Latest progress in utilizing gum hydrogels and their composites as high-efficiency adsorbents for removing pollutants from wastewater: Journal of Molecular Liquids

Water has great significance for human life, plants as well as animals. In modern times, the problem of contamination of different water bodies with increasing anthropogenic pollutants, including agricultural, industrial, and everyday domestic waste, has increased tremendously. Different organic/inorganic pollutants in water are a potential risk for water resources that has destructive health impacts on humans and other living organisms. Hence, it is crucial to prioritize the cost-efficient removal of organic and inorganic pollutants through environmentally friendly methods. Among the researched approaches, adsorption-based wastewater treatment stands out for its efficiency and practical economic benefits. The success of any adsorption process relies heavily on the characteristics of the adsorbent used. There has been interest in polysaccharide-based hydrogels and their nanocomposites incorporating metal oxide nanoparticles, clay minerals, zeolites, and carbonaceous materials for various water purification techniques like adsorption and photocatalysis. Hydrogel nanocomposites (HNCs) have gained attention as adsorbents for water treatment due to their eco-friendly adsorption capacity, low cost, non-toxic nature, and ease of synthesis. This article provides a review of the developments in utilizing polysaccharide hydrogels and their composites as effective adsorbents in removing different types of organic and inorganic impurities from wastewater. Specifically, it covers methods of hydrogel synthesis techniques to incorporate fillers into the polymer matrix as well as highlights the key advantages they offer when applied in wastewater treatment applications. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.