Efficacy of green waste-derived biochar for lead removal from aqueous systems: Characterization, equilibrium, kinetic and application.

The removal of toxic metals from the aquatic ecosystem is one of the most pressing environmental and public health concerns today. A strong potential has recently emerged for the removal of such metals using biochar sorbents. Biosorption technology could make a significant difference in the future. It is a viable and cost-effective alternative to the remediation of toxic pollutants utilizing various biomaterials. In the current study, batch and fixed-bed studies were performed to evaluate the performance of Capsicum annuum L. seeds biochar (CASB) as an alternative material in removing toxic Pb(II) from aqueous solutions. Removal characteristics were investigated by considering the equilibrium and kinetic aspects. Biosorption equilibrium was established within 40 min. The optimum dosage of CASB for Pb(II) removal was determined as 2.0 g L-1. Biosorption data were well predicted by a non-linear Langmuir isotherm model. Monolayer biosorption occurred for CASB with a maximum capacity of 36.43 mg g-1. Biosorption kinetics fitted well with a pseudo-first-order kinetic model. The external mass transfer may control Pb(II) transport mechanism. Dynamic flow mode biosorption and regeneration potential of CASB were also examined. The application of CASB exhibited a 100% removal yield in real apple juice samples spiked with low concentrations of Pb(II). Exhausted points for the CASB packed columns were recorded as 195 and 320 min for simulated wastewater (SW) and synthetic Pb(II) solution, respectively. FTIR, BET, SEM-EDX analysis, and zeta potential measurements were used for the characterization of biochar and assessment of the metal ion-biosorbent interaction mechanism. Finally, our study provides a practical approach for the uptake of Pb(II) ions from contaminated solutions.

A passively immobilized novel biomagsorbent for the effective biosorptive treatment of dye contamination.

A new magnetic bio-based composite was designed by the magnetic modification of passively immobilized fungal cells. It was utilized for biosorptive decolorization of reactive dye-contaminated aquatic media. As a greener option, waste tea leaf tissues were used for the first time as an immobilization matrix for microbial cells. Immobilized magnetic cells (biomagsorbent) could be effectively used in both batch and dynamic flow mode treatment processes and real environmental application. Rapid equilibrium and high decolorization yields were observed for the target dye (reactive violet 1). The temperature did not significantly affect the process. Langmuir and the pseudo-second-order models could be better used to fit the process equilibrium and kinetics, respectively. Maximum monolayer sorption capacity was 152.88 mg g-1. High biosorption and desorption yields for 50 consecutive dynamic flow decolorization cycles were recorded as striking results. The breakthrough time was 3420 min. Simulated and industrial water treatment performance of biomagsorbent was found to be more than 90%. The mechanism was evaluated by IR and zeta potential analysis. The magnetic character of the sorbent provided good mechanical durability, easy separation, and excellent regeneration ability. Consequently, this work provides new insight into scalar enhancement of water treatment.

Biosorption of Basic Blue 7 by fungal cells immobilized on the green-type biomatrix of Phragmites australis spongy tissue.

Biosorption is an effective alternative method for the control of water pollution caused by different pollutants such as synthetic dyes and metals. A new and efficient biomass system was developed from the passively immobilized fungal cells. The spongy tissue of Phragmites australis was considered as the carrier for the immobilization of Neurospora sitophila cells employed for the biosorption of Basic Blue 7. This plant tissue was used for the first time as a carrier for fungal cells. The biosorption was examined through batch- and continuous-mode operations. The biosorption process conformed well to the Langmuir model. Maximum monolayer biosorption capacity of the biosorbent was recorded as 154.756 mg g-1. Kinetic findings showed a very good compliance with the pseudo-second-order model. The negative values of ΔG° indicated a spontaneous nature of the biosorption process and a positive value of ΔH° (14.69 kJ mol-1) concluded favorable decolorization at high temperature. The scanning electron microscopy analysis showed that a porous, rippled, and rough surface of biomass system was covered with BB7 molecular cloud. IR results revealed that functional groups like -OH, -NH, and CË­O participated to the decolorization. Breakthrough and exhausted points were found as 360 and 570 minutes, respectively. The biomass system was successfully applied to the treatment of real wastewater.

Chitosan-alunite composite: An effective dye remover with high sorption, regeneration and application potential.

This study was undertaken to prepare a novel and environmentally friendly composite for the use in the wastewater treatment process. This composite was produced by immobilizing alunite with a glucosamine biopolymer, chitosan. Batch and dynamic flow mode decolorization potential of the chitosan-alunite composite (CAC) was systematically evaluated in Acid Red 1 (AR1) and Reactive Red 2 (RR2) contaminated media. pH, sorbent dosage, contact time and flow rate were screened through the sorption experiments. Equilibrium sorption experiments indicated that CAC has very high sorption potential for RR2 and AR1 dyes with the maximum sorption capacities of 462.74 and 588.75 mg g(-1), respectively. Good regeneration and reuse potential in 20 consecutive cycles are other important advantages of this composite. More importantly, CAC could also be used in the treatment of real wastewater without performance decrease. Overall, this study suggests that CAC is a promising sorbent for the removal of anionic dyes from aqueous solutions.

