Abstract
There is growing interest in low-cost, efficient materials for the removal of organic contaminants in municipal and industrial effluents. In this study, the efficiency of biochar and activated biochar, as promising adsorbents for phenol removal, was investigated at high (up to 1500 mg L−1) and low concentrations (0.54 mg L−1) in synthetic and real effluents (from wood-residue deposits in Québec), respectively. The performance of both materials was then evaluated in batch adsorption experiments, which were conducted using a low solid/liquid ratio (0.1 g:100 mL) at different phenol concentrations (C0 = 5–1500 mg L−1), and at 20 °C. Activated biochars presented higher phenol adsorption capacity compared to biochars due to their improved textural properties, higher micropore volume, and proportion of oxygenated carbonyl groups connected to their surface. The sorption equilibrium was reached within less than 4 h for all of materials, while the Langmuir model best described their sorption process. The maximum sorption capacity of activated biochars for phenol was found to be twofold relative to biochars (303 vs. 159 mg g−1). Results also showed that activated biochars were more effective than biochars in removing low phenol concentrations in real effluents. In addition, 95% of phenol removal was attained within 96 h (although 85% was removed after 4 h), thus reaching below the maximum authorized concentration allowed by Québec’s discharge criteria (0.05 mg L−1). These results show that activated biochars made from wood residues are promising potential adsorbent materials for the efficient treatment of phenol in synthetic and real effluents.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adamu H, Dubey P, Anderson JA (2016) Probing the role of thermally reduced graphene oxide in enhancing performance of TiO2 in photocatalytic phenol removal from aqueous environments. Chem Eng J 284:380–388. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2015.08.147
Aharoni C, Tompkins FC (1970) Kinetics of adsorption and desorption and the Elovich equation. Adv Catal 21:1–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0360-0564(08)60563-5
Ahmaruzzaman M (2008) Adsorption of phenolic compounds on low-cost adsorbents: a review. Adv Colloid Interf Sci 143:48–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cis.2008.07.002
Ania CO, Parra JB, Pis JJ (2002) Effect of texture and surface chemistry on adsorptive capacities of activated carbons for phenolic compounds removal. Fuel Process Technol 77–78:337–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-3820(02)00072-3
Baker EL, Landrigan PJ, Bertozzi PE, Field PH, Basteyns BJ, Skinner HG (1978) Phenol poisoning due to contaminated drinking water. Arch Environ Health 33:89–94
Belviso C, Cavalcante F, Di Gennaro S et al (2014) Removal of Mn from aqueous solution using fly ash and its hydrothermal synthetic zeolite. J Environ Manag 137:16–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2014.01.040
Brunauer S, Emmett PH, Teller E (1938) Adsorption of gases in multimolecular layers. J Am Chem Soc 60:309–319. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja01269a023
Crini G, Badot P-M (2010) Sorption processes and pollution: conventional and non-conventional sorbents for pollutant removal from wastewaters. In: Presses universitaires de Franche-Comté, Besançon
Dąbrowski A, Podkościelny P, Hubicki Z, Barczak M (2005) Adsorption of phenolic compounds by activated carbon—a critical review. Chemosphere 58:1049–1070. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2004.09.067
Daifullah AAM, Girgis BS (1998) Removal of some substituted phenols by activated carbon obtained from agricultural waste. Water Res 32:1169–1177. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0043-1354(97)00310-2
Dehkhoda AM, Ellis N, Gyenge E (2016) Effect of activated biochar porous structure on the capacitive deionization of NaCl and ZnCl2 solutions. Microporous Mesoporous Mater 224:217–228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micromeso.2015.11.041
Dubinin MM (1989) Fundamentals of the theory of adsorption in micropores of carbon adsorbents: characteristics of their adsorption properties and microporous structures. Carbon 27:457–467. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-6223(89)90078-X
