 samples were in the range of 6.03 ng/m 3 to 1335.94 ng/m 3 , and the order of their concentration was Fe > Ni > Pb > Cr > Cd > V > Co. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals were categorized in three groups. The ecological risk level of calculated metals was very significant, and the major contribution of the ecological risk was related to Cd. The highest HQ in children and adults was related to Cr, and overall HI in children was higher than adults. Also the RI values of Cr in both groups of children and adults were indicated high risk of developing cancer in human.

The biosynthesis of materials using medicinal plants can be a low-cost and eco-friendly approach due to their extraordinary properties. Herein, we reported a facile synthesis of Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles using Malva sylvestris . The surface morphology, functional groups, and elemental analysis were done to characterize the synthesized nanoparticles. The cytotoxicity performance of the synthesized nanoparticles was analyzed by exposing nanoparticles to MCF-7 and Hep-G2 cancer cell lines through MTT colorimetric assay and the IC50 value was defined as 100 μg/mL and 200 μg/mL, respectively. The antibacterial performance of synthesized nanoparticles against four different bacterial strains including Staphylococcus aureus, Corynebacterium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumoniae were assessed through microdilution broth method. The synthesized Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles using Malva sylvestris demonstrated higher antibacterial effects against Gram-positive strains with MIC values of 62.5 μg/mL and 125 μg/mL which increase the inhibitory percentage to more than 90%., (© 2019 The Author(s).)

The present paper describes the sono-assisted adsorption (sono-adsorption) of methylene blue (MB), methyl violet (MV), and Nile blue (NB) from aqueous solution by AC/CoFe 2 O 4 magnetic composite. FT-IR, TGA-DTG, VSM, XRD, TEM, SEM, EDX, Map, and Raman analysis were used to characterize the magnetic composite. The magnetization saturation value of AC/CoFe 2 O 4 magnetic composite was determined to be 53.06 emu/g. Dye sono-adsorption efficiency was increased by increasing adsorbent dose, pH value, and contact time, but not dye concentration. Pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intra-particle diffusion models were used to study the kinetic behavior of the cationic dye sono-adsorption. The sono-adsorption kinetics was reasonably followed by pseudo-second-order model (R 2  > 0.998). The results showed that the Freundlich model (R 2  > 0.976) was more able to describe the sono-adsorption equilibrium behavior than Langmuir, D-R, and Scatchard models. The maximum sono-adsorption capacity of NB, MV, and MB was determined as 86.24, 83.90, and 87.48 mg/g, respectively. Based on the parameters derived from isotherm modeling (R L , n, and E), the sono-adsorption process of cationic dyes is desirable and physical. An increase in NaCl concentration reduced the sono-adsorption efficiency for all dyes. Also, the adsorption-desorption of AC/CoFe 2 O 4 magnetic was studied up to 10 stages, and it was confirmed that the sono-adsorption efficiency is acceptable up to the eight stage. AC/CoFe 2 O 4 magnetic composite is, therefore, an affordable and recyclable adsorbent to remove the molecule of NB, MV, and MB dyes from aqueous media.

Objectives: Diabetes is a metabolic syndrome which is associated with the worldwide major public health problems. There are many natural compounds from the sea-market, as a valuable aquatic source, along with the variety of health and therapeutic benefits. In the present research, with respect to the traditional and ethnic uses of Sargassum oligocystum algae for healing of some diseases which have similar metabolic mechanism to the diabetes, its anti-diabetic effects in animal model was proposed., Materials and Methods: The animals (rat) were divided into the normal control, diabetic control, positive control and, the test groups. The test groups were gavaged with oral doses of 150 and 300 mg/kg of algae hydroalcoholic extracts. After 30 days of intervention the serum glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL C , LDL C , insulin, insulin resistance, β-cells function and, the histopathology of pancreatic tissue were evaluated., Results: In animals that were fed with algae extracts a significant decrease in the fasting blood glucose, triglyceride and HOMA-IR and an increase in the HOMA-B with no significant impacts on the insulin, cholesterol and HDL were observed. Also, the histopathology evaluations in the groups which were treated with algae extract revealed the regeneration and reconstitution of damaged pancreatic β-cells., Conclusion: The results give evidence that, the S. oligocystum algae extract has a healing effect on diabetes which can be considered as a new research prospect for the natural therapy of diabetes.

