Nanotechnological Innovations for Soil Pollution Remediation and Environmental Conservation

Nanotechnological Innovations for Soil Pollution Remediation and Environmental Conservation

Omkar Singh, Shivangi Singh, Uday Pratap Shahi, Raghavendra Singh, Prabhat Kumar Singh, Karen K. Grigoryan, Hrant Khachatryan, Priyadarshani Rajput, Leonid Perelomov, Svetlana Kozmenko, Marina Burachevskaya
Copyright: © 2024 |Pages: 19
DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3693-1890-4.ch012
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Abstract

Globally, soil contamination threatens the ecosystem and human health. Ecological, financial, and efficiency issues plague excavation, chemical, and bioremediation methods. Nanotechnology is a promise for soil remediation, offering advantages over existing approaches. Nanotechnology technologies for soil pollution treatment and environmental conservation are covered in this chapter. It examines heavy metals, organic pollutants, pesticides, and radioactive contamination in soil and the limitations of current remediation methods. The chapter next discusses nanotechnology in soil remediation, including nanoparticles, nanomaterials for adsorption and degradation, nano-bioremediation, and nanosensors for pollution monitoring. Case studies and research show nanotechnology's success in soil remediation. Future nanotechnology for soil remediation views and difficulties highlight the need for more research and development to address scalability, cost-effectiveness, and environmental safety.
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1. Introduction

1.1 Significance of Soil Pollution and Its Impact on the Environment

Soil pollution is a major worldwide environmental issue that presents considerable risks to ecosystems, human health, and food security (Rodriguez-Eugenio et al., 2018; Singh et al., 2024b). Human activities, such as industrialization, agricultural practices, and poor waste management, have caused the buildup of many contaminants in the soil (Ashraf et al., 2019). Various pollutants such as heavy metals, organic contaminants, pesticides, and radioactive compounds can harm soil quality, biodiversity, and the overall operation of terrestrial ecosystems (Khalid et al., 2017). Soil pollution has widespread repercussions that go beyond the nearby affected areas. Pollutants in the soil can be absorbed by plants and transferred into the food chain, potentially endangering human health if consumed (Tóth et al., 2016). Contaminated soil can degrade water quality by leaching and surface runoff, posing a threat to aquatic ecosystems and the safety of drinking water sources (Salah et al., 2015). Soil pollution leads to the depletion of arable land, lower agricultural output, and food insecurity, especially in emerging nations (Rai et al., 2019).

Soil contamination severity and extent range among regions and are affected by industrial operations, agricultural methods, population density, and environmental restrictions (Rodriguez-Eugenio et al., 2018). Rapid industrialization and inadequate environmental legislation in numerous developing nations have worsened the issue of soil contamination (Ashraf et al., 2019). Inadequate waste management infrastructure and excessive use of agrochemicals have worsened soil quality, as noted by Khalid et al. (2017).

1.2 Need for Innovative Remediation Techniques

Due to the substantial environmental and health consequences of soil contamination, there is a pressing requirement for efficient remediation methods (Khalid et al., 2017). Traditional procedures like excavation, landfilling, chemical treatment, and bioremediation are commonly employed to deal with soil contamination (Ashraf et al., 2019). Nevertheless, these approaches frequently face constraints regarding effectiveness, expenses, and ecological viability (Rai et al., 2019). Excavation and landfilling refer to the process of physically removing contaminated soil and disposing of it in specific landfill sites (Khalid et al., 2017). Although efficient in eliminating pollutants, this method is costly, takes a significant amount of labour, and relies on the presence of appropriate landfill sites (Ashraf et al., 2019). Transporting contaminated soil to landfill sites might result in additional environmental consequences and potential hazards during processing and disposal, as mentioned by Rai et al. (2019).

Chemical treatment approaches, like chemical oxidation and reduction, use chemical agents to transform contaminants into less hazardous or immobile forms (Khalid et al., 2017). Chemical treatments can be successful but are often costly to operate and can produce additional pollutants that need to be treated further (Ashraf et al., 2019). Moreover, the utilisation of chemical agents might negatively impact soil characteristics and microbial populations, resulting in prolonged ecological disruptions (Rai et al., 2019). Bioremediation, utilising microorganisms to break down or change contaminants, is recognised as an environmentally acceptable and economical method (Rodriguez-Eugenio et al., 2018). Bioremediation has constraints on the types of pollutants it can efficiently address and the duration of the remediation process (Khalid et al., 2017). Bioremediation success relies on parameters like pollutant type, soil conditions, and the existence of appropriate microbial communities (Ashraf et al., 2019). Due to the constraints of traditional remediation methods, there is an increasing focus on creating new and sustainable strategies to tackle soil pollution (Rai et al., 2019). Nanotechnology is a promising field that provides new options for environmental remediation, such as cleaning up contaminated soil (Pandey et al., 2019).

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