Abstract—Magnetite (Fe₂O₄) nanoparticles represent a
revolutionary solution to the alarming water pollution crisis,
offering an innovative and highly effective approach to
remediate pollutants in domestic wastewater. This study
evaluates their practical application in the Chilca River in
Huancayo, Peru, a water body severely affected by untreated
discharges that pose a serious risk to public health and
sustainable development. Focusing on key parameters such as
Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), turbidity, Total Suspended
Solids (TSS) and oils and fats, the results showed significant
reductions: COD from 442.5 mg/L to 135.2 mg/L, turbidity from
98.5 Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTU) to 50.2 NTU, TSS
from 120 mg/L to 62 mg/L and oils and fats from 45.2 mg/L to
11.3 mg/L, while maintaining stable pH levels. Regression
analysis confirmed that the concentration of magnetite
nanoparticles plays a key role in process efficiency. These
findings not only validate the efficacy of this technology in high
pollution contexts, but also highlight its scalable and sustainable
potential to address similar problems in polluted water bodies
worldwide, contributing to improved water quality and public
health.
Keywords—magnetite, wastewater, COD, turbidity, total
suspended solids, oils and fats, remediation
Cite: Isabella Esther Arosemena Chavez, Jhoselyn Campos Lindo, Miguel Jaime Laura Peña, and Steve Dann Camargo Hinostroza, "Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles in the Remediation of Pollutants in Domestic Wastewater from the Chilca River," International Journal of Environmental Science and Development vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 125-135, 2025.
Copyright © 2025 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (CC BY 4.0).