Multivariate optimization of the decolorization process by surface modified biomaterial: Box-Behnken design and mechanism analysis.

A natural biosorbent obtained from Pyracantha coccinea was modified with an anionic surfactant to facilitate its dye removal ability. Modified biosorbent was successfully employed for the decolorization of Methyl Violet (MV)-contaminated solutions. A three-variable Box-Behnken design for response surface methodology was used to examine the function of independent operating variables. Optimum pH and biosorbent amount were found to be 6.0 and 0.055 g, respectively. The effects of temperature and ionic strength on the dye removal performance of biosorbent were also investigated. A biosorption equilibrium was attained within 30 min and experimental data fitted well to the pseudo-second-order model. The Langmuir isotherm model fitted adequately to the equilibrium data. The maximum monolayer biosorption capacity of the modified biosorbent was found to be 254.88 mg g(-1). Good biosorption yields were also recorded in continuous biosorption system. Ion exchange and complexation could be suggested as possible mechanisms for the biosorption. The developed modified biosorbent was regenerated up to 80.30 % by 0.005 M HCl. At real wastewater conditions, it has 86.23 ± 0.21 and 94.51 ± 1.09 % dye removal yields in batch and column systems, respectively. Modified biomaterial can be used as an effective biosorbent for the removal of MV dye from aqueous solution with high biosorption performance.

Chemical modification of a plant origin biomass using cationic surfactant ABDAC and the biosorptive decolorization of RR45 containing solutions.

This study focused on the improvement of the decolorization potential of biomass derived from Pyracantha coccinea. Alkyl benyzldimethyl ammonium chloride (ABDAC) was used as modification agent. Batch mode decolorization potential of modified biosorbent was explored at different operating conditions. ABDAC modification significantly increased the biosorption yield to 97.27%, which was 3.88 times higher than that of natural biomass. The prepared biosorbent was effectively used for the decolorization of Reactive Red 45 contaminated solutions after the optimization of biosorption conditions. The non-linear regression analysis was used to evaluate the isotherm and kinetic model parameters. Process followed the Langmuir isotherm model and the highest monolayer capacity of 152.49 mg g(-1) was obtained with a small amount of modified biosorbent. Kinetic studies indicated fast decolorization rate of the process following the pseudo-first-order model. Biosorption performance of the prepared biosorbent was tested in RR45 containing real wastewater sample. The possible dye biosorbent interactions in the biosorption process were explored by zeta potential, scanning electron microscobe and FTIR analysis.

Ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate anchored Symphoricarpus albus biomass for lead(II) removal: batch and column biosorption study.

The biosorption properties of APDC modified S. albus were tested in batch and column conditions. Effective experimental parameters such as pH, biosorbent dosage, contact time, temperature, initial lead(II) ion concentration, flow rate and bed height were investigated. The biosorption capacity of modified biosorbent was at maximum when lead(II) solution pH and biosorbent dosage were 5.5 and 2.0 g L(-1), respectively. The biosorption equilibrium was established in 20 min. Langmuir isotherm fitted well to the equilibrium data and kinetics is found to fit pseudo-second-order model. Increase in ionic strength of lead(II) solutions caused a slight decrease in the biosorption yield of APDC-modified biosorbent. Co-ions affected the biosorption performance of modified biomass up to maximum 20.81% reduction. Column biosorption of lead(II) showed higher biosorption yields at lower flow rates. Required time of breakthrough point was found to be 200 min. The recommended mechanism was found to depend mainly on electrostatic interaction, ion-exchange and complex formation. The ion-exchange mechanism for lead(II) biosorption onto the modified biosorbent is verified from the ionic strength effect and EDX analysis. Carbonyl, phosphate and CN groups on the modified surface of S. albus were found to responsible for complexation with lead(II).

Assessment of the biosorption characteristics of a macro-fungus for the decolorization of Acid Red 44 (AR44) dye.

This study focuses on the possible use of macro-fungus Agaricus bisporus to remove Acid Red 44 dye from aqueous solutions. Batch equilibrium studies were carried out as a function of pH, biomass amount, contact time and temperature to determine the decolorization efficiency of biosorbent. The highest dye removal yield was achieved at pH 2.0. Equilibrium occurred within about 30 min. Biosorption data were successfully described by Langmuir isotherm model and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The maximum monolayer biosorption capacity of biosorbent material was found as 1.19 x 10(-4) mol g(-1). Thermodynamic parameters indicated that the biosorption of Acid Red 44 onto fungal biomass was spontaneous and endothermic in nature. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used for the characterization of possible dye-biosorbent interaction and surface structure of biosorbent, respectively. Finally the proposed biosorbent was successfully used for the decolorization of Acid Red 44 in synthetic wastewater conditions.