El-Hendawy A-NA, Samra SE, Girgis BS (2001) Adsorption characteristics of activated carbons obtained from corncobs. Colloids Surf Physicochem Eng Asp 180:209–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0927-7757(00)00682-8
Ettinger M, Ruchhoft C, Lishka R (1951) Sensitive 4-aminoantipyrine method for phenolic compounds. Anal Chem 23:1783–1788. https://doi.org/10.1021/ac60060a019
Fierro V, Torné-Fernández V, Montané D, Celzard A (2008) Adsorption of phenol onto activated carbons having different textural and surface properties. Microporous Mesoporous Mater 111:276–284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micromeso.2007.08.002
Freedonia Group (2014) World Activated Carbon. https://www.freedoniagroup.com/industry-study/world-activated-carbon-3172.htm. Accessed 1 Jul 2017
Freundlich HMF (1906) Over the adsorption in solution. J Phys Chem 57:385–471
Fu D, Farag S, Chaouki J, Jessop PG (2014) Extraction of phenols from lignin microwave-pyrolysis oil using a switchable hydrophilicity solvent. Bioresour Technol 154:101–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2013.11.091
Ganzenko O, Huguenot D, van Hullebusch ED, Esposito G, Oturan MA (2014) Electrochemical advanced oxidation and biological processes for wastewater treatment: a review of the combined approaches. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21:8493–8524. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-2770-6
García-Martínez J, Cazorla-Amorós D, Linares-Solano A (2000) Further evidences of the usefulness of CO2 adsorption to characterize microporous solids. Characterisation Porous Solids V 128:485–494. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-2991(00)80054-3
Garrido J, Linares-Solano A, Martin-Martinez JM, Molina-Sabio M, Rodriguez-Reinoso F, Torregrosa R (1987) Use of nitrogen vs. carbon dioxide in the characterization of activated carbons. Langmuir 3:76–81. https://doi.org/10.1021/la00073a013
Gonzalez-Serrano E, Cordero T, Rodriguez-Mirasol J, Cotoruelo L, Rodriguez JJ (2004) Removal of water pollutants with activated carbons prepared from H3PO4 activation of lignin from kraft black liquors. Water Res 38:3043–3050. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2004.04.048
Gregg SJ, Sing KSW (1991) Adsorption, surface area, and porosity. Academic Press, London
Gümüş D, Akbal F (2016) Comparison of Fenton and electro-Fenton processes for oxidation of phenol. Process Saf Environ Prot 103:252–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2016.07.008
Gupta RK, Dubey M, Kharel P, Gu Z, Fan QH (2015) Biochar activated by oxygen plasma for supercapacitors. J Power Sources 274:1300–1305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2014.10.169
Hameed BH, Rahman AA (2008) Removal of phenol from aqueous solutions by adsorption onto activated carbon prepared from biomass material. J Hazard Mater 160:576–581. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.03.028
Health Canada (2017) Guidelines for Canadian drinking water quality. Summary table. Ottawa
Hu Z, Srinivasan M (1999) Preparation of high-surface-area activated carbons from coconut shell. Microporous Mesoporous Mater 27:11–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1387-1811(98)00183-8
Ibáñez SG, Alderete LGS, Medina MI, Agostini E (2012) Phytoremediation of phenol using Vicia sativa L. plants and its antioxidative response. Environ Sci Pollut Res 19:1555–1562. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-011-0664-4
Jung M-W, Ahn K-H, Lee Y, Kim KP, Rhee JS, Tae Park J, Paeng KJ (2001) Adsorption characteristics of phenol and chlorophenols on granular activated carbons (GAC). Microchem J 70:123–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0026-265X(01)00109-6
Kilic M, Apaydin-Varol E, Pütün AE (2011) Adsorptive removal of phenol from aqueous solutions on activated carbon prepared from tobacco residues: equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics. J Hazard Mater 189:397–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2011.02.051
Kim J-S (2015) Production, separation and applications of phenolic-rich bio-oil—a review. Bioresour Technol 178:90–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2014.08.121
Lagergren S (1898) About the theory of so-called adsorption of soluble substances. K Sven Vetenskapsakademiens Handl 24:1–39
