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Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance
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Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2023) | Viewed by 9727

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Chu Xia Lin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Science, Engineering and Built Environment, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia
Interests: carbon emissions; environmental pollution; carbon neutrality
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Indika Herath

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Science, Engineering and Built Environment, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
Interests: analytical and environmental chemistry; wastewater treatment; soil remediation; carbon sequestration; biochar; acid sulfate soils; arsenic in the environment; fate of bioplastics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Carbon is one of the most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust. Carbon combines with other elements to form inorganic and organic compounds, which play a crucial role in ecosystem functioning, providing services necessary for human well-being. However, some carbon-containing compounds generated largely through anthropogenic activities become environmental pollutants that harm ecosystems and human health. These carbon-based pollutants can be classified into the following categories:

  • Greenhouse gases, mainly methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2);
  • Petroleum hydrocarbons from oil-related industries;
  • Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from various applications;
  • Pesticides from agricultural and other applications;
  • Pharmaceuticals;
  • Plastics particularly micro(nano)plastics;
  • Perfluoroalkyl substances.

On the other hand, carbon-rich compounds such as biochar/activated carbons and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been recognized as promising materials for the remediation of degraded and contaminated environments, being used in wastewater treatment, the cleaning up of heavy metal(loid)-contaminated soils, etc. Therefore, understanding the recent advancement in carbon compound research in relation to the environment is of great scientific and practical significance.

The scope of this Special Issue includes but is not limited to the following topics:

  • Sources and mitigation of CO2 and CH4 emissions;
  • Characterization of environmental compartments contaminated by carbon-based pollutants;
  • Environmental processes of carbon-based pollutants;
  • Toxicological assessment and environmental impacts of carbon-based pollutants;
  • Remediation of environmental compartments contaminated by carbon-based pollutants;
  • Characterization and applications of biochar materials for environmental remediation;
  • Characterization and applications of MOFs for environmental remediation.

Prof. Dr. Chu Xia Lin
Dr. Indika Herath
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • petroleum hydrocarbons
  • pharmaceuticals
  • polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)
  • pesticides
  • micro(nano)plastics
  • biochar
  • environmental remediation
  • greenhouse gases
  • carbon sequestration
  • metal-organic frameworks

