article · Environmental Research
Pinecone biochar prepared via pyrolysis was evaluated for the removal of hexavalent chromium from wastewater. Material characterisation showed a non-crystalline structure, rough surface morphology, and a surface area of 125 square metres per gram. Experimental testing demonstrated a maximum chromium removal efficiency of 69 percent under optimal conditions of pH 2, an adsorbent dosage of 0.25 milligrams per 50 millilitres, an initial concentration of 100 milligrams per litre, and a contact time of 120 minutes. The adsorption behaviour aligned with the Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetics, indicating spontaneous, endothermic monolayer adsorption. Regeneration tests confirmed the biochar could be reused for up to three cycles. However, further improvements to biochar surface modification and reusability are needed before testing at a pilot scale.
Conventional water treatment methods struggle to eliminate chromium, a toxic pollutant found in aquatic environments. Using waste biomass like pinecones to produce biochar provides a potential route for industrial effluent remediation. Understanding the adsorption kinetics, thermodynamics, and regeneration limits helps researchers identify how to optimise sustainable biochar materials for heavy metal removal from contaminated water streams.
This work represents early-stage laboratory research aimed at wastewater treatment applications for industrial effluent remediation. Potential future users include industrial facilities seeking sustainable filtration materials to treat heavy metal contamination. However, the technology is not yet near-market: the abstract explicitly notes that improvements to biochar surface modification and reusability are urgently required before the material can even be tested at a pilot scale.
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High concentration of chromium in aquatic environments is the trigger for researchers to remediate it from wastewater environments. However, conventional water treatment methods have not been satisfactory in removing chromium from water and wastewater over the last decade. Similarly, many adsorption studies have been focused on one aspect of the treatment, but this study dealt with all aspects of adsorption packages to come up with a concrete conclusion. Therefore, this study aimed to prepare pinecone biochar (PBC) via pyrolysis and apply it for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater. The PBC was characterized using FTIR, SEM-EDX, BET surface area, pH<sub>pzc</sub>, Raman analyses, TGA, and XRD techniques. Chromium adsorption was studied under the influence of PBC dose, solution pH, initial Cr(VI) concentration, and contact time. The characteristics of PBC are illustrated by FTIR spectroscopic functional groups, XRD non-crystallite structure, SEM rough surface morphology, and high BET surface area125 m<sup>2</sup>/g, pore volume, 0.07 cm<sup>3</sup>/g, and pore size 1.4 nm. On the other hand, the maximum Cr (VI) adsorption of 69% was found at the experimental condition of pH 2, adsorbent dosage 0.25 mg/50 mL, initial Cr concentration 100 mg/L, and contact time of 120 min. Similarly, the experimental data were well-fitted with the Langmuir adsorption isotherm at R<sup>2</sup> 0.96 and the pseudo-second-order kinetics model at R<sup>2</sup> 0.99. This implies the adsorption process is mainly attributed to monolayer orientation between the adsorbent and adsorbate. In the thermodynamics study of adsorption, ΔG was found to be negative implying the adsorption process was feasible and spontaneous whereas the positive values of ΔH and ΔS indicated the adsorption process was endothermic and increasing the degree of randomness, respectively. Finally, adsorbent regeneration and reusability were successful up to three cycles. In conclusion, biochar surface modification and reusability improvements are urgently required before being applied at the pilot scale.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.119423
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