A biofiltration system was developed to treat benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) and Hg° vapour from a petrochemical waste stream during overhaul maintenance. The biofilter compost bed was inoculated with a microbial consortium provided by a petrochemical wastewater treatment plant. The effect of the a BTEX concentration (192.6-973.8 g/m 3 h) and empty bed residence time (EBRT) of 20-100 s were studied under the conditions of steady state, transient, shock BTEX-loading, and off-restart. The findings revealed that during a biofilter start-up, an increase in the influent BTEX concentration to around 334.3 g/m 3 h did not notably affect the biofiltration function at an EBRT of 100 s, and the removal efficiency was higher than 98%. Further, the low EBRT of 60 s did not have adverse effects on the BTEX and Hg° biofiltration (the removal efficiency in both was >93%). For the biofiltration system, the BTEX and Hg° critical attenuation capacity were obtained as 663 g BTEX /m 3 h and 12.6 g Hg° /m 3 h respectively. A maximum attenuation capacity of 774.5 g BTEX /m 3 h was achieved in the biofilter when the BTEX loading rate was 973.8 g BTEX /m 3 h. The parameters of k m and r max of the Michaelis-Menten kinetic model were obtained as 0.099 g/m 3 and 0.578 g/m 3 min respectively. Both BTEX and mercury vapours were completely mass balanced during a continuous biofiltration test. In general, the developed treatment system exhibited a good performance in the treatment of the BTEX stream containing Hg° vapour in the off-gas of a petrochemical company., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Dyes are one of the most important existing pollutants in textile industrial wastewater. These compounds are often toxic, carcinogenic, and mutagenic to living organisms, chemically and photochemically stable, and non-biodegradable. Acid red 18 is one of the azo dyes that are currently used in the textile industries. Photocatalytic degradation offers a great potential as an advanced oxidation process, in this study photocatalytic degradation of Acid red 18 by using BiOI/ZnO nanocomposite was evaluated under visible light irradiation. The influence of most essential parameters such as pH and BiOI/ZnO dosage were studied for optimum conditions. The dye removal efficiency was 85.1% at optimum experimental conditions of pH of 7, and BiOI/ZnO dosage of 1.5 g/L. The data had a good agreement with pseudo first-order kinetic model. Thus, the BiOI/ZnO/UV is an efficient process for dye degradation.

Asaluyeh is one of the most heavily industrialised areas in the world where gas, petrochemical, and many downstream industries are located. This study aims to survey the biomonitoring of four metals and one metalloid in children living in the vicinity of Asaluyeh area. To do this, we analysed the creatinine-adjusted urinary levels of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), vanadium (V), manganese (Mn), and nickel (Ni) in 184 elementary schoolchildren (99 boys and 85 girls) living in Asaluyeh and compared them with a reference population. The comparisons were done for two seasons (spring and fall). The results showed that in the case area (Asaluyeh), the levels of As, V, Mn, and Ni were significantly higher and that of Cd was not significantly higher than the reference city for both seasons. The mean concentration of metal(loid)s in Asaluyeh (case) and Sadabad (reference) area as μg g -1 creatinine was As 2.90 and 2.24, V 0.06 and 0.03, Mn 0.28 and 0.25, Ni 0.54 and 0.29, and Cd 0.31 and 0.28 in spring and As 3.08 and 2.28, V 0.07 and 0.03, Mn 0.30 and 0.26, Ni 0.91 and 0.30, and Cd 0.36 and 0.31 in the fall. Seasonal variations played a key role in determining urinary metal(loid) concentration, as we saw the significant level of As, Cd, V, and Ni in fall than in spring. With regard to the impact of gender on the absorption and accumulation of urinary metal(loid)s, boys showed higher levels of the studied elements, especially for As, than girls as outdoor activities are more popular among boys. Due to the values being lower than those reported in literature, more research is needed on various population groups and other exposure sources in order to judge whether living in the vicinity of the gas and petrochemical industries in Asaluyeh is a threat to nearby residents.

