Thermal stability of biochar and its effects on cadmium sorption capacity

Fangjie Qi; Yubo Yan; Dane Lamb; Ravi Naidu; Nanthi S Bolan; Yanju Liu; Yong Sik Ok; Scott W Donne; Kirk T Semple

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2017.07.033

Thermal stability of biochar and its effects on cadmium sorption capacity

Bioresour Technol. 2017 Dec:246:48-56. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2017.07.033. Epub 2017 Jul 8.

Authors

Fangjie Qi¹, Yubo Yan², Dane Lamb¹, Ravi Naidu³, Nanthi S Bolan¹, Yanju Liu¹, Yong Sik Ok⁴, Scott W Donne⁵, Kirk T Semple⁶

Affiliations

¹ Global Centre for Environmental Remediation, ATC Building, Faculty of Science, The University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia; Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of Environment (CRC CARE), The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia.
² Global Centre for Environmental Remediation, ATC Building, Faculty of Science, The University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia; Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, School of Environmental and Biological Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China.
³ Global Centre for Environmental Remediation, ATC Building, Faculty of Science, The University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia; Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of Environment (CRC CARE), The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia. Electronic address: Ravi.Naidu@newcastle.edu.au.
⁴ O-Jeong Eco-Resilience Institute (OJERI), Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
⁵ Discipline of Chemistry, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Newcastle, NSW 2308, Australia.
⁶ Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, LA1 4YQ, United Kingdom.

PMID: 28756990
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2017.07.033

Abstract

In this study, the thermal stability of a wood shaving biochar (WS, 650°C), a chicken litter biochar (CL, 550°C) and an activated carbon (AC, 1100°C) were evaluated by combustion at 375°C for 24h to remove the labile non-carbonized organic matter. Results showed that WS and CL biochars were not thermally stable and can lose most of the organic C during combustion. The combusted WS and CL biochars retained considerable amounts of negative charge and displayed higher sorption for Cd (from 5.46 to 68.9mg/g for WS and from 48.5 to 60.9mg/g for CL). The AC retained 76.5% of its original C and became more negatively chargely after combustion, but its sorption for Cd slightly decreased (from 18.5 to 14.9mg/g). This study indicated that after potential burning in wildfires (200-500°C), biochars could have higher sorption capacity for metals by remaining minerals.

Keywords: Biochar; Cadmium; Composition; Sorption; Stability.

MeSH terms

Adsorption
Cadmium*
Charcoal*
Wood

Substances

biochar
Cadmium
Charcoal