Elucidation of the potential of Moringa oleifera leaves extract as a novel alternate to the chemical coagulant in water treatment process

In recent years, several studies have been developed to search for sustainable and eco-friendly natural coagulants as an alternative to inorganic and synthetic coagulants to obtain drinking water. Despite the performance and cost-effectiveness of these coagulants, they require pH and alkalinity adjustments, they generate high volumes of sludge, and their residuals in treated water (e.g., aluminum) are linked with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, as well as neurotoxic and carcinogenic effects. Moringa oleifera seeds had shown better coagulation properties but have numerous limitations which have prompted us to find better alternatives. To the best part of my knowledge, utilization of its leaves extract obtained from different organic solvents in water purification has rarely been reported. Our findings clearly revealed that M. oleifera leaves hexane extract has significantly improved the water quality parameters including pH (8.2-7.1), TDS (512-221), hardness (246-138), turbidity (15.6-6.1), fluoride (2.3-1.1), and Escherichia coli count (315-41) whereas alum effectively improved these parameters at a dose of 50 mg/L. Moringa oleifera showed significant removal capability in comparison to alum but slightly at higher dose, thus our results strongly supported the efficacy of M. oleifera leaves extracts as better alternative to chemical coagulant in water purification. Practitioner Points Chemical coagulants pose severe side effects to humans such as neurodegenerative diseases. Use of Moringa oleifera leaves as natural coagulants in water purification is a cost-effective approach due to its easy availability throughout the year. Moringa oleifera leaves exhibited significant coagulating efficiency by improving water quality parameters including pH, turbidity, total dissolved solids, fluoride, hardness, and E. coli count.