Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Nanosilica Entrapped Alginate Beads for the Purification of Groundwater Contaminated with Bacteria

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Silicon Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Nowadays the World is facing a scarcity of safe drinking water and the water sector encounters great challenges. The impact of a growing population and the change of climate on water availability and quality; public health and environmental issues related to emerging pollutants are the major challenges that need to be addressed. In drinking water, there may be a chance of having water-related diseases and health issues due to the occurrence of some pathogens. In the present study, we synthesized nanosilica from rice husk and it was encapsulated with sodium alginate beads and tested its efficiency for removal of bacteria from drinking water. These beads are novel since it is fully bio-origin, biodegradable and cost-effective. The isolated nanosilica were characterized spectroscopically and morphologically (FT-IR, XRD, FESEM, and HRTEM). The synthesized beads were characterized by FT-IR, FESEM, and EDX and antibacterial analysis. Using the Petrifilm method and column disinfection experiment, different filler loadings were optimized and found that higher content (1.25 g) of nanosilica reduced bacterial contamination of drinking water. The alginate-nanosilica beads are cost-effective compared to alginate beads incorporated with other nanomaterials. The antibacterial evaluation verified superior antibacterial efficacy against E.coli. The prepared alginate-nanosilica beads can be used in the wastewater treatment industry, as an effective antibacterial agent.

Graphical Abstract

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, [Dr. Sreekala M.S.], upon reasonable request.

References

  1. Elimelech M (2006) The global challenge for adequate and safe water. J Water Supply Res Technol - AQUA 55(1):3–10

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Ashbolt NJ (2015) Microbial contamination of drinking water and human health from community water systems. Curr Environ Health Rep. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-014-0037-5

  3. Shannon MA, Bohn PW, Elimelech M et al (2008) Science and technology for water purification in the coming decades. Nature 452(7185):301–10

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Karimi-maleh H, Ayati A, Davoodi R, Tanhaei B (2021) Recent advances in using of chitosan-based adsorbents for removal of pharmaceutical contaminants: A review. J Clean Prod 291:125880. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.125880

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Orooji Y, Ghanbari M, Amiri O, Salavati-niasari M (2020) Facile fabrication of silver iodide / graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposites by notable photo-catalytic performance through sunlight and antimicrobial activity. J Hazard Mater 389:122079. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.122079

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Orooji Y, Mohassel R, Amiri O, et al (2020) Gd 2 ZnMnO 6 / ZnO nanocomposites: Green sol-gel auto-combustion synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic degradation of different dye pollutants in water. J Alloys Compd 835:155240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2020.155240

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Mehdizadeh P, Orooji Y, Amiri O, Salavati-niasari M (2020) Green synthesis using cherry and orange juice and characterization of TbFeO 3 ceramic nanostructures and their application as photocatalysts under UV light for removal of organic dyes in water. J Clean Prod 252:119765. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119765

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Karimi-maleh H, Ranjbari S, Tanhaei B, et al (2021) Novel 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide impregnated chitosan hydrogel beads nanostructure as an efficient nanobio-adsorbent for cationic dye removal: Kinetic study. Environ Res 195:195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2021.110809

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Sadeghi T, Ansarian Z, Darvishi R, et al (2020) Sonophotocatalytic activities of FeCuMg and CrCuMg LDHs: Influencing factors, antibacterial effects, and intermediate determination. J Hazard Mater 399:123062. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123062

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Fawell J, Nieuwenhuijsen MJ (2003) Contaminants in drinking water. Br Med Bull 68:199–20

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Sharma S, Bhattacharya A (2017) Drinking water contamination and treatment techniques. Appl Water Sci. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13201-016-0455-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Pandey PK, Kass PH, Soupir ML, et al (2014) Contamination of water resources by pathogenic bacteria. AMB Express. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13568-014-0051-x

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Vijaywada WAT, Vijjayawada A, Dist K et al (2016) Water quality data 2016 | CPCB ENVIS For more information visit: https://www.cpcbenvis.nic.in. 3581. Accessed 12/02/2021

