| Summary: | Cephalexin (CFX) is an antibiotic prescribed for a wide variety of conditions,
including bacterial infections and urinary tract infections. It has recently been labelled as an
emerging pollutant due to the high concentrations of CFX that indicate a potential risk to the
environment. This research set out to discover the best conditions for producing a leachate
from waste materials utilising the Eco-Zinc Oxide-Graphene Oxide (Eco-ZnO/GO) catalyst for
the efficient removal of CFX. The Eco-ZnO/GO nanocomposite that were generated from
waste is used for adsorption in an aqueous solution. Field Emission Scanning Electron
Microscope (FESEM) was used to characterise Eco-Zno/GO nanocomposite while Response
Surface Methodology (RSM) were used to optimise the removal efficiency of CFX across three
factors: starting concentration, mixing speed, and contact time. Average nanoparticle sizes for
Eco-ZnO and GO were measured to be 23 and 122 nm, respectively. Eco-ZnO/GO has a
maximum removal efficiency of 89.55% at the optimal factor of 1000 rpm in 30 minutes when
working with a concentration of 100 mg/l of CFX. The results of the study demonstrated that
the waste nanocomposite technology is used to remove the material effectively, which can add
to our growing body of knowledge in this area
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