Landfill leachate contains heavy organic pollutants, which pollute ground and surface waters. This dataset applied a newly-introduced catalyst, Cu/Mg/Al-chitosan, for a landfill leachate treatment during a catalytic oxidation. The data of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and colour removal from the leachate was reported as a function of reaction time (20-460 min). Economic evaluation data of the Cu/Mg/Al-chitosan-O 3 system showed that the current cost of the system for treating each m 3 leachate is US$ 18 and for catalyst synthesis is US$ 54.5. Data could be useful from environmental and economic perspectives to those concerned about landfill leachate threats.

This data article describes a facile method for production of an adsorbent from Tamarix hispida wasted wood and modified by lanthanum metal for fluoride ions removal from wastewater. The main characteristics of the adsorbent consist of BET surface area, functional groups, and elemental analysis is presented. The data for attenuating the pollutants from a real wastewater treatment which was provided from a glass factory is also represented. More than 90% of fluoride content of the real wastewater was treated by the adsorbent. Generally, these data would be informative for extend research aim to industrial wastewater treatment and those who work in the wastewater treatment plants.

Saline municipal wastewater treatment is a challenging environmental issue in coastal cities, due to the discharge of saline water into the sewers. The present research article focuses on the phytoremediation of high saline municipal wastewater by Ruppia maritime , a widespread plant which can be found in saline medium such as traditional fish ponds, estuaries, tidal flats, salt pans, coastal paddy fields, coastal lagoons, marsh pools, and mangrove salt marshes in Khuzestan province, Iran. The experimental data was obtained using a pilot plant constructed in Chobeineh wastewater treatment plant in Ahvaz city, fed by activated sludge effluent in 3 levels of electrical conductivity (EC) (10, 15, 20 ms cm -1 ), during 45 days of the experiment. Chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and total suspended solids (TSS) were daily monitored in blank and pilot study. The COD removal decreased from 83.26% to 72.39% by increasing the EC level from 10 to 20 ms cm -1 , respectively. The experimental data will practically be an appropriate source of information for environmental engineers to design a natural treatment scenario for saline wastewater treatment.

Reactive dye is one of the most applicable dyes in textile industries which its release to the water bodies creates a concern for environmentalists. Here, in this data article a bone-char (BC) ash decorated with MgO-FeNO 3 for removing reactive black 5 (RB5) dye in a catalytic ozonation process (COP) system. Operational parameters data such as initial RB5 concentration, pH, catalyst dosage, and reaction time were optimized using Taguchi method. The optimal conditions for initial RB5 concentration, pH, catalyst dosage, and reaction time were determined 10 mg/L, 10, 0.1 g/L, and 15 min, respectively. Data of Taguchi optimization tests indicated that the initial RB5 concentration had a significant influence on RB5 removal efficiency (54.03%) during the catalytic ozonation process, and reaction time had lower contribution (2.04%).

The biomass of Aspergillus flavus was modified by calcium chloride to achieve a bioadsorbent for treating nickel, cobalt, and zinc ions from aqueous solutions. The information of pH, bioadsorbent dose, contact time, and temperature effect on the removal efficiency are presented. The data of Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models are also depicted. The data showed that the maximum bioadsorption capacity of nickel, cobalt, and zinc ions is 32.26, 31.06 and 27.86 mg/g, respectively. The suitability of the bioadsorbent in heavy metals removal at field condition was tested with a real wastewater sample collected from a plating plant in the final part of this dataset. Based on the findings, the bioadsorbent was shown to be an affordable alternative for the removal of metals in the wastewater.