Assessment of cationic dye biosorption characteristics of untreated and non-conventional biomass: Pyracantha coccinea berries.

This work reports on the assessment of the dye methylene blue biosorption properties of Pyracantha coccinea berries under different experimental conditions. Equilibrium and kinetic studies were carried out to determine the biosorption capacity and rate constants. The highest biosorption yield was observed at about pH 6.0, while the biosorption capacity of the biomass decreased with decreasing initial pH values. Batch equilibrium data obtained at different temperatures (15, 25, 35 and 45 degrees C) were modeled by Freundlich, Langmuir and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherms. Langmuir isotherm model fitted the equilibrium data, at the all studied temperatures, better than the other isotherm models indicating monolayer dye biosorption process. The highest monolayer biosorption capacity was found to be 127.50mg/g dry biomass at 45 degrees C. Kinetic studies indicate that the biosorption process followed the pseudo-second-order model, rather than the pseudo-first-order model. DeltaG degrees , DeltaH degrees and DeltaS degrees parameters of biosorption show that the process is spontaneous and endothermic in nature. The biosorbent-dye interaction mechanisms were investigated using a combination of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The biosorption procedure was applied to simulated wastewater including several pollutants. The results obtained indicated that the suggested inexpensive and readily available biomaterial has a good potential for the biosorptive removal of basic dye.

An attractive agro-industrial by-product in environmental cleanup: dye biosorption potential of untreated olive pomace.

This research deals with the evaluation of highly available and cost effective waste biomass of olive pomace for the removal of reactive textile dye, RR198 from aqueous medium and a real effluent. The experiments were conducted to assess the effects of process variables such as initial pH, biosorbent dosage, contact time, temperature and ionic strength. The results showed that the highest dye biosorption capacity was found at pH 2 and the needed time to reach the biosorption equilibrium was 40 min with a biosorbent concentration of 3.0 g L(-1). The sorption kinetics of dye was best described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The equilibrium biosorption data were analyzed by Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models and the results from the isotherm studies showed that the RR198 biosorption process occurred on a homogenous surface of the biosorbent. The waste biomass of olive oil industry displayed biosorption capacities ranging from 6.05 x 10(-5) to 1.08 x 10(-4)mol g(-1) at different temperatures. The negative values of Delta G degrees and the positive value of Delta H degrees suggest that the biosorption process for RR198 was spontaneous and endothermic. Dye-biosorbent interactions were examined by FTIR and SEM analysis. Finally, high biosorption yield of olive waste for the removal of RR198 dye from real wastewater makes it possible that the olive pomace could be applied widely in wastewater treatment as biosorbent taking into account that no pretreatment on the solid residue is carried out.

Investigation of the biosorption characteristics of lead(II) ions onto Symphoricarpus albus: Batch and dynamic flow studies.

This work reports the results of the study for lead(II) binding by the natural and low cost biosorbent Symphoricarpus albus. Batch biosorption experiments demonstrated the high rate of lead(II) biosorption and the kinetic data were successfully described by a pseudo-second-order model. Biosorption of lead(II) onto S. albus biomass showed a pH-dependent profile and lead(II) biosorption was higher when pH or temperature was increased. As much as 88.5% removal of lead(II) is also possible in the multi-metal mixture. The Langmuir isotherm better fits the biosorption data and the monolayer biosorption capacity was 3.00 x 10(-4) mol g(-1) at 45 C. The biomass was characterized with FTIR and SEM analysis. Desorption studies revealed that the natural biomass could be regenerated using 10mM HNO(3) solution with about 99% recovery and reused in five biosorption-desorption cycles. Therefore, S. albus which is cheap, highly selective and easily regenerable seems to be a promising substrate to entrap lead(II) ions in aqueous solutions.

Enhanced biosorption of nickel(II) ions by silica-gel-immobilized waste biomass: biosorption characteristics in batch and dynamic flow mode.

Batch and dynamic flow biosorption studies were carried out using the waste biomass entrapped in silica-gel matrix for the removal of nickel(II) ions from synthetic solutions and real wastewater. Batch biosorption conditions were examined with respect to initial pH, S/L ratio, contact time, and initial nickel ion concentration. Zeta potential measurements showed that immobilized biosorbent was negatively charged in the pH range of 3.0-8.0. The immobilized biomass was found to possess relatively high biosorption capacity (98.01 mg g(-1)), and biosorption equilibrium was established in a short time of operation (5 min). The equilibrium data were followed by Langmuir, Freundlich, and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models. Scanning electron microscope analysis was used to screen the changes on the surface structure of the waste biomass after immobilization and nickel(II) biosorption. Sorbent-sorbate interactions were confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The applicability of sorbent system was investigated in a continuous mode, and column studies were performed under different flow rate, column size, and biosorbent dosage. Also, the proposed sorbent system was successfully used to remove the nickel ions from industrial wastewater in dynamic flow treatment mode. The results showed that silica-immobilized waste biomass was a low-cost promising sorbent for sequester of nickel(II) ions from synthetic and real wastewater.