Recent advances in the application of cellulose derivatives for removal of contaminants from aquatic environments

Inappropriate discharge of industrial wastewater and household effluent has led to an accumulation of hazardous organic substances, oil and grease, heavy metal ions, dyes, and leftover pharmaceutical products in the aquatic environment. To mitigate the adverse effects of polluted water, various techniques have been implemented for physical, chemical, and biological wastewater treatments. In chemical wastewater treatments, utilizing polymers are among the most common pathways, in which cellulose-derived materials as one of the abundantly available lignocellulosic constituents have gained much interest for the applications. As environmental remediation agents, cellulose derivatives have great potential due to their biocompatibility, excellent mechanical properties, environmental friendliness, economic viability, low toxicity, and robustness. In a chemical wastewater treatment, cellulose derivatives can be valorized to various industrial applications, such as membrane technology, absorption and adsorption process, flocculant, a catalyst for chemical reaction, and disinfecting agent. In this review paper, various types of utilization methods of cellulose derivatives, ranging from nano, micro, and natural form in industrial wastewater and household effluent treatment, are extensively discussed. In addition, the cellulose performance in adsorption, filtration is also briefly elaborated and then compared with those of the conventional polymer-based materials, such as polyether sulfone (PES), Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), and carbon nanofiber (CNF). Graphic abstract