Synthesis of Nanocomposite Based Polysaccharide and Performance Evaluation for the Removal of Various Drug from Pharmaceuticals Wastewater

Abstract The present study performed synthesis and characterization nanocomposite based polysaccharide Chitosan/Agar and Chitosan/Agar/SiO 2 nanoparticles as adsorbents for remove amoxicillin and naproxen as the pharmaceuticals from an aqueous solution. The structure and morphology of nanocomposite were investigated using X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopes (FE‐SEM) and Dynamic light scattering (DLS). The removal performance of the Chitosan/Agar and Chitosan/Agar/SiO 2 nanoparticles nanocomposite as adsorbent for removing amoxicillin and naproxen as sample of pharmaceutical industry effluents in aqueous solutions was investigated under different influence factors, including contact time, initial concentration, pH conditions and temperature. The maximum adsorption removal for amoxicillin with Agar/Chitosan and Agar/Chitosan/SiO 2 nanocomposite at initial concentrations of 20 mg/l was 97.85 % and 87.9 %, respectively. With increasing temperature from 10 to 30°C, the removal efficiency for naproxen for both adsorbents is 99 %. The prepared nanocomposites showed good performance in adsorbing naproxen and amoxicillin. The maximum adsorption efficiency of nanocomposite was 99 % and 91 % for naproxen and amoxicillin, respectively. The optimum condition for pharmaceuticals removal by the nanocomposite was initial concentration: 20 mg/l, adsorbent dose: 0.05 g, contact time: 10 min, and pH=6.