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Adsorption of Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics by Wastewater Sludge Biochar: Role of the Sludge Source

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Abstract

Adsorption of fluoroquinolone antibiotics using sludge-derived biochar made of various wastewater sludges was investigated. The sludge-derived biochar had relatively large Brunauer–Emmet–Teller specific surface areas that were beyond 110.0 m2 g−1 except the biochar made from the sludge collected from traditional sludge drying bed. The mesopore capacity was more than 57 % of the total pore capacity of all sludge-derived biochar except that made from the sludge dried through traditional sludge drying bed technique. High adsorption capacity of sludge-derived biochar was observed with a highest adsorption capacity of 19.80 ± 0.40 mg g−1. High correlation between the adsorption capacity of sludge-derived biochar and the volatile content in the sludge source was observed. The Freundlich model (r 2 values were in the range of 0.961–0.998) yielded the best fit with the experimental data of all the produced biochar. Fluoroquinolone antibiotics were readily adsorbed onto sludge-derived biochar. These findings suggest a new approach for the pollution control of fluoroquinolone antibiotics using low-cost sludge-derived biochar.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51078023) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2009C10JB00200). The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their reading of the manuscript and for their suggestions and critical comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Beijing Jiao Tong University, Beijing, 100044, People’s Republic of China

    Hong Yao, Zeyu Lu & Yan Shen

  2. Indian River Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Fort Pierce, FL, 34945-3138, USA

    Jian Lu, Jun Wu & P. Chris Wilson

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  1. Hong Yao
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  2. Jian Lu
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  3. Jun Wu
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  4. Zeyu Lu
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  6. Yan Shen
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Correspondence to Jian Lu.

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Yao, H., Lu, J., Wu, J. et al. Adsorption of Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics by Wastewater Sludge Biochar: Role of the Sludge Source. Water Air Soil Pollut 224, 1370 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1370-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1370-7

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