The Possibility of Treating the Surface Water of Ayin Kiam with Aleppo Pine Extracts

Abstract

The present work aimed to treatment the surface water of Ayin Kaim using the aqueous extract of Aleppo pine leaves as a coagulant. Several analyses were performed on water before and after treatment included pH, total dissolved solids, conductivity, turbidity, iron ion concentration, and total coliform count, also GC-MS analysis was performed on Aleppo pine leaf powder. The coagulation properties of Aleppo pine seeds and cones were found to be promising, but several limitations prompted the search for more effective alternatives. Notably, the utilization of aqueous leaf extract from Aleppo pine in water purification has not been previously reported. Our findings unequivocally demonstrated that the aqueous extract of Aleppo pine leaves significantly enhanced water quality parameters, including pH (8.63-8.44), total dissolved solids (6360-4140) mg/L, conductivity (9.67-6.59) mS/cm, turbidity (123-59.6) NTU, iron ion concentration (0.08-0.0) mg/L, and total coliform count (398-247) cfu. The improvement in water quality is attributed to the presence of various chemical compounds in Aleppo pine leaves, including carbohydrates, proteins, and carboxylic acids, which were confirmed through GC-MS analysis. Studies have shown that these compounds possess the ability to adsorb compounds on their surfaces, thereby supporting the efficacy of aqueous extracts of Aleppo pine leaves as an alternative in water purification. Given the severe health implications associated with chemical coagulants, the use of Aleppo pine leaves as natural coagulants in water purification presents a cost-effective solution due to their year-round availability and independence from complex climatic conditions.