Metal Removal from Wastewater Using Biomass and Carbon-Based Materials

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 May 2019) | Viewed by 16996

Special Issue Editor

Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) – National Center for Metallurgical Researcher (CENIM), Madrid, Spain
Interests: materials recycling; metals removal; carbon nano adsorption technology; wastewater purification; hydrometallurgical operations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Some 70% of the Earth‘s surface is covered by water; water pollution is therefore associated with serious environmental, economic and health risks. Wastewater, whether of industrial or domestic origin, can contain bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms, as well as a number of organic and inorganic pollutants. Indeed, industrial-origin wastewater—especially from the metallurgical, textile, paper, tanning, fertilizer, and stock-raising sectors—is a major source of contaminating heavy metals, the accumulation of which in groundwater is a well-known problem. The use of such contaminated water in agriculture has provoked serious problems in some places. These heavy metals can be removed by physico-chemical techniques, such as ion exchange, membrane filtration, evaporation/precipitation, and oxidation/reduction, etc., but none are reliable when the concentration in solution is <100–150 mg·L−1. Further, these techniques are costly. This Special Issue of Metals from the MDPI group explores the use of biomass (carbon-containing materials originating from biodegradable sources), modified biomass (e.g., by hydrothermal treatment, torrefaction and/or pyrolysis), and man-made carbon-containing materials (carbon nanotubes and nanofibres) in the removal of these metals from wastewater when in low concentration. With such knowledge, these pollutants might even be valorised.

Prof. Félix A. López
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Metals ions
  • biomass
  • adsorption
  • carbon nanoadsorption
  • bioadsorption
  • hydrothermal carbon
  • activated carbon

