Starch, cellulose, pectin, gum, alginate, chitin and chitosan derived (nano) materials for sustainable water treatment: A review

Natural biopolymers, polymeric organic molecules produced by living organisms and/or renewable resources, are considered greener, sustainable, and eco-friendly materials. Natural polysaccharides comprising cellulose, chitin/chitosan, starch, gum, alginate, and pectin are sustainable materials owing to their outstanding structural features, abundant availability, and nontoxicity, ease of modification, biocompatibility, and promissing potentials. Plentiful polysaccharides have been utilized for making assorted (nano)catalysts in recent years; fabrication of polysaccharides-supported metal/metal oxide (nano)materials is one of the effective strategies in nanotechnology. Water is one of the world's foremost environmental stress concerns. Nanomaterial-adorned polysaccharides-based entities have functioned as novel and more efficient (nano)catalysts or sorbents in eliminating an array of aqueous pollutants and contaminants, including ionic metals and organic/inorganic pollutants from wastewater. This review encompasses recent advancements, trends and challenges for natural biopolymers assembled from renewable resources for exploitation in the production of starch, cellulose, pectin, gum, alginate, chitin and chitosan-derived (nano)materials.

Automated summary

Natural biopolymers, such as cellulose, chitin/chitosan, and starch, are considered greener, sustainable, and eco-friendly materials due to their outstanding structural features, abundant availability, nontoxicity, and biocompatibility. In recent years, polysaccharides have been widely used for making various catalysts, with polysaccharides-supported metal/metal oxide materials being an effective strategy in nanotechnology. Polysaccharides adorned with nanomaterials have shown promising potential as efficient catalysts or sorbents in removing a variety of aqueous pollutants and contaminants.