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 3633 KiB  
Article
Adsorption Capacity and Desorption Efficiency of Activated Carbon for Odors from Medical Waste
by Jung Eun Park, Eun Seo Jo, Gi Bbum Lee, Sang Eun Lee and Bum-Ui Hong
Molecules 2023, 28(2), 785; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28020785 - 12 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2514
Abstract
Five types of odor-emitting exhaust gases from medical waste were selected, and their adsorption capacity and desorption efficiency were investigated using activated carbon. The selected gases included polar gases (hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3)) and non-polar gases (acetaldehyde [...] Read more.
Five types of odor-emitting exhaust gases from medical waste were selected, and their adsorption capacity and desorption efficiency were investigated using activated carbon. The selected gases included polar gases (hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3)) and non-polar gases (acetaldehyde (AA), methyl mercaptan (MM), and trimethylamine (TMA))). Commercial activated carbon with a specific surface area of 2276 m2/g was used as the adsorbent. For the removal of odor from medical waste, we investigated: (1) the effective adsorption capacity of a single gas (<1 ppm), (2) the effect of the adsorbed NH3 gas concentration and flow rate, and (3) the desorption rate using NH3 gas. The values of the effective adsorption capacity of the single gas were in the following order: H2S < NH3 < AA < MM < TMA, at 0.2, 4.2, 6.3, 6.6, and 35.7 mg/g, respectively. The results indicate that polar gases have a lower effective adsorption capacity than that of non-polar gases, and that the size of the gas molecules and effective adsorption capacity exhibit a proportional relationship. The effective adsorption performance of NH3 gas showed an increasing trend with NH3 concentration. Therefore, securing optimal conditions for adsorption/desorption is imperative for the highly efficient removal of odor from medical waste. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance)
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14 pages, 2333 KiB  
Article
Biodegradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons by Drechsleraspicifera Isolated from Contaminated Soil in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
by Rasha M. Al-Zahrani, Fatimah Al-Otibi, Najat Marraiki, Raedah I. Alharbi and Horiah A. Aldehaish
Molecules 2022, 27(19), 6450; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27196450 - 30 Sep 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2721
Abstract
Currently, the bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons employs microbial biosurfactants because of their public acceptability, biological safety, and low cost. These organisms can degrade or detoxify organic-contaminated areas, such as marine ecosystems. The current study aimed to test the oil-biodegradation ability of the fungus [...] Read more.
Currently, the bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons employs microbial biosurfactants because of their public acceptability, biological safety, and low cost. These organisms can degrade or detoxify organic-contaminated areas, such as marine ecosystems. The current study aimed to test the oil-biodegradation ability of the fungus Drechslera spicifera, which was isolated from contaminated soil samples in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We used hydrocarbon tolerance, scanning electron microscopy, DCPIP, drop-collapse, emulsification activity, recovery of biosurfactants, and germination assays to assess the biodegradation characteristics of the D. spicifera against kerosene, crude, diesel, used, and mixed oils. The results of DCPIP show that the highest oxidation (0.736 a.u.) was induced by crude oil on the 15th day. In contrast, kerosene and used oil had the highest measurements in emulsification activity and drop-collapse assays, respectively. Meanwhile, crude and used oils produced the highest amounts of biosurfactants through acid precipitation and solvent extraction assays. Furthermore, the biosurfactants stimulated the germination of tomato seeds by more than 50% compared to the control. These findings highlight the biodegradation ability of D. spicifera, which has been proven in the use of petroleum oils as the sole source of carbon. That might encourage further research to demonstrate its application in the cleaning of large, contaminated areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance)
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13 pages, 1145 KiB  
Article
Behaviors of Organic Ligands and Phosphate during Biochar-Driven Nitrate Adsorption in the Presence of Low-Molecular-Weight Organic Acids
by Wenming Xiong, Yongjun Li, Jidong Ying, Chuxia Lin and Junhao Qin
Molecules 2022, 27(18), 5811; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27185811 - 8 Sep 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1277
Abstract
A batch experiment was conducted to examine the behavior of nitrate, organic ligands, and phosphate in the co-presence of biochar and three common low-molecular-weight organic acids (LMWOAs). The results show that citrate, oxalate, and malate ions competed with nitrate ion for the available [...] Read more.
A batch experiment was conducted to examine the behavior of nitrate, organic ligands, and phosphate in the co-presence of biochar and three common low-molecular-weight organic acids (LMWOAs). The results show that citrate, oxalate, and malate ions competed with nitrate ion for the available adsorption sites on the biochar surfaces. The removal rate of LMWOA ligands by the biochar via adsorption grew with increasing solution pH. The adsorbed divalent organic ligands created negatively charged sites to allow binding of cationic metal nitrate complexes. A higher degree of biochar surface protonation does not necessarily enhance nitrate adsorption. More acidic conditions formed under a higher dose of LMWOAs tended to make organic ligands predominantly in monovalent forms and failed to create negatively charged sites to bind cationic metal nitrate complexes. This could adversely affect nitrate removal efficiency in the investigated systems. LMWOAs caused significant release of phosphate from the biochar. The phosphate in the malic acid treatment tended to decrease over time, while the opposite was observed in the citric- and oxalic-acid treatments. This was caused by re-immobilization of phosphate in the former due to the marked increase in solution pH over time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance)
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Review

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23 pages, 2458 KiB  
Review
Trend in Research on Characterization, Environmental Impacts and Treatment of Oily Sludge: A Systematic Review
by Anyi Niu, Xuechao Sun and Chuxia Lin
Molecules 2022, 27(22), 7795; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27227795 - 12 Nov 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2588
Abstract
Oily sludge is a hazardous material generated from the petroleum industry that has attracted increasing research interest. Although several review articles have dealt with specific subtopics focusing on the treatment of oily sludge based on selected references, no attempt has been made to [...] Read more.
Oily sludge is a hazardous material generated from the petroleum industry that has attracted increasing research interest. Although several review articles have dealt with specific subtopics focusing on the treatment of oily sludge based on selected references, no attempt has been made to demonstrate the research trend of oily sludge comprehensively and quantitatively. This study conducted a systematic review to analyze and evaluate all oily sludge-related journal articles retrieved from the Web of Science database. The results show that an increase in oily sludge-related research did not take place until recent years and the distribution of the researchers is geographically out of balance. Most oily sludge-related articles focused on treatment for harmfulness reduction or valorization with limited coverage of formation, characterization, and environmental impact assessment of oily sludge. Pyrolytic treatment has attracted increasing research attention in recent years. So far, the research findings have been largely based on laboratory-scale experiments with insufficient consideration of the cost-effectiveness of the proposed treatment methods. Although many methods have been proposed, few alone could satisfactorily achieve cost-effective treatment goals. To enable sustainable management of oily sludge on a global scale, efforts need to be made to fund more research projects, especially in the major oil-producing countries. Pilot-scale experiments using readily available and affordable materials should be encouraged for practical purposes. This will allow a sensible cost-benefit analysis of a proposed method/procedure for oily sludge treatment. To improve the treatment performance, combined methods are more desirable. To inform the smart selection of methods for the treatment of different oily sludge types, it is suggested to develop universally accepted evaluation systems for characterization and environmental risk of oily sludge. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Compounds of Environmental Significance)
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