  14. Annepu RK (2012) Sustainable solid waste management in India. Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Earth Resources Engineering Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science Columbia University in the City of New York Sponsored by the Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council , Columbia University

  15. Edokpayi JN, Odiyo JO, Durowoju OS (2017) Impact of wastewater on surface water quality in developing countries: a case study of South Africa. In: Water Quality. https://doi.org/10.5772/66561

  16. Singh S, Kumar V, Romero R, Sharma K (2020) Applications of nanoparticles in wastewater treatment. Nanobiotechnology in Bioformulations. Nanotechnology in the Life Sciences. Springer, Cham, pp 349–379

    Google Scholar 

  17. Brar SK, Verma M, Tyagi RD, Surampalli RY (2010) Engineered nanoparticles in wastewater and wastewater sludge – Evidence and impacts. Waste Manag 30:504–520. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2009.10.012

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Bystrzejewska-piotrowska G, Golimowski J, Urban PL (2009) Nanoparticles: Their potential toxicity, waste and environmental management. Waste Manag 29:2587–2595. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2009.04.001

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Salman M, Jahan S, Kanwal S, Mansoor F (2019) Recent advances in the application of silica nanostructures for highly improved water treatment: a review. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26(21):21065–2108

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Brigante M, Pecini E, Avena M (2016) Magnetic mesoporous silica for water remediation: Synthesis, characterization and application as adsorbent of molecules and ions of environmental concern. Microporous Mesoporous Mater 230:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micromeso.2016.04.032

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Alotaibi KM, Shiels L, Lacaze L, et al (2016) Iron supported on bioinspired green silica for water remediation. Chem Sci 8:567–576. https://doi.org/10.1039/c6sc02937j

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  22. Crini G (2005) Recent developments in polysaccharide-based materials used as adsorbents in wastewater treatment. Prog Polym Sci 30:38–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.progpolymsci.2004.11.002

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Crini G (2006) Non-conventional low-cost adsorbents for dye removal: A review. Bioresour Technol 97:1061–1085. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2005.05.001

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Etcheverry M, Cappa V, Trelles J, Zanini G (2017) Montmorillonite-alginate beads: Natural mineral and biopolymers based sorbent of paraquat herbicides. J Environ Chem Eng 5:5868–5875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2017.11.018

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Dongre RS, Sadasivuni KK, Deshmukh K, et al (2019) Natural polymer based composite membranes for water purification: a review. Polym Plast Technol Mater 58:1

  26. Shim J, Lim JM, Shea PJ, Oh BT (2014) Simultaneous removal of phenol, Cu and Cd from water with corn cob silica-alginate beads. J Hazard Mater 272:129–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2014.03.010

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Baek S, Joo SH, Toborek M (2019) Treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria by encapsulation of ZnO nanoparticles in an alginate biopolymer: Insights into treatment mechanisms. Elsevier B.V., Amsterdam

  28. Wang F, Lu X, Li XY (2016) Selective removals of heavy metals (Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+) from wastewater by gelation with alginate for effective metal recovery. J Hazard Mater 308:75–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2016.01.021

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Kuang Y, Du J, Zhou R, et al (2015) Calcium alginate encapsulated Ni/Fe nanoparticles beads for simultaneous removal of Cu (II) and monochlorobenzene. J Colloid Interface Sci 447:85–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2015.01.080

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Ociński D, Jacukowicz-Sobala I, Kociołek-Balawejder E (2016) Alginate beads containing water treatment residuals for arsenic removal from water—formation and adsorption studies. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23:24527–24539. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-6768-0

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Lin S, Huang R, Cheng Y, et al (2013) Silver nanoparticle-alginate composite beads for point-of-use drinking water disinfection. Water Res 47:3959–3965. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2012.09.005

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Shim J, Kumar M, Mukherjee S, Goswami R (2019) Sustainable removal of pernicious arsenic and cadmium by a novel composite of MnO2 impregnated alginate beads: A cost-effective approach for wastewater treatment. J Environ Manage 234:8–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.12.084

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. World Health Organisation (2017) Potable reuse: guidance for producing safe drinking-water. World Health Organization. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/258715. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO

