Graphene-based materials production and application in textile wastewater treatment: color removal and phytotoxicity...

The dyes used in textile industries are usually difficult to degrade in aquatic environments, being highly toxic to micro fauna and flora. Thus, textile wastewater treatments have been developed, among them, one that stands out is adsorption process. With the rise of nanomaterials applied to adsorption, graphene oxide (GO) shows promise in the removal of dyes. This work aimed to produce a more economical and environmentally friendly GO by reducing H₂SO₄ concentration during the synthesis. Adsorption tests were performed with methylene blue (MB) and brilliant blue (BB), adsorbent regeneration tests, as well as a kinetic study using real wastewater, and toxicological assays with lettuce seeds. Results showed that the sample produced with less H₂SO₄ (GO-21) performed better for MB (99% removal) and BB (29% removal); and recycling test showed that despite the decrease in removal efficiency, it remained high in the first cycles. Kinetics showed that equilibrium was reached in 30 min, removing 67.43% of color and 90.23% of the effluent's turbidity. Phytotoxicity assays indicated that the wastewater treated with GO-21 was the least toxic, compared to other wastewater samples analyzed. Therefore, GO has demonstrated its potential to be an effective and less toxic option to treat textile effluents.[Formula: see text].