In some part of the world, groundwater source can become unsafe for drinking due to the high concentration of fluoride ions [1]. The low cost and facile-produced adsorbent like palm stone could effectively removed fluoride ions through adsorption process. In this dataset, the influence of fluoride ion concentration, solution pH, adsorbent dosage, and contact time on fluoride ion adsorption by palm stones was tested by central composite design (CCD) under response surface methodology (RSM). The data stone carbonized adsorbent was prepared by a simple and facile method at relatively low temperature of 250 °C during 3 h. The adsorbent had the main functional groups of O-H, -OH, Si-H, C=O, N=O, C-C, C-OR, C-H, and C-Br on its surface. At the optimized conditions obtained by RSM, about 84.78% of fluoride ion was removed using the adsorbent. The Langmuir isotherm was suitable for correlation of equilibrium data (maximum adsorption capacity= 3.95 mg/g). Overall, the data offer a facile adsorbent to water and wastewater works which face to high level of fluoride water/ wastewater content.

This data is obtained from analyzing the concentration of metals include Al, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mo, Pb, and Zn in the urine of schoolchildren in Asalouyeh city in vicinity to a heavily industrialized site and comparison with a reference city. The significance of sex groups on urine metal level was evaluated through this data. The urinary content of metals was measured by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Statistical analyze of data were done by Mann-Whitney test. The herein presented date could beneficial for health assessment of gas and petrochemical companies.

In this paper, a new and facile approach for molybdate loading in the brown algae of Sargassum angustifolium is introduced. The molybdate ions were entered into the algae body during a short cultivation to produce algae-Mo as a novel adsorbent for eliminating phosphate ions from synthetic and real wastewaters. Results of the surface analysis showed that molybdate loading onto the algae was successfully performed. Herein, basic variables, such as initial solution pH, adsorbent dosage, contact time, phosphate concentration, and temperature, were investigated in detail to assess the phosphate adsorption performance of algae-Mo. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model fitted our acquired experimental kinetic data most appropriately, in comparison to the use of a pseudo-first-order model. The Langmuir model appeared to fit the adsorption data more desirably than that of Freundlich and Dubnin-Radushkevich models, with a maximum phosphate adsorption capacity of 149.25 mg/g at 25 °C. The finding of the thermodynamic study revealed that the phosphate adsorption onto algae-Mo was spontaneous, feasible, and endothermic in nature. The study on Mo 2+ ions leaching strongly suggested that the risk of Mo 2+ leakage during phosphate adsorption was negligible at a wide pH range of 3-9. The adsorption efficiency attained was 53.4% at the sixth cycle of reusability. Two real wastewaters with different qualities were successfully treated by the algae-Mo, suggesting that the algae-Mo could be ordered for practical wastewater treatment.

Oil drill cuttings are challenging wastes in oil sites especially in Khuzestan province, a major oil producing region in Iran. As co- composting is a simple and eco- friendly technique for bioremediation of oil base drill cutting, this data article designed to describe co- composting of oil base drill cutting with cow manure. The data suggest that with optimized mixture of cow manure/oily drill wastes (here, 20:1) could engender more effective treatment of the wastes (with final total petroleum hydrocarbon of 0.01 g/Kg). The data will be informative for oil drilling companies and environmental agencies for choosing it as a practical bioremediation process of soil/wastes polluted by petroleum hydrocarbons.

Populus alba is fast and auto- growing tree which profoundly accessible in around the world. The usage of the wastes of this tree would be admirable from environmental and solid waste management point of view. Thus, herein, this data set presents a facile method for providing an adsorbent from wastes of P. alba tree. The prepared adsorbent was modified by the cationic surfactant of (C16H33)N(CH3)3Br and applied to remove Cr (VI) from aqueous solution. The characterization data of the modified adsorbent were analyzed using FTIR and SEM methods. The information regarding kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamics of chromium ions adsorption were listed. The data implied that the maximum adsorption capacity of adsorbent to uptake Cr (VI) from aqueous solution was obtained 52.63 mg/g. The acquired data indicated that the adsorption of Cr (VI) by the adsorbent prepared from P. alba is an promising technique for treating Cr-bearing wastewaters.

