scholarly journals Unravelling the Environmental Application of Biochar as Low-Cost Biosorbent: A Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (21) ◽  
pp. 7810 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antía Fdez-Sanromán ◽  
Marta Pazos ◽  
Emilio Rosales ◽  
María Angeles Sanromán

In this age, a key target for enhancing the competitiveness of the chemical, environmental and biotechnology industries is to manufacture high-value products more efficiently and especially with significantly reduced environmental impact. Under this premise, the conversion of biomass waste to a high-value added product, biochar, is an interesting approach under the circular economy principles. Thus, the improvements in the biochar production and its new and innovative uses are hot points of interest, which are the focus of vast efforts of the scientific community. Biochar has been recognized as a material of great potential, and its use as an adsorbent is becoming a reliable strategy for the removal of pollutants of different streams, according to its high adsorption capacity and potential to eliminate recalcitrant compounds. In this review, a succinct overview of current actions developed to improve the adsorption capability of biochar, mainly of heavy metal and organic pollutants (dyes, pharmaceuticals and personal care products), is summarized and discussed, and the principal adsorption mechanisms are described. The feedstock and the production procedure are revealed as key factors that provide the appropriate physicochemical characteristics for the good performance of biochar as an adsorbent. In addition, the modification of the biochar by the different described approaches proved their feasibility and became a good strategy for the design of selective adsorbents. In the last part of this review, the novel prospects in the regeneration of the biochar are presented in order to achieve a clean technology for alleviating the water pollution challenge.

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 2770-2776
Author(s):  
Mohd Zul Helmi Rozaini ◽  
Habibah Hamzah ◽  
Chia Poh Wai ◽  
Mohd Hasmizam Razali ◽  
Uwaisulqarni M. Osman ◽  
...  

Fringescalesardinella or TambanSisik bones have been discovered can be utilized as sunscreen agent in cosmeceuticals. Its flesh is the main ingredient in keropoklekor or fish crackers in Malaysia and the bones contained very high hydroxyapatite (HAp), (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2) compound which exhibit as UV light absorber. The percentage yields obtained from the hydrothermal extraction consist of 41.2 ± 0.66 % (w/w) of HApwhich was almost half of the dry weight of 100 g samples.The additional of manganeseand ferum,initiated the novel sunscreen materials from hydroxyapatite-Fe and hydroxyapatite-Mn doped (modified bones). The unmodified HAp recorded with SPF 20 and modified HAp-Mn measured with SPF 40. Modified HAp-Fe emulsions were recorded with SPF 50 as the highest SPF value. Therefore, the bones have been characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Radiation (FTIR)spectroscopy and x-Ray diffraction (XRD).The results obtained clearly indicated that the HAp existence in waste of Fringescalesardinella bones with addition of FeCl2which exhibits high potential as sunscreen compared to manganese and unmodified bones. Thus, the utilization of waste from the fish bones not only produce value-added products from low-cost resources, but also help in reducing pollution to the environment and preserved the global sustainability.


2012 ◽  
Vol 730-732 ◽  
pp. 648-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joana Carvalho ◽  
André Ribeiro ◽  
Jorge Araújo ◽  
Fernando Castro

As the current global trend towards more stringent environmental standards, technical applicability and cost-effectiveness became key factors in the selection of adsorbents for water and wastewater treatment. Recently, various low-cost adsorbents derived from agricultural waste, industrial by-products or natural materials, have been intensively investigated. In this respect, the eggshells from egg-breaking operations constitute significant waste disposal problems for the food industry, so the development of value-added by-products from this waste is to be welcomed. The egg processing industry is very competitive, with low profit margins due to global competition and cheap imports. Additionally, the costs associated with the egg shell disposal (mainly on landfill sites) are significant, and expected to continue increasing as landfill taxes increase. The aim of the present review is to provide an overview on the development of low-cost adsorbents derived from eggshell by-products.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (18) ◽  
pp. 3137
Author(s):  
Georgia Michailidou ◽  
Ioanna Koumentakou ◽  
Efstathios V. Liakos ◽  
Maria Lazaridou ◽  
Dimitra A. Lambropoulou ◽  
...  

