Ramification of mycogenic copper oxide nanoparticles on wastewater remediation from selected sites of Yamuna River.

Water pollution poses a global environmental threat, with riverine systems like the Yamuna River in India. Recently, mycogenic metal oxide nanoparticles considered a novel frontier in remediation technologies, addressing the failure of conventional methods to mitigate water pollution. The current study investigates the mycosynthesis of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) using Metarhizium anisopliae, Beauveria bassiana and Serendipita indica and evaluates their potential for wastewater remediation. Among the three, Serendipita indica-mediated CuO NPs exhibited superior properties, including a hydrodynamic size of 179.1 nm, high elemental purity (95.66% Cu via EDX) and average particle sizes of 75 nm (SEM) and 49.2 nm (TEM). XPS confirmed pure CuO NPs with Cu 2p at ~ 933 eV and O 1 s at ~ 530 eV. The BET surface area of 8.28 m²/g and mesoporous structure (~ 21.7 nm), with good thermal stability by TGA (0.084% weight loss up to 800 °C) and DSC analysis. Remediation using CuO NPs (100 mg/L) on water samples from Wazirabad, Ghazipur and Okhla Barrage revealed substantial reductions in physicochemical parameters, particularly at Wazirabad: pH (33.63%), TDS (42.58%), TSS (50.59%), BOD (54.69%), COD (46.25%) and turbidity (58.82%). Interestingly, the toxic metals, including arsenic, lead, iron and cadmium were reduced by 74.19%, 66.66%, 40.25% and 40.25%, respectively. One-way ANOVA confirmed statistically significant reductions in all four trace metals (df = 4, F = 9.973, p < 0.01). Tukey's post-hoc test revealed significant removal of arsenic and lead compared to iron (p < 0.01). These findings underscore the efficacy of S. indica-derived mycogenic CuO NPs as eco-friendly agents for wastewater remediation.