Addressing water scarcity and pollution is imperative in tackling global environmental challenges, prompting the exploration of innovative techniques for effective water and wastewater treatment. Nanotechnology presents promising solutions through the customization of nanoparticles and nanocomposites specifically designed for water purification applications. This review delves into recent advancements in nanoparticle-based technologies for water treatment, with a particular focus on their synthesis methodologies, intrinsic properties, and versatile applications. A wide range of nanoparticles, ranging from metal nanoparticles to carbon-based nanomaterials, along with hybrid nanocomposites such as metal/metal oxide-based nanocomposites, polymer-based nanocomposites, and others, were emphasized for eliminating contaminants from water and wastewater matrices. Furthermore, this review elucidates the underlying mechanisms governing pollutant removal processes, encompassing adsorption, catalysis, and membrane filtration, facilitated by nanoparticles. Additionally, it explores the environmental implications and challenges associated with the widespread deployment of nanoparticle-based water-treatment technologies. By amalgamating existing research findings, this review provides valuable insights into the potential of nanoparticles and nanocomposites in mitigating water-related challenges and presents recommendations for future research trajectories and technological advancements in this domain.

This comprehensive review focuses on treatment technologies for produced water, with a particular emphasis on membrane-based systems. These systems offer significant advantages, including high contaminant removal efficiencies, compact design, and the potential for resource recovery. The review emphasizes the application of these technologies, their performance in meeting regulatory standards, and the challenges they face, such as operational efficiency and fouling. It highlights the need for further research and for the optimization of processes to enhance their efficiency. The integration of conventional methods with advanced treatment processes is also explored, with a vision toward developing hybrid systems for improved treatment efficiency. Overall, membrane-based systems show great promise for the treatment of produced water, but further advancements, sustainability considerations, and integration with other technologies are essential for their successful implementation in large-scale applications.

Maintaining and enhancing agricultural productivity for food security while preserving the ecology and environment from the harmful effects of toxicants is the main challenge in modern monoculture farming systems. Microbial biological agents can be a promising substitute for traditional synthetic pesticides to manage plant diseases. Trichoderma spp. are soil-dwelling ascomycete fungi and are common biocontrol agents against diverse phytopathogens. Trichoderma-based biocontrol techniques can regulate and control soil-borne plant diseases through mechanisms such as mycoparasitism, the production of antibiotics and hydrolytic enzymes, rhizo-sphere competence, the effective competition for available resources, induction of plant resistance and facilitation of plant growth. Numerous secondary metabolites produced by Trichoderma spp. are reported to prevent the development of soil-borne plant disease. Thus, Trichoderma spp. may have direct and indirect biological impacts on the targeted plant pathogens. Furthermore, this review discusses the convenient implications and challenges of applying Trichoderma-based strategies in agricultural settings. Overall, the assessment underscores the potential of Trichoderma as a sustainable and effective tool for mitigating soil-borne pathogens, highlighting avenues for future research and applications.