The compound of chitin is the second most important and abundant natural biopolymer in the world. The main extraction and exploitation sources of this natural polysaccharide polymer are mainly crustaceans species, such as shrimps and crabs. Chitosan (CS) (poly-β-(1 → 4)-2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose) can be derived from chitin and can be mentioned as a compound that has high value-added applications due to its wide variety of uses, including pharmaceutical, biomedical, and cosmetics applications, food etc. Furthermore, chitosan is a biopolymer that can be used for adsorption applications because it contains amino and hydroxyl groups in its chemical structure (molecules), resulting in possible interactions of adsorption between chitosan and pollutants (uranium, mercury, rare earth elements (REEs), phenols, etc.). However, adsorption is a very effective, fast, simple, and low-cost process. This review article places emphasis on recent demonstrated research papers (2014–2020) where the chemical modifications of CS are explained briefly (grafting, cross-linking etc.) for the uptake of uranium, mercury, and REEs in synthesized aqueous solutions. Finally, figures and tables from selected synthetic routes of CS are presented and the effects of pH and the best mathematical fitting of isotherm and kinetic equations are discussed. In addition, the adsorption mechanisms are discussed.


2002 ◽  
Vol 2 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 217-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Reddad ◽  
C. Gérente ◽  
Y. Andrès ◽  
P. Le Cloirec

In the present work, sugar beet pulp, a common waste from the sugar refining industry, was studied in the removal of metal ions from aqueous solutions. The ability of this cheap biopolymer to sorb several metals namely Pb2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+ and Ni2+ in aqueous solutions was investigated. The metal fixation capacities of the sorbent were determined according to operating conditions and the fixation mechanisms were identified. The biopolymer has shown high elimination rates and interesting metal fixation capacities. A pseudo-second-order kinetic model was tested to investigate the adsorption mechanisms. The kinetic parameters of the model were calculated and discussed. For 8 × 10-4 M initial metal concentration, the initial sorption rates (v0) ranged from 0.063 mmol.g-1.min-1 for Pb2+ to 0.275 mmol.g-1.min-1 for Ni2+ ions, with the order: Ni2+ > Cd2+ > Zn2+ > Cu2+ > Pb2+. The equilibrium data fitted well with the Langmuir model and showed the following affinity order of the material: Pb2+ > Cu2+ > Zn2+ > Cd2+ > Ni2+. Then, the kinetic and equilibrium parameters calculated qm and v0 were tentatively correlated to the properties of the metals. Finally, equilibrium experiments in multimetallic systems were performed to study the competition of the fixation of Pb2+, Zn2+ and Ni2+ cations. In all cases, the metal fixation onto the biopolymer was found to be favourable in multicomponent systems. Based on these results, it is demonstrated that this biosorbent represents a low-cost solution for the treatment of metal-polluted wastewaters.


Macromol ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 130-154
Author(s):  
Efstathios V. Liakos ◽  
Maria Lazaridou ◽  
Georgia Michailidou ◽  
Ioanna Koumentakou ◽  
Dimitra A. Lambropoulou ◽  
...  

Chitin is mentioned as the second most abundant and important natural biopolymer in worldwide scale. The main sources for the extraction and exploitation of this natural polysaccharide polymer are crabs and shrimps. Chitosan (poly-β-(1 → 4)-2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose) is the most important derivative of chitin and can be used in a wide variety of applications including cosmetics, pharmaceutical and biomedical applications, food, etc., giving this substance high value-added applications. Moreover, chitosan has applications in adsorption because it contains amino and hydroxyl groups in its molecules, and can thus contribute to many possible adsorption interactions between chitosan and pollutants (pharmaceuticals/drugs, metals, phenols, pesticides, etc.). However, it must be noted that one of the most important techniques of decontamination is considered to be adsorption because it is simple, low-cost, and fast. This review emphasizes on recently published research papers (2013–2021) and briefly describes the chemical modifications of chitosan (grafting, cross-linking, etc.), for the adsorption of a variety of emerging contaminants from aqueous solutions, and characterization results. Finally, tables are depicted from selected chitosan synthetic routes and the pH effects are discussed, along with the best-fitting isotherm and kinetic models.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yehe Liu ◽  
Andrew M. Rollins ◽  
Richard M. Levenson ◽  
Farzad Fereidouni ◽  
Michael W. Jenkins

AbstractSmartphone microscopes can be useful tools for a broad range of imaging applications. This manuscript demonstrates the first practical implementation of Microscopy with Ultraviolet Surface Excitation (MUSE) in a compact smartphone microscope called Pocket MUSE, resulting in a remarkably effective design. Fabricated with parts from consumer electronics that are readily available at low cost, the small optical module attaches directly over the rear lens in a smartphone. It enables high-quality multichannel fluorescence microscopy with submicron resolution over a 10× equivalent field of view. In addition to the novel optical configuration, Pocket MUSE is compatible with a series of simple, portable, and user-friendly sample preparation strategies that can be directly implemented for various microscopy applications for point-of-care diagnostics, at-home health monitoring, plant biology, STEM education, environmental studies, etc.


