An overview of carbon nanotubes role in heavy metals removal from wastewater

The scarcity of water, mainly in arid and semiarid areas of the world is exerting exceptional pressure on sources and necessitates offering satisfactory water for human and different uses. Water recycle/reuse has confirmed to be successful and promising in reliable water delivery. For that reason, attention is being paid to the effective treatment of alternative resources of water (other than fresh water) which includes seawater, storm water, wastewater (e.g., dealt with sewage water), and industrial wastewater. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are called the technology of 21st century. Nowadays CNTs have been widely used for adsorption of heavy metals from water/ wastewater due to their unique physical and chemical properties. This paper reviews some recent progress (from 2013 to 2018) in the application of CNTs for the adsorption of heavy metals in order to remove toxic pollutants from contaminated water. CNTs are expected to be a promising adsorbent in the future because of its high adsorption potential in comparison to many traditional adsorbents.