Treatment of synthetic urban runoff using manganese oxide-coated sand in the presence of magnetic field

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficiency of manganese oxide-coated sand in the presence of magnetic field to treat urban runoff. Materials and Methods: A flow-through column having a diameter of 50 mm was filled with coated sand and used to conduct the experiments in this study. Atomic absorption, turbidimeter, pH meter, and spectrophotometer DR5000 were used to measure heavy metals, turbidity, pH, phosphate, and nitrate, respectively. The surface of coated sand was assessed by SEM. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) analysis was used to determine percentage of sand components. Results: SEM and EDAX analyses confirmed that the sand has been coated with manganese oxide successfully. Results indicated that turbidity, Pb, Zn, and PO 4 removal efficiency by the coated sand in the presence of magnetic field were 89.6%, 65.9%, 81.1% and 67%, respectively. The results indicated that the coated sand is not able to remove NO 3 . Conclusion: Manganese oxide-coated sand filter in the presence of magnetic field improve the quality of urban runoff significantly. Authors believe that this approach is simple, economical and efficient as in comparison to other existing methods. This could be a promising treatment technology that can enhance quality of urban runoff and industrial wastewaters.