Biosorption of metribuzin pesticide by Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) peels-zinc oxide nanoparticles composite

AbstractHerein, a biosorbent was prepared from cucumber peels modified with ZnO nanoparticles (CPZiONp-composite) for the biosorption of metribuzin. Characterization of the composite was accomplished using FTIR, SEM, EDX, surface area pore size analyzer and pH of point of zero charge (pHpzc). Biosorption study was executed in batch concerning the impact of pH, composite dose, contact time, initial metribuzin concentration and temperature. The biosorption depends on pH and maximum biosorption was acquired at pH 3.0. Surface chemistry of the composite was studied by determining the pHpzc and was found to be 6.1. The biosorption nature was investigated using isotherms and was assessed that Freundlich isotherm is well suited for the fitting of the biosorption data owing to the highest R2. The maximum biosorption capacity of CPZiONp-composite was found to be 200 mg g-1. The biosorption data were fitted in to different kinetic models and the outcomes suggesting that pseudo second order is a satisfactory model to interpret the biosorption data owing to the highest R2. Thermodynamic parameters for instance entropy, enthalpy and Gibbs free energy were computed and revealed that biosorption of metribuzin onto CPZiONp-composite is spontaneous and exothermic process.