Production of highly porous biochar via microwave physiochemical activation for dechlorination in water treatment

Dan Shi; Peter Nai Yuh Yek; Shengbo Ge; Yang Shi; Rock Keey Liew; Wanxi Peng; Christian Sonne; Meisam Tabatabaei; Mortaza Aghbashlo; Su Shiung Lam

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136624

Production of highly porous biochar via microwave physiochemical activation for dechlorination in water treatment

Chemosphere. 2022 Dec;309(Pt 1):136624. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136624. Epub 2022 Sep 28.

Authors

Dan Shi¹, Peter Nai Yuh Yek², Shengbo Ge³, Yang Shi⁴, Rock Keey Liew⁵, Wanxi Peng⁶, Christian Sonne⁷, Meisam Tabatabaei⁸, Mortaza Aghbashlo⁹, Su Shiung Lam¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ School of Design, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410000, China; Changsha Social Work College, Changsha, Hunan, 410000, China.
² Henan Province International Collaboration Lab of Forest Resources Utilization, School of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, 450002, China; Centre for Research of Innovation and Sustainable Development, University of Technology Sarawak, 96000, Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia.
³ Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210037, China. Electronic address: geshengbo@njfu.edu.cn.
⁴ Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210037, China.
⁵ NV WESTERN PLT, No. 208B, Second Floor, Macalister Road, 10400, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia.
⁶ Henan Province International Collaboration Lab of Forest Resources Utilization, School of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
⁷ Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark.
⁸ Henan Province International Collaboration Lab of Forest Resources Utilization, School of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, 450002, China; Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries (AKUATROP), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia; Biofuel Research Team (BRTeam), Terengganu, Malaysia.
⁹ Department of Mechanical Engineering of Agricultural Machinery, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran.
¹⁰ Henan Province International Collaboration Lab of Forest Resources Utilization, School of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, 450002, China; Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries (AKUATROP), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia; Sustainability Cluster, School of Engineering, University of Petroleum & Energy Studies, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, 248007, India. Electronic address: lam@umt.edu.my.

PMID: 36181838
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136624

Abstract

Most biomass is composted into low-grade biofertilizer or processed into energy fuel for burning. At the same time, waste palm shell is potentially converted into highly porous biochar for dechlorination in water treatment. A single-mode microwave activation was developed to perform microwave activation that incorporated the application of steam, KOH, and a physiochemical process. The single-mode microwave activation was performed at the activation temperature ranging from 550-600 °C and recorded a short process duration of 5 min. The steam-activated biochar showed a mass yield of 88.3 wt%, a surface area of 527.4 m²/g, and a dechlorination efficiency of 25.5 mg/g. KOH-activated biochar showed a mass yield of 90.5 wt%, a surface area of 301.1 m²/g and a dechlorination efficiency of 24.0 mg/g. The physiochemical activated biochar showed the highest pores surface area of 717.8 m²/g and dechlorination efficiency of 35.8 mg/g but the lowest mass yield of 77.6 wt%. The results demonstrate that the greater the surface area, the higher the dechlorination efficiency. Using microwave heating and physiochemical activation technology demonstrates a promising way to produce activated biochar for the dechlorination of drinking water.

Keywords: Activated biochar; Dechlorination; KOH; Microwave; Physiochemical; Steam.

MeSH terms

Drinking Water*
Microwaves
Porosity
Steam
Water Purification*

Substances

biochar
Steam
Drinking Water