The present study intended to develop efficient hydrogel spheres in treating simulated wastewater contaminated with p-chlorophenol. Herein, copper-modified nanocellulose was grafted onto alginate to produce eco-friendly hydrogel spheres to utilize as a viable biosorbent. Fabricated spheres were characterized through scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetry, surface area measurement, point of zero charge and zeta potential analyses. The adsorption of p-chlorophenol was optimized by altering various experimental conditions. Pseudo second order kinetics and Langmuir adsorption isotherm best described the adsorption of p-chlorophenol onto copper-modified cellulose nanocrystal-based spheres. The maximum adsorption capacity was 66.67 mg g-1 with a reusability up to five regeneration cycles. The thermodynamic study directed that p-chlorophenol adsorption was exothermic, spontaneous, and reversible within the analyzed temperature range. Weber-Morris model revealed that intraparticle diffusion was not the singular rate-controlling step in the adsorption process. Hence, copper-modified nanocellulose spheres could be employed as a sustainable and effective biosorbent for p-chlorophenol adsorption from wastewater.
Among biopolymer-based adsorbents, composites in the form of beads have shown promising results in terms of high adsorption capacity and ease of separation from the effluents. This review addresses the potential of biopolymer-based beads to remediate wastewaters polluted with emerging organic contaminants, for instance dyes, active pharmaceutical ingredients, pesticides, phenols, oils, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls. High adsorption capacities up to 2541.76 mg g-1 for dyes, 392 mg g-1 for pesticides and phenols, 1890.3 mg g-1 for pharmaceuticals, and 537 g g-1 for oils and organic solvents have been reported. The review also attempted to convey to its readers the significance of wastewater treatment through adsorption by providing an overview on decontamination technologies of organic water contaminants. Various preparation methods of biopolymer-based gel beads and adsorption mechanisms involved in the process of decontamination have been summarized and analyzed. Therefore, we believe there is an urge to discuss the current state of the application of biopolymer-based gel beads for the adsorption of organic pollutants from wastewater and future perspectives in this regard since it is imperative to treat wastewater before releasing into freshwater bodies.
Herein, five N, S-co-doped carbocatalysts were prepared from different carbonaceous precursors, namely sawdust (SD), biochar (BC), carbon-nanotubes (CNTs), graphite (GP), and graphene oxide (GO) and compared. Generally, as the graphitization degree increased, the extent of N and S doping decreased, graphitic N configuration is preferred, and S configuration is unaltered. As peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activator for ciprofloxacin (CIP) removal, the catalytic performance was in order: NS-CNTs (0.037 min-1) > NS-BC (0.032 min-1) > NS-rGO (0.024 min-1) > NS-SD (0.010 min-1) > NS-GP (0.006 min-1), with the carbonaceous properties, rather than the heteroatoms content and textural properties, being the major factor affecting the catalytic performance. NS-CNTs was found to have the supreme catalytic activity due to its remarkable conductivity (3.38 S m-1) and defective sites (ID/IG = 1.28) with high anti-interference effect against organic and inorganic matter and varying water matrixes. The PMS activation pathway was dominated by singlet oxygen (1O2) generation and electron transfer regime between CIP and PMS activated complexes. The CIP degradation intermediates were identified, and a degradation pathway is proposed. Overall, this study provides a better understanding of the importance of selecting a suitable carbonaceous platform for heteroatoms doping to produce superior PMS activator for antibiotics decontamination.
Herein, cellulose nanocrystals were synthesized from oil palm fronds (CNC-OPF) involving two pretreatment approaches, viz. autohydrolysis and soda pulping. The pretreatments were applied individually to OPF fibers to assess their influence on CNCs' physicochemical and thermal properties. CNC-OPF samples were assessed using complementary characterization techniques, which confirmed their purity and characteristics. CP/MAS 13C NMR and TEM studies revealed that autohydrolysis pretreatment yielded CNCs with effective hemicellulose and extractives removal compared to that of soda pulping. XRD analysis demonstrated that autohydrolysis-treated CNC-OPF contained a much higher crystallinity index compared to soda pulping treatment. BET measurement disclosed a relatively higher surface area and wider pore diameter of autohydrolysis-treated CNC-OPF. Autohydrolysis-treated CNCs were applied as a reinforcement filler in alginate-based hydrogel beads for the removal of 4-chlorophenol from water, which attained a qmax of 19.168 mg g-1. BET analysis revealed the less porous nature of CNC-ALG hydrogel beads which could have contributed to hydrogel beads' relatively lower adsorption capacity. The point of zero charge of CNC-ALG hydrogel beads was 4.82, suggesting their applicability only within a short solution pH range. This study directs future studies to unveil the possibilities of functionalizing CNCs in order to enhance the adsorption performance of CNC-immobilized hydrogel beads towards 4-chlorophenol and other organic contaminants.
Over the past few years, nanocellulose (NC), cellulose in the form of nanostructures, has been proved to be one of the most prominent green materials of modern times. NC materials have gained growing interests owing to their attractive and excellent characteristics such as abundance, high aspect ratio, better mechanical properties, renewability, and biocompatibility. The abundant hydroxyl functional groups allow a wide range of functionalizations via chemical reactions, leading to developing various materials with tunable features. In this review, recent advances in the preparation, modification, and emerging application of nanocellulose, especially cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), are described and discussed based on the analysis of the latest investigations (particularly for the reports of the past 3 years). We start with a concise background of cellulose, its structural organization as well as the nomenclature of cellulose nanomaterials for beginners in this field. Then, different experimental procedures for the production of nanocelluloses, their properties, and functionalization approaches were elaborated. Furthermore, a number of recent and emerging uses of nanocellulose in nanocomposites, Pickering emulsifiers, wood adhesives, wastewater treatment, as well as in new evolving biomedical applications are presented. Finally, the challenges and opportunities of NC-based emerging materials are discussed.
Naphthalene is a very common and hazardous environmental pollutant, and its biodegradation has received serious attention. As demonstrated in this study, naphthalene-contaminated wastewater can be biodegraded using a microbial fuel cell (MFC). Furthermore, the potential of MFC for electricity generation appears to be a promising technology to meet energy demands other than those produced from fossil fuels. Nowadays, efforts are being made to improve the overall performance of MFC by integrating biowaste materials for anode fabrication. In this study, palm kernel shell waste was used to produce palm kernel shell-derived graphene oxide (PKS-GO) and palm kernel shell-derived reduced graphene oxide (PKS-rGO), which were then fabricated into anode electrodes to improve the system's electron mobilization and transport. The MFC configuration with the PKS-rGO anode demonstrated greater energy production potential, with a maximum power density of 35.11 mW/m2 and a current density of 101.76 mA/m2, compared to the PKS-GO anode, which achieved a maximum power density of 17.85 mW/m2 and a current density of 72.56 mA/m2. Furthermore, there is simultaneous naphthalene biodegradation with energy production, where the biodegradation efficiency of naphthalene with PKS-rGO and PKS-GO is 85.5%, and 79.7%, respectively. In addition, the specific capacitance determined from the cyclic voltammetry curve revealed a value for PKS-rGO of 2.23 × 10-4 F/g, which is also higher than the value for PKS-GO (1.57 × 10-4 F/g) on the last day of operation. Anodic microbial analysis shows that electrogens thrive in the MFC process. Finally, a comparison with previous literature and the future prospects of the study are also presented.