Since global warming due to greenhouse gas emissions is no respecter of geographical boundaries of countries, concerted mitigation activities such as Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), are suitable. In this mechanism, some developed countries can gain certified emission reduction credits from emission reduction actions undertaken in developing countries. Thus, the data of greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries would be informative for implementing of CDM. Herein, the data of greenhouse gas emissions of Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex, one of the biggest petrochemical companies in the Middle East region is presented. The data was acquired using emission factor method and self-presented raw information of the Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex. Overall, the data will be interesting for environmentalists, non-governmental organization (NGO), and developed countries to perform CDM.

This data article reports the relationship between of the bromide ion concentration and the formation potential of disinfectant byproducts (DBPs) including, trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAAs), and haloacetonitriles (HANs) upon chlorination and monochloramination of the raw water of Karoon River water in Iran. Water samples were collected at an intake of a drinking water treatment plant during July 2014. All tests were performed in triplicate (n=3) and the mean of three measurements reported herein. The data of the formation potential of DBPs was determined under different bromide ions content. The data show the relationship between bromide concentration and DBPs formation that will be useful in the future management, operation and design of water treatment plants.

This data article presents a simple method for providing a biosorbent from Sargassum oligocystum harvested from the northern coast of Persian Gulf, Bushehr, Iran. The characterization data of Sargassum oligocystum biochar (SOB) were analyzed using various instrumental techniques (FTIR and XPS). The kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamics data of Hg(2+), Cd(2+), and Cu(2+) ions onto SOB were presented. The maximum biosorption capacity of SOB to uptake Hg(2+), Cd(2+), and Cu(2+) ions from aqueous solution was obtained 60.25, 153.85, and 45.25 mg/g, respectively. The experimental data showed that biochar prepared from Sargassum oligocystum is an efficient and promising biosorbent for the treatment of heavy metals-bearing wastewaters.

In this experimental data article, a novel biomaterial was provided from Malva sylvestris and characterized its properties using various instrumental techniques. The operating parameters consisted of pH and adsorbent dose on Hg(2+) adsorption from aqueous solution using M. sylvestris powder (MSP) were compared with charcoal tablet powder (CTP), a medicinal drug. The data acquired showed that M. sylvestris is a viable and very promising alternative adsorbent for Hg(2+) removal from aqueous solutions. The experimental data suggest that the MSP is a potential adsorbent to use in medicine for treatment of poisoning with heavy metals; however, the application in animal models is a necessary step before the eventual application of MSP in situations involving humans.

In this data article, we introduce data acquired from new adsorbent, bi-metalized chitosan particle that is successfully synthesized and applied to remove the orange II dye, an azo dye, from textile wastewater. The adsorbent was meso- and macro-porous material with BET surface area of 12.69 m(2)/g and pHzpc 6.6. The simulated textile-wastewater can be significantly treated using a relatively low quantity of the adsorbent. Overall, the use of bi-metalized chitosan particle can be considered a promising method for eliminating the azo dye from wastewater effectively. Accordingly, these data will be useful for decolorizing of azo dyes from textile wastewater.

Several chemicals have been applied in the process of coagulant extraction from herbal seeds, and the best extraction has been obtained in the presence of KCl or NaNO3[1-3], and NaCl [4]. However, the main challenge posed to these methods of coagulant extraction is their relatively low efficiency for water treatment purposes and the formation of dissolved organic matter during the treatment process. In these methods the salts, which have a one-valance metal (Na(+) and K(+)), are deposited in the internal structure and the pore of the coagulant, and may be useful for the coagulation/flocculation process. In this research, we found that modified methods produced more dense protein. Therefore, the modified procedure was better than the older one for removal of turbidity and harness from the contaminated water. Here we describe a method where: •According to the Hardy-Schulze rule, we applied the Fe(3+) ions instead of Na(+) and K(+) for the extraction of protein from Plantago ovata seeds.•The method was narrowed to extract protein by ethanol (defatting) and ammonium acetate and CM-Sepharose (protein extraction).•Two consecutive elutriations of crude extract was directly performed using 0.025-M FeCl3 and 0.05-M FeCl3 according to the basis of the ion-exchange processes.

