Bibliometric Insights into Car Wash Wastewater Treatment Research: Trends and Perspectives

Abstract

Car wash wastewater (CWW) poses a significant environmental danger due to its high chemical oxygen demand (COD), heavy metals, and anionic surfactant complex composition, all of which can have an adverse effect on the environment. Even with the extensive research on CWW treatment, further study is necessary to improve our comprehension in this field. With an emphasis on CWW treatment processes and research trends, this study offers a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of 208 articles from the Scopus database. The analysis reveals that more than 55.77% of the research publications were released within the last five years, suggesting that there is increasing interest in the treatment of CWW. According to the data, the most important journal in this field is Desalination and Water Treatment. China and India were major research contributors. The main research directions in this area are properly indicated by the frequently used keywords “carwash wastewater”, “electrocoagulation”, “wastewater treatment”, and “water reuse”, according to an analysis of the keywords. Electrocoagulation, coagulation, and adsorption are common methods that are gaining popularity. In recent years, the most often researched CWW contaminants included those measured by COD and heavy metals. The results of this research offer an overview of recent developments.