article · Frontiers in Environmental Science
Calcium oxide nanoparticles can be produced sustainably from chicken eggshells, a widespread poultry processing byproduct. Thermal calcination of eggshells at 700 degrees Celsius for seven hours yields spherical, single-crystal nanoparticles between 5 and 30 nanometres in diameter. These particles demonstrate marked antimicrobial properties, inhibiting the growth of common bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli, as well as the fungal pathogen Candida albicans. In addition to their antimicrobial effects, the nanoparticles serve as high-capacity adsorbents for treating toxic pollutants in water. Laboratory testing confirms the material successfully removes lead, cadmium, chromium, and mercury ions from aqueous solutions, achieving up to 99 percent removal efficiency under optimal temperature, time, and pH conditions.
Poultry waste represents an abundant, low-cost raw material that can be repurposed to solve pressing health and ecological problems. By converting discarded eggshells into functional nanomaterials, this approach offers an eco-friendly pathway to target microbial pathogens and capture toxic heavy metals from industrial wastewater, reducing both solid waste and water pollution.
This research is at an early laboratory stage, having demonstrated effectiveness in bench-scale agar diffusion and batch adsorption tests. The dual-function material could eventually interest water treatment operators and biomedical product developers looking for sustainable adsorbents or antimicrobial agents. Moving towards commercialisation will require evaluating performance in real wastewater streams and scaling the thermal processing method cost-effectively.
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Background Chicken eggshells, a common poultry byproduct, are rich in calcium and provide a sustainable source for producing calcium oxide nanoparticles (CaO NPs). Their use in eco-friendly synthesis aligns with the growing emphasis on sustainable materials for environmental and biomedical applications. Objectives: This study develops an eco-friendly method for synthesizing CaO NPs from chicken eggshells, characterizes their physicochemical properties, and evaluates their antibacterial and antifungal activities. It also tests their effectiveness in removing heavy metal ions (Pb 2 ⁺, Cr 2 ⁺, Cd 2 ⁺, and Hg 2 ⁺) from aqueous solutions. Methods CaO NPs were synthesized by calcining chicken eggshells at 700°C for 7 h. Comprehensive characterization included analysis of crystalline structure, morphology, optical properties, bandgap energy, chemical composition, and thermal stability. Antibacterial and antifungal activities were tested using the well-agar diffusion method. Batch adsorption experiments evaluated heavy metal ion removal under varying conditions of pH, temperature, stirring time, and adsorbent concentration Results The synthesis produced spherical, single-crystal CaO NPs with diameters ranging from 5 to 30 nm and a crystalline size of approximately 20 nm. The nanoparticles had a bandgap energy of about 4.7 eV. Significant antibacterial activity was observed against Staphylococcus aureus , Klebsiella pneumoniae , and Escherichia coli , with increasing inhibition zones correlating with nanoparticle concentration. The CaO NPs also effectively inhibited Candida albicans . For efficient metal ion removal, the optimal conditions were found to be 30 min at pH 6 with 40 mg of CaO NPs at 25°C, achieving recovery rates of 98% for Pb 2 ⁺, 97% for Cd 2 ⁺, 97% for Cr 2 ⁺, and 97% for Hg 2 ⁺. For near-complete removal, extending the process to 70 min at pH 6 with 40 mg of CaO NPs at 45°C achieved the highest recovery rates: 99% for Pb 2 ⁺, 98% for Cd 2 ⁺, 99% for Cr 2 ⁺, and 99% for Hg 2 ⁺, though this approach involves higher energy and cost. Conclusion CaO NPs derived from chicken eggshells are effective antibacterial agents and adsorbents for heavy metal removal. These findings highlight their potential for sustainable applications in environmental and biomedical fields.
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DOI: 10.3389/fenvs.2024.1450485
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