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 1810 KiB  
Article
Activated Carbon-Spinels Composites for Waste Water Treatment
by Ernesto De la Torre, Ana Belén Lozada, Maricarmen Adatty and Sebastián Gámez
Metals 2018, 8(12), 1070; https://doi.org/10.3390/met8121070 - 16 Dec 2018
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4083
Abstract
Nowadays, mining effluents have several contaminants that produce great damage to the environment, cyanide chief among them. Ferrites synthesized from transition metals have oxidative properties that can be used for cyanide oxidation due to their low solubility. In this study, cobalt and copper [...] Read more.
Nowadays, mining effluents have several contaminants that produce great damage to the environment, cyanide chief among them. Ferrites synthesized from transition metals have oxidative properties that can be used for cyanide oxidation due to their low solubility. In this study, cobalt and copper ferrites were synthesized via the precipitation method, using cobalt nitrate, copper nitrate, and iron nitrate as precursors in a molar ratio of Co or Cu:Fe = 1:2 and NaOH as the precipitating agent. The synthesized ferrites were impregnated in specific areas on active carbon. These composites were characterized using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Spectroscopy (SEM). The XRD results revealed a cubic spinel structure of ferrites with a single phase of cobalt ferrite and two phases (copper ferrite and copper oxides) for copper. The CoFe2O4 impregnated on active carbon reached a cyanide oxidation of 98% after 8 h of agitation; the composite could be recycled five times with an 18% decrease in the catalytic activity. In cobalt ferrites, a greater dissolution of iron than cobalt was obtained. In the case of copper ferrite, however, the copper dissolution was higher. These results confirm that ferrites and activated carbon composites are a novel alternative for cyanide treatment in mining effluents. Full article
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13 pages, 1118 KiB  
Article
Carbon Nanofibers: A New Adsorbent for Copper Removal from Wastewater
by Irene García-Díaz, Felix Antonio López and Francisco José Alguacil
Metals 2018, 8(11), 914; https://doi.org/10.3390/met8110914 - 07 Nov 2018
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 3178
Abstract
This research describes the adsorption of Cu2+ onto a helical ribbon carbon nanofiber. The characterization of carbon nanofiber by zeta potential showed an isoelectronic pH of 1.9. The influence of different adsorption factors, such as stirring speed, temperature, pH, adsorbent concentration, etc., [...] Read more.
This research describes the adsorption of Cu2+ onto a helical ribbon carbon nanofiber. The characterization of carbon nanofiber by zeta potential showed an isoelectronic pH of 1.9. The influence of different adsorption factors, such as stirring speed, temperature, pH, adsorbent concentration, etc., on the Cu2+ adsorption capacity have been evaluated. The pH has a great influence on Cu2+ adsorption, with the maximum adsorption capacity reached at a pH of 10. The experimental data fit well to pseudo-second order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm models (qm = 8.80 mg·g−1) at T = 298 K and pH = 4. The Cu2+ adsorption could be explained by the particle diffusion model. Results showed that carbon nanofiber could be successfully used for the elimination of Cu2+ from wastewater. Full article
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19 pages, 8204 KiB  
Article
One Step Hydrothermal Synthesis of Magnesium Silicate Impregnated Palm Shell Waste Activated Carbon for Copper Ion Removal
by Choe Earn Choong, Gooyong Lee, Min Jang, Chang Min Park and Shaliza Ibrahim
Metals 2018, 8(10), 741; https://doi.org/10.3390/met8100741 - 21 Sep 2018
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4752
Abstract
Magnesium silicate impregnated onto palm-shell waste activated carbon (PPAC) underwent mild hydrothermal treatment under one-pot synthesis, designated as PPAC-MC. Various impregnation ratios from 25 to 300% of MgSiO3 onto PPAC were tested. High levels of MgSiO3 led to high Cu(II) adsorption [...] Read more.
Magnesium silicate impregnated onto palm-shell waste activated carbon (PPAC) underwent mild hydrothermal treatment under one-pot synthesis, designated as PPAC-MC. Various impregnation ratios from 25 to 300% of MgSiO3 onto PPAC were tested. High levels of MgSiO3 led to high Cu(II) adsorption capacity. A ratio of 1:1 (PPAC-MS 100) was considered optimum because of its chemical stability in solution. The maximum adsorption capacity of PPAC-MS 100 for Cu(II) obtained by isotherm experiments was 369 mg g−1. The kinetic adsorption data fitted to pseudo-second-order model revealed as chemisorption. Increasing ionic strength reduced Cu(II) adsorption capacity due to the competition effect between Na+ and Cu2+. In addition, PPAC-MS 100 showed sufficient adsorption capacity for the removal of Zn(II), Al(III), Fe(II), Mn(II), and As(V), with adsorption capacities of 373 mg g−1, 244 mg g−1, 234 mg g−1, 562 mg g−1, 191 mg g−1, respectively. Three regeneration studies were also conducted. PPAC-MS was characterized using Fourier Transformed Infrared (FTIR), X-Ray powder diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM). Overall, PPAC-MS 100 is a competitive adsorbent due to its high sorption capacity and sufficient regeneration rate, while remaining economical through the reuse of palm-shell waste materials. Full article
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15 pages, 2208 KiB  
Article
Removal of Pb2+ in Wastewater via Adsorption onto an Activated Carbon Produced from Winemaking Waste
by Francisco José Alguacil, Lorena Alcaraz, Irene García-Díaz and Félix Antonio López
Metals 2018, 8(9), 697; https://doi.org/10.3390/met8090697 - 05 Sep 2018
Cited by 41 | Viewed by 4343
Abstract
This work describes the adsorption of Pb2+ in aqueous solution onto an activated carbon (AC) produced from winemaking waste (cluster stalks). After characterizing the AC using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and micro-Raman spectroscopy, the influence of different physico-chemical factors (stirring rate, [...] Read more.
This work describes the adsorption of Pb2+ in aqueous solution onto an activated carbon (AC) produced from winemaking waste (cluster stalks). After characterizing the AC using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and micro-Raman spectroscopy, the influence of different physico-chemical factors (stirring rate, temperature, pH, adsorbent concentration, etc.) on its capacity to adsorb Pb2+ was examined. Kinetic and thermodynamic studies showed that the adsorption of the Pb2+ follows a pseudo-second-order kinetic model and fits the Langmuir isotherm model, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacity of the AC was 58 mg/g at 288 K temperature and pH of 4. In conclusion, ACs made from waste cluster stalks could be successfully used to remove Pb2+ from polluted water. Full article
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