Author(s):  
T. G. Ambaye ◽  
M. Vaccari ◽  
E. D. van Hullebusch ◽  
A. Amrane ◽  
S. Rtimi

AbstractCurrently, due to the rapid growth of urbanization and industrialization in developing countries, a large volume of wastewater is produced from industries that contain chemicals generating high environmental risks affecting human health and the economy if not treated properly. Consequently, the development of a sustainable low-cost wastewater treatment approach has attracted more attention of policymakers and scientists. The present review highlights the recent applications of biochar in removing organic and inorganic pollutants present in industrial effluents. The recent modes of preparation, physicochemical properties and adsorption mechanisms of biochar in removing organic and inorganic industrial pollutants are also reviewed comprehensively. Biochar showed high adsorption of industrial dyes up to 80%. It also discusses the recent application and mechanism of biochar-supported photocatalytic materials for the degradation of organic contaminants in wastewater. We reviewed also the possible optimizations (such as the pyrolysis temperature, solution pH) allowing the increase of the adsorption capabilities of biochar leading to organic contaminants removal. Besides, increasing the pyrolysis temperature of the biochar was seen to lead to an increase in its surface area, while it decreases their amount of oxygen-containing functional groups, consequently leading to a decrease in the adsorption of metal (loid) ions present in the medium. Finally, the review suggests that more research should be carried out to optimize the main parameters involved in biochar production and its regeneration methods. Future efforts should be also carried out towards process engineering to improve its adsorption capacity to increase the economic benefits of its implementation.


NANO ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (05) ◽  
pp. 1850052
Author(s):  
Yuanyuan Zhou ◽  
Jianying Deng ◽  
Shimei Li ◽  
Zefeng Li

Core–shell Cu@Ni chains were successfully synthesized through a mild hydrothermal reaction. The morphology, structure and microwave electromagnetic properties of the composite were then characterized by X-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and vector network analysis. The formation mechanisms of the core–shell structure and one-dimensional chains were ascribed to the varying redox potentials of Cu and Ni ions and the magnetic dipole–dipole attraction. Furthermore, a minimal reflection loss (RL) of [Formula: see text]20.7[Formula: see text]dB was observed at 9.6[Formula: see text]GHz with a thickness of 2.0[Formula: see text]mm and the effective absorption ([Formula: see text]10[Formula: see text]dB, 90% microwave attenuation) bandwidth can be adjusted between 5.2[Formula: see text]GHz and 16.6[Formula: see text]GHz for the thin absorber thickness of 2.0–4.0[Formula: see text]mm. The novel core–shell chain-like Cu@Ni alloy can be used as a promising absorbing material because it shows numerous features such as thin thickness, strong absorption, low cost and lightweight.


Author(s):  
Lee-Huang Chen ◽  
Kyunam Kim ◽  
Ellande Tang ◽  
Kevin Li ◽  
Richard House ◽  
...  

This paper presents the design, analysis and testing of a fully actuated modular spherical tensegrity robot for co-robotic and space exploration applications. Robots built from tensegrity structures (composed of pure tensile and compression elements) have many potential benefits including high robustness through redundancy, many degrees of freedom in movement and flexible design. However to fully take advantage of these properties a significant fraction of the tensile elements should be active, leading to a potential increase in complexity, messy cable and power routing systems and increased design difficulty. Here we describe an elegant solution to a fully actuated tensegrity robot: The TT-3 (version 3) tensegrity robot, developed at UC Berkeley, in collaboration with NASA Ames, is a lightweight, low cost, modular, and rapidly prototyped spherical tensegrity robot. This robot is based on a ball-shaped six-bar tensegrity structure and features a unique modular rod-centered distributed actuation and control architecture. This paper presents the novel mechanism design, architecture and simulations of TT-3, the first untethered, fully actuated cable-driven six-bar tensegrity spherical robot ever built and tested for mobility. Furthermore, this paper discusses the controls and preliminary testing performed to observe the system’s behavior and performance.


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