Langmuir I (1918) The adsorption of gases on plane surfaces of glass, mica and platinum. J Am Chem Soc 40:1361–1403. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja02242a004
László K, Szűcs A (2001) Surface characterization of polyethyleneterephthalate (PET) based activated carbon and the effect of pH on its adsorption capacity from aqueous phenol and 2,3,4-trichlorophenol solutions. Carbon 39:1945–1953. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-6223(01)00005-7
Lazarević S, Janković-Častvan I, Jovanović D, Milonjić S, Janaćković D, Petrović R (2007) Adsorption of Pb2+, Cd2+ and Sr2+ ions onto natural and acid-activated sepiolites. Appl Clay Sci 37:47–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clay.2006.11.008
Li Y, Ruan G, Jalilov AS, Tarkunde YR, Fei H, Tour JM (2016) Biochar as a renewable source for high-performance CO2 sorbent. Carbon 107:344–351. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbon.2016.06.010
Lorenc-Grabowska E, Rutkowski P (2014) High basicity adsorbents from solid residue of cellulose and synthetic polymer co-pyrolysis for phenol removal: kinetics and mechanism. Appl Surf Sci 316:435–442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2014.08.024
Marsh H, Rodríguez-Reinoso F (2006) Activated carbon, 1st edn. Elsevier, Amsterdam
MDDELCC (1997) Portrait régional de l’eau: Nord-du-Québec (région administrative 10). http://www.mddelcc.gouv.qc.ca/eau/regions/region10/10-nord-du-qc(suite).htm. Accessed 27 Jul 2017
MDDELCC (2015a) Modèle de règlement relatif aux rejets dans les réseaux d’égout des municipalités du Québec. MDDELCC, QC, Canada
MDDELCC (2015b) Lignes directrices sur l’industrie du sciage et des matériaux dérivés du bois. MDDELCC, QC, Canada
Miao Q, Tang Y, Xu J, Liu X, Xiao L, Chen Q (2013) Activated carbon prepared from soybean straw for phenol adsorption. J Taiwan Inst Chem Eng 44:458–465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtice.2012.12.006
Mishra A, Clark JH (eds) (2013) Green materials for sustainable water remediation and treatment. Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge
Mohan S, Gandhimathi R (2009) Removal of heavy metal ions from municipal solid waste leachate using coal fly ash as an adsorbent. J Hazard Mater 169:351–359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.03.104
Mohd Din AT, Hameed BH, Ahmad AL (2009) Batch adsorption of phenol onto physiochemical-activated coconut shell. J Hazard Mater 161:1522–1529. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.05.009
Nabais JMV, Gomes JA, Suhas, Carrott PJM, Laginhas C, Roman S (2009) Phenol removal onto novel activated carbons made from lignocellulosic precursors: influence of surface properties. J Hazard Mater 167:904–910. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.01.075
Namane A, Mekarzia A, Benrachedi K et al (2005) Determination of the adsorption capacity of activated carbon made from coffee grounds by chemical activation with ZnCl2 and H3PO4. J Hazard Mater 119:189–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2004.12.006
Nath K, Panchani S, Bhakhar MS, Chatrola S (2013) Preparation of activated carbon from dried pods of Prosopis cineraria with zinc chloride activation for the removal of phenol. Environ Sci Pollut Res 20:4030–4045. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-012-1325-y
Park CM, Han J, Chu KH, al-Hamadani YAJ, Her N, Heo J, Yoon Y (2017) Influence of solution pH, ionic strength, and humic acid on cadmium adsorption onto activated biochar: experiment and modeling. J Ind Eng Chem 48:186–193. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiec.2016.12.038
Patterson JW (1985) Industrial wastewater treatment technology, 2nd edn. Butterworth Publishers, Stoneham
Ren L-F, Chen R, Zhang X, Shao J, He Y (2017) Phenol biodegradation and microbial community dynamics in extractive membrane bioreactor (EMBR) for phenol-laden saline wastewater. Bioresour Technol 244:1121–1128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2017.08.121
Rengaraj S, Moon S-H, Sivabalan R, Arabindoo B, Murugesan V (2002) Agricultural solid waste for the removal of organics: adsorption of phenol from water and wastewater by palm seed coat activated carbon. Waste Manag 22:543–548. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0956-053X(01)00016-2
