Metformin and Its Removal From Water

Abstract

Metformin (MET) is an emerging pollutant that is frequently discovered in aquatic ecosystems because it is incompletely digested after absorption in the human body, with some dosages discharged in unaltered form through urine or feces. The study's goals are to investigate MET stability in water and to assess the possibility of pumice-based zeolite for treating MET pollutants. The hydrothermal process was used to create zeolites, which were then characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). A simple spectrophotometric approach for assessing the stability of MET in aqueous solution under various circumstances was proposed. The metformin solution was shown to be unstable in strong acid conditions (pH 2), as evidenced by the loss of the greatest absorption peak in the 220-250 nm range. The stable metformin conditions in this investigation were established at pH levels ranging from 6 to 10 and temperatures ranging from 14 to 40 degrees Celsius. Furthermore, MET stability can be maintained for up to three days of exposure. According to the adsorption results, zeolite absorption capacity (196 g/g) was greater than pumice uptake capacity (87 g/g) in reducing metformin concentration. Furthermore, the produced zeolite requires further modification to improve its adsorption ability