ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Engineered copper nanostructures for environmental remediation: validating their role in dye removal using response surface analysis

D. Angelene Hannah Jebarani, S. Rohit, S. Lokesh, K. Gowthami, V. Gowthanjali, Vinoth Kumar Raja, and V. Sudarshana Deepa

Department of Biotechnology, National Institute of Technology Andhra Pradesh, Tadepalligudem, India

E-mail: vinoth@nitandhra.ac.in

Received: 6 November 2024  Accepted: 14 July 2025

Abstract:

This work illustrates that the adsorptive ability of copper nanostructures varies with its physicochemical status, using the dye brilliant blue, a classic example of a synthetic dye used in the food industry. Copper nanostructures were synthesized using a chemical reduction method. The formation of copper was confirmed by the characterizations using XRD, which showed the existence of crystalline copper phases, with the FTIR peaks confirming the oxide structures of copper. The DLS data revealed the effect of starch on the size control of reduced copper nanostructures. Further, the studies on the adsorptive removal of the brilliant blue dye showed that adding starch limited the nanostructures' performance. The experimental trials were decided based on the central composite design (CCD), and the optimum condition for dye adsorption was spotted using response surface methodology (RSM). The CCD results showed that for the starch-free copper nanostructures, optimal dye removal was achieved under conditions of using an adsorbent concentration of 20 mg for a contact time of around 58 min. The regression equations and the surface plots were also obtained for the models.

Graphical abstract

Keywords: Water remediation; Brilliant blue dye; Adsorption; Copper nanoparticles; Optimization; Central composite design

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-025-04254-7

Chemical Papers 79 (10) 7159–7169 (2025)