Rincón-Silva NG, Moreno-Piraján JC, Giraldo LG (2015) Thermodynamic study of adsorption of phenol, 4-chlorophenol, and 4-nitrophenol on activated carbon obtained from Eucalyptus seed. J Chem 2015:1–12. https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/569403
Rodrigues LA, da Silva MLCP, Alvarez-Mendes MO, Coutinho AR, Thim GP (2011) Phenol removal from aqueous solution by activated carbon produced from avocado kernel seeds. Chem Eng J 174:49–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2011.08.027
Shen B, Li G, Wang F, Wang Y, He C, Zhang M, Singh S (2015) Elemental mercury removal by the modified bio-char from medicinal residues. Chem Eng J 272:28–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2015.03.006
Sing KSW (1985) Reporting physisorption data for gas/solid systems with special reference to the determination of surface area and porosity (recommendations 1984). Pure Appl Chem 57:603–619. https://doi.org/10.1351/pac198557040603
Singh KP, Malik A, Sinha S, Ojha P (2008) Liquid-phase adsorption of phenols using activated carbons derived from agricultural waste material. J Hazard Mater 150:626–641. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2007.05.017
Sun H, Feng X, Wang S, Ang HM, Tadé MO (2011) Combination of adsorption, photochemical and photocatalytic degradation of phenol solution over supported zinc oxide: effects of support and sulphate oxidant. Chem Eng J 170:270–277. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2011.03.059
Tan X, Liu Y, Zeng G, Wang X, Hu X, Gu Y, Yang Z (2015) Application of biochar for the removal of pollutants from aqueous solutions. Chemosphere 125:70–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.12.058
Tarazona P (1995) Solid-fluid transition and interfaces with density functional approaches. Proc 14th Eur Conf Surf Sci 331:989–994. https://doi.org/10.1016/0039-6028(95)00170-0
Temkin MJ, Pyzhev V (1940) Recent modifications to Langmuir isotherms. Acta Physicochim USSR:217–222
Terzyk AP (2003) Further insights into the role of carbon surface functionalities in the mechanism of phenol adsorption. J Colloid Interface Sci 268:301–329. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0021-9797(03)00690-8
Weber WJ, Morris JC (1963) Kinetics of adsorption on carbon from solution. J Sanit Eng Div:31–60
Wu F-C, Tseng R-L (2006) Preparation of highly porous carbon from fir wood by KOH etching and CO2 gasification for adsorption of dyes and phenols from water. J Colloid Interface Sci 294:21–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2005.06.084
Zhang D, Huo P, Liu W (2016) Behavior of phenol adsorption on thermal modified activated carbon. Chin J Chem Eng 24:446–452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjche.2015.11.022
Zhu L, Yin S, Yin Q, Wang H, Wang S (2015) Biochar: a new promising catalyst support using methanation as a probe reaction. Energy Sci Eng 3:126–134. https://doi.org/10.1002/ese3.58
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Miss Anne-Marie Marleau Claveau, Miss Maéva Giasson, Mr. Gilles Villeneuve, Mr. Mamadou Dia, and Mr. Nicolas Bergeron for their assistance with experiments, analysis and testing in the laboratory.
Funding
This research was funded by the Québec’s Ministry of Economy, Science and Innovation (Ministère de l’Économie, de la Science et de l’Innovation du Québec), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canada Research Chair Program, the College of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, and the Technology Centre for Industrial Waste (Centre Technologique des Résidus Industriels) through its partner on this project, Airex Energy. The first author, Dr. Flavia Lega Braghiroli, also sincerely acknowledges NSERC financial support via a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship (2017–2019).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Guilherme L. Dotto
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Braghiroli, F.L., Bouafif, H., Hamza, N. et al. Production, characterization, and potential of activated biochar as adsorbent for phenolic compounds from leachates in a lumber industry site. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 26562–26575 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-2712-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-2712-9