Agricultural waste to green catalyst: Lupinus peel-supported cobalt-based catalyst for environmental remediation

A different approach to using agricultural waste as a solid support for nanocatalysts was developed. The waste itself was used, without the need to convert it into carbon-based compounds or perform liquid extractions, as was previously the case. Our method combined the use of the waste's chemical structure to stabilize the nanoparticles with its physical form (film-like), which allowed for easy separation and reuse. Lupinus albus peel (LAP) was used as solid support for Co-based catalyst (denoted as Co@LAP) and evaluated as green catalyst for the degradation of organic pollutants. The prepared Co nanoparticles have an average crystallite size of 33 nm, as calculated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and have a semi-spherical shape as shown by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The catalytic activity of Co@LAP toward the degradation of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) and methyl orange (MO) was evaluated. These results highlight the potential of agricultural waste as efficient, economical, and eco-friendly matrix for environmental remediation, providing a promising alternative to traditional heterogeneous catalysts.