Nitrates and phosphates removal from synthetic pond water using pilot-scale monotubular module made from ceramic clay and banana peel powder composites

Abstract

Significant volumes of potentially dangerous chemicals are released into receiving streams from aquaculture activities. Excess nitrate and phosphate emissions from aquaculture operations, in particular, contribute to the eutrophication of natural water bodies. In response to this increasing concern, the researchers devised this study, which incorporated an experimental design for removing nitrates and phosphates from synthetic pond water by nanofiltration, utilizing a pilot-scale monotubular module composed of ceramic clay and banana peel powder composites. The researchers combined ceramic clay with different weight percentages of 10%, 20%, and 30% banana peel powder as a natural porogen. Each treatment has been replicated thrice, and the findings were analyzed using Two-Way ANOVA and Bonferroni Post-Hoc Analysis. The results indicated that Treatment 4 performed the best in removing nitrates and phosphates, with steady-state values or capacities of 3.6 and 3.1 mg/L, respectively. The method of statistical analysis revealed that there is a significant difference in the amount of nitrates and phosphates removed between treatments. On the other hand, the statistical analysis also showed that only the removal of nitrates has a significant difference among the replicates. Upon verification, the post-hoc analysis indicated that the removal of nitrates and phosphates does not have a significant difference in between replicates.