Inhibition of nucleation and crystal growth of calcium carbonate in hard waters using <i>Paronychia arabica</i> in an arid desert region
Amina Karar, Abdellah Henni, Farid Namoune, Federico Rosei
Abstract
Abstract The formation of CaCO 3 of groundwater has important implications in the industry. Many conventional scale inhibitors are considered environmentally unfriendly. In this study, we investigate the effect of aqueous extract of Paronychia arabica (PA) as new green antiscalant agents on the precipitation of CaCO 3 in an arid desert region. The antiscaling properties of these extracts towards CaCO3 formation were tested using chronoamperometry (CA), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Fast Controlled Precipitation methods. Electrochemical and chemical analysis of Mkhadma groundwater shows a high calcium concentration and the deposit is a pure calcite. The nucleation and formation time were identified. At 32°C, a complete scaling inhibition was obtained using a concentration of 150 mg/L of green extract. The scale inhibitor effect was analysed by an optical microscopic examination.