Synthesis of Highly Monodispersed, Stable, and Spherical NZVI of 20–30 nm on Filter Paper for the Removal of Phosphate from Wastewater: Batch and Column Study

A nanobiodegradable adsorbent was prepared by stabilizing nanoscale zerovalent iron (NZVI) on cellulose filter paper. Characterization of the sample disclosed that the NZVI particles were rounded, well-monodispersed through the paper, and smaller than 30 nm in diameter. We explored this material’s ability to capture phosphate ions in batch and repeated operations, specifically studying the impact of pH, adsorption time, initial phosphate concentration, interference ions, and temperature. The equilibrium results were matched to dissimilar kinds of adsorption isotherms, with the Sips adsorption model displaying the best match. The stabilized NZVI indicated high reusability after 7 adsorption–desorption cycles. We also demonstrated how this nanobiodegradable adsorbent could be applied to eliminate phosphate ions from a real water source (Cayuga Lake). In the continuous system, the results confirmed that an enhancement in the initial phosphate ion concentration improved the phosphate removal ability of the fi...