Enhanced Adsorption of Cooking Fume Pollutants By Loofah Carbon Modified By Fenton Reagents

In this study, natural loofah was used as a raw material to adsorb cooking fume pollutants after grinding into a powder (TGS), activation by phosphoric acid to generate activated loofah carbon (TGSC-0), and further modification by Fenton’s reagent (TGSC-1). SEM, GC-MS, FT-IR, and X-ray diffraction analyses, in addition to surface area and pore measurements, were used to characterize the adsorption performance of TGS, TGSC-0, and TGSC-1 toward cooking fume pollutants including oils, particulate matter, and non-methane hydrocarbon). TGSC-1 was the best adsorbent when compared against TGS and TGSC-0, and exhibited saturated adsorption capacities for oil, non-methane hydrocarbon (NMHC), PM2.5, and PM10 of 10.367 mg/g, 4.132 mg/g, 5.613 μg/g, and 16.486 μg/g, respectively. Microscopy indicated that the TGSC-1 surface was rougher than that of TGSC-0. In addition, the adsorption properties of TGSC-1 were enhanced due to abundant hydroxyl, carbonyl, and carboxyl groups on the material surfaces, while iron was also present in the amorphous form that was generated on TGSC-1 surfaces from Fenton’s reagent. As TGSC-1 mass increased, the adsorption breakthrough time and adsorption capacity for simulated cooking fumes (SCFs) gradually increased. Further, Langmuir models better fit the adsorption process based on the highest R2 values being observed for Langmuir model fitting curves of TGSC-1 adsorption of pollutants (i.e., oils, NMHC, PM2.5, and PM10) from SCF, suggesting that adsorption was primarily due to monolayer adsorption and that chemical adsorption plays a major role in this process. This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of TGSC adsorption technology in the treatment of cooking fumes.