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Coagulation and flocculation provide a rather straightforward method towards water clarification. However, ongoing debates over worrying health issues linked to chemical coagulants have paved the way to develop plantbased natural coagulants. Natural coagulants are not only water clarifying agents, but they also have antimicrobial and heavy metal removal properties in some instances. These are highly attractive in the transformation of raw surface water into potable drinking water. A total of 14 plant-based natural coagulants categorized as common vegetables and legumes are identified and presented collectively in this comprehensive review. The two main coagulation mechanisms leading to the observed coagulation activities are postulated to be charge neutralization and bridging. Turbidity removal efficiencies were proven to be greatly affected by pH variations and the dosage of natural coagulants used. The existing research gaps are acknowledged in this work to provide a platform towards the necessity of further research in the water treatment processes.

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Fruit wastes constituting up to half of total fruit weight represent a large pool of untapped resources for isolation of starch with diverse applications. In this work, the possibility of isolating starch from tropical fruit wastes and its extended application as a natural coagulant was elucidated. Amongst the 12 various parts of fruit wastes selected, only jackfruit seeds contained more than 50% of total starch content. Using alkaline extraction procedures, starch has been successfully isolated from local jackfruit seeds with a yield of approximately 18%. Bell-shaped starch granules were observed under SEM with a granule size ranging from 1.1 to 41.6 μm. Detailed starch characteristics were performed to provide a comparison between the isolated seed starch and also conventional starches. Among them, chemical properties such as the content of starch, amylose, amylopectin and the corresponding molecular weights are some of the key characteristics which governed their performance as natural coagulants. The potential use of isolated seed starch as an aid was then demonstrated in both suspensions of kaolin (model synthetic system) and Chlorella sp. microalga (real-time application) with plausible outcomes. At optimized starch dosage of 60 mg/L, the overall turbidity removal in kaolin was enhanced by at least 25% at a fixed alum dosage of 2.1 mg/L. Positive turbidity and COD removals were also observed in the treatment of Chlorella suspensions. Starches which served as bridging agents aided in the linkage of neighbouring microflocs and subsequently, forming macroflocs through a secondary coagulation mechanism: adsorption and bridging.

Iron‐based magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have been studied extensively for the past few decades. They have been applied in various applications, particularly in the biomedical sector. Due to their excellent physical and chemical properties, they have also been used widely in the agricultural sector. MNPs can be synthesized inexpensively and applied in large scale agricultural activities. This paper highlights the applications of iron‐based MNPs in the agricultural sector mainly as antimicrobial agents, plant growth promoters, site‐targeted delivery agents, nanosensors, detection and remediation for pesticide residue. Furthermore, the toxicity and transport of iron‐based MNPs in the soil‐plant system are also elucidated. These aspects have to be well‐understood before MNPs can be fully implemented effectively this pin the agricultural sector. Lastly, a hybrid nanomaterial, which is consisted of iron and magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles (NPs), is proposed. This hybrid nanomaterial is expected to overcome the shortcomings of iron‐based MNPs.