  34. Valgas C, De Souza SM, Smânia EFA, Smânia A (2007) Screening methods to determine antibacterial activity of natural products. Brazilian J Microbiol 38:369–380. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1517-83822007000200034

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Nelson MT, Labudde RA, Tomasino SF, Pines RM (2013) Comparison of 3MTM petrifilmTM Aerobic Count plates to standard plating methodology for use with AOAC antimicrobial efficacy methods 955. 14 955. 15, 964.02, and 966.04 as an alternative enumeration procedure: Collaborative study. J AOAC Int. https://doi.org/10.5740/jaoacint.12-469

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Carmona VB, Oliveira RM, Silva WTL, et al (2013) Nanosilica from rice husk: Extraction and characterization. Ind Crop Prod 43:291–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2012.06.050

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Mor S, Manchanda CK, Kansal SK, Ravindra K (2017) Nanosilica extraction from processed agricultural residue using green technology. J Clean Prod 143:1284–1290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.11.142

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Yuvakkumar R, Elango V, Rajendran V, Kannan N (2014) High-purity nano silica powder from rice husk using a simple chemical method. 8080:. https://doi.org/10.1080/17458080.2012.656709

  39. Rafiee E, Shahebrahimi S, Feyzi M, Shaterzadeh M (2012) Optimization of synthesis and characterization of nanosilica produced from rice husk (a common waste material). Int Nano Lett 21 2:1–8. https://doi.org/10.1186/2228-5326-2-29

  40. Hassan AF, Abdelghny AM, Elhadidy H, Youssef AM (2013) Synthesis and characterization of high surface area nanosilica from rice husk ash by surfactant-free sol–gel method. J Sol-Gel Sci Technol 693 69:465–472. https://doi.org/10.1007/S10971-013-3245-9

  41. Wang W, Martin JC, Fan X et al (2012) Silica nanoparticles and frameworks from rice husk biomass. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 4:977–981. https://doi.org/10.1021/AM201619U

  42. Nguyen TT, Ma HT, Avti P, et al (2019) Adsorptive removal of iron using SiO2 nanoparticles extracted from rice husk ash. J Anal Methods Chem 2019. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/6210240

  43. Salama A, Diab MA, Abou-Zeid RE, et al (2018) Crosslinked alginate/silica/zinc oxide nanocomposite: A sustainable material with antibacterial properties. Compos Commun 7:7–11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coco.2017.11.006

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Mukharjee BB, Barai S V (2015) Characteristics of sustainable concrete incorporating recycled coarse aggregates and colloidal nano-silica. Adv Concr Constr 3:187–202. https://doi.org/10.12989/acc.2015.3.3.187

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Dung PD, Ngoc LS, Duy NN et al (2016) Effect of nanosilica from rice husk on the growth enhancement of chili plant (Capsicum frutescens L.). Vietnam J Sci Technol 54:607. https://doi.org/10.15625/0866-708x/54/5/7034

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Pannier A, Soltmann U, Soltmann B, et al (2014) Alginate/silica hybrid materials for immobilization of green microalgae Chlorella vulgaris for cell-based sensor arrays. J Mater Chem B 2:7896–7909. https://doi.org/10.1039/c4tb00944d

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Kusuktham B, Prasertgul J, Srinun P (2014) Morphology and property of calcium silicate encapsulated with alginate beads. Silicon 6:191–197. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-013-9173-z

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. Rehbein P, Raguz N, Schwalbe H (2019) Evaluating mechanical properties of silica-coated alginate beads for immobilized biocatalysis. Biochem Eng J 141:225–231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bej.2018.10.028

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. Gok C, Aytas S (2009) Biosorption of uranium(VI) from aqueous solution using calcium alginate beads. J Hazard Mater 168:369–375. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.02.063

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Roosen J, Pype J, Binnemans K, Mullens S (2015) Shaping of alginate – Silica hybrid materials into microspheres through vibrating-nozzle technology and their use for the recovery of neodymium from aqueous solutions. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.iecr.5b03494

  51. Sharma SK, Sharma AR, Pamidimarri SD, Gaur J, Singh BP, Sekar S, ... Lee SS (2019) Bacterial compatibility / toxicity of biogenic silica (b-SiO 2) Nanoparticles synthesized from biomass. Nanomaterials 9:1440. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9101440