The formation potential of haloacetonitriles (HANsFP) from chlorination of raw water of the Dez River in Iran was determined. Samples were collected before treatment at an intake of a water treatment plant. Tests were carried out to determine the effect of the reaction time (5-120 h), water pH (4-10), total organic carbon (TOC) content (2-8 mg L(-1)), chlorine dosage (3-25 mg L(-l)), water temperature (5-30 degrees C) and usual coagulants on HANsFP in the Dez River water. Increasing chlorine reaction time up to 80 h led to the remarkable increase in HANsFP and after that the HANsFP was gradually increased. Over 90% of the HANs was formed during 80 h reaction time. Linear relationships were found between the HANsFP and the chlorine dosage. The result showed that the HANsFP increased by increasing TOC content up to 6 mg L(-1), while further increases in the TOC level did not lead to any significant changes in the HANsFP level. The acidic water pH resulted in the highest HANsFP. An increase in water temperature enhanced the HANsFP; this factor should be considered for tropical waterworks. The ferric chloride had a high efficiency for the removal of HANsFP (72%). Overall, the Dez River water had a high potential for forming the HANs (approximately 17 microg L(-1)).

We introduce a new adsorbent, bimetallic chitosan particle (BCP) that is successfully synthesized and applied to remove the orange II dye from wastewater. The effects of pH, BCP quantity, and contact time are initially verified on the basis of the percentage of orange II removed from the wastewater. Experimental data reveal that the Cu/Mg bimetal and chitosan have a synergistic effect on the adsorption process of the adsorbate, where the dye adsorption by Cu/Mg bimetal, chitosan alone, and bimetal-chitosan is 10, 49, and 99.5%, respectively. The time required for the complete decolorization of orange II by 1 mg/L of BCP is 10 min. The Langmuir model is the best fit for the experimental data, which attains a maximum adsorption capacity of 384.6 mg/g. The consideration of the kinetic behavior indicates that the adsorption of orange II onto the BCP fits best with the pseudo-second-order and Elovich models. Further, the simulated azo dye wastewater can be effectively treated using a relatively low quantity of the adsorbent, 1 mg/L, within a short reaction time of 20 min. Overall, the use of BCP can be considered a promising method for eliminating the azo dye from wastewater effectively.

The impact of the total organic carbon (TOC), chlorine dosage, water temperature, reaction time, pH, and seasonal variation on the formation of haloacetic acids (HAAs) in the Karoon River in Iran was studied. The results showed that dichloroacetic acid and trichloroacetic acid were the most detected HAA5. The HAA5 formation potential (HAA5FP) levels in the Karoon River water in spring time, when the water TOC content exceeded 4 mg/L, were 1.38 times higher than during the winter season, when the water TOC content was below 3.5 mg/L. There was not a strong correlation between the HAA5FP and the residence time for the Karoon River water. For the range of the water temperatures studied, there was little variation in the HAA5FP in cold water, but in warmer water, the values of the HAA5FP varied quickly.

Organic matters in raw water have a potential to generate harmful disinfection by-products such as trihalomethanes (THMs) during the chlorination process. The objectives of this study were to investigate the trihalomethane formation potential (THMFP) in Karoon River water and to determine the effect of several factors including total organic carbon (TOC), pH, chlorine dosage, water temperature, and seasonal variation. The results showed that, among all factors, TOC and water temperature have a remarkable effect on THMFP. The experimental results from batch studies indicated that increasing of pH value yielded a greater THMFP concentration for Karoon River water. THMFP levels of Karoon River water in summer times, when water temperature exceeded 26°C, were 1.2-1.6 times higher than in the spring and fall seasons, when water temperature was below 15°C. It was found that the measured THMFP at Karoon River water in the spring and fall seasons were very rarely higher than 100 μg/L.