Toward a Feasible Solution for Removing Toxic Mercury and Chromium From Water Using Copper Oxide Nanoparticles

Objective: Water contaminated with heavy metals causes serious environmental issues for people. Mercury and chromium are considered to be extremely toxic for public health. Diversified technologies have been introduced to purify contaminated water; however, only a few become successful in reducing mercury and chromium below the permissible limit of drinking water (0.001 and 0.05 ppm, respectively, WHO/BIS Guidelines). Our main aim was to synthesize suitable nanoscale materials to make water potable by removing mercury and chromium from contaminated water while keeping essential elements as per the WHO/BIS guidelines. Methods: Copper(II) oxide nanomaterials are synthesized following a wet chemical process as per earlier reported procedures. Nanoparticles with average diameter of 10–20 nm are formed. XRD confirms the formation of orthorhombic CuO nanoparticles. Results: The nanoparticles are efficient in removing mercury from 200 ppb to less than 50 ppb (75%) and chromium from 200 ppb to less than 16 ppb (92%) over a wide range of pH. Conclusion: The nanomaterials have great potential in removing toxic heavy metals from contaminated water. The materials can be applied to integrated water purification systems to produce potable water.