  52. Capeletti LB, De Oliveira LF, Gonçalves KDA, et al (2014) Tailored silica-antibiotic nanoparticles: Overcoming bacterial resistance with low cytotoxicity. Langmuir 30:7456–7464. https://doi.org/10.1021/la4046435

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Alshatwi AA, Athinarayanan J, Periasamy VS (2015) Biocompatibility assessment of rice husk-derived biogenic silica nanoparticles for biomedical applications. Mater Sci Eng C 47:8–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msec.2014.11.005

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. De Oliveira LF, De Almeida Gonçalves K, Boreli FH, et al (2012) Mechanism of interaction between colloids and bacteria as evidenced by tailored silica-lysozyme composites. J Mater Chem 22:22851–22858. https://doi.org/10.1039/c2jm34899c

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Lin YS, Haynes CL (2010) Impacts of mesoporous silica nanoparticle size, pore ordering, and pore integrity on hemolytic activity. J Am Chem Soc 132:4834–4842

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  56. Nel AE, Mädler L, Velegol D, et al (2009) Understanding biophysicochemical interactions at the nano-bio interface. Nat Mater 8:543–557. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2442

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. Slowing II, Wu CW, Vivero-Escoto JL, Lin VSY (2009) Mesoporous silica nanoparticles for reducing hemolytic activity towards mammalian red blood cells. Small 5:57–62. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.200800926

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Deo SS, Gidde MR (2019) Managing pollution impacted potable groundwater in rural area of eastern pune metropolitan region: disinfection by common plants. 9869–9875. https://doi.org/10.35940/ijrte.D9153.118419

  59. Tarroza AVZ, Catsao K V, Ramos MA et al (2019) Utilization of hydrated petrifilm coupled with filtration in the detection and enumeration of escherichia coli in water samples. Philipp J Sci 148:395–399

  60. Tufenkji N, Elimelech M (2004) Correlation equation for predicting single-collector efficiency in physicochemical filtration in saturated porous media. Environ Sci Technol 38:529–536. https://doi.org/10.1021/es034049r

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the financial support from DST, New Delhi for the facilities provided to Sree Sankara College, Kalady under the DST-FIST program (No. 487/DST/FIST/15-16).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Postgraduate & Research Department of Chemistry, Sree Sankara College, Kalady, Kerala, 683574, India

    Lakshmipriya Ravindran, K. Jesitha & M. S. Sreekala

  2. Postgraduate & Research Department of Chemistry, N.S.S Hindu College, 686102, Changanacherry, Kerala, India

    Lakshmipriya Ravindran & S. Anilkumar

  3. Department of Biology, SN College, Chelannur, Kozhikode, Kerala, 673616, India

    P. U. Megha

  4. Centre for Water Resources Development and Management, 673571, Kozhikode, Kerala, India

    P. S. Harikumar

Authors
  1. Lakshmipriya Ravindran
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. K. Jesitha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. P. U. Megha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. S. Anilkumar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M. S. Sreekala
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. P. S. Harikumar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All the authors contributed equally to this work.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. S. Sreekala.

Ethics declarations

Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate

Not Applicable.

Consent for Publication

Not Applicable.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Disclosure of potential Conflicting Interests

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest concerning the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Research Involving Human Participants and/ or Animals

Not Applicable.

Informed Consent

Not Applicable.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Highlights

• Nanosilica was extracted from Rice husk, an agro-waste.

• Nanosilica were reinforced in Alginate beads.

• The new environmentally benign beads were efficient in removing bacteria from contaminated groundwater.

• The beads have shown 92% of disinfection efficacy with 20 min of HRT, indicating that the beads can be used more extensively.

• This research can be scaled up to a low-cost water filtration system to assure clean water in contaminated locations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Ravindran, L., Jesitha, K., Megha, P.U. et al. Nanosilica Entrapped Alginate Beads for the Purification of Groundwater Contaminated with Bacteria. Silicon 14, 8707–8720 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-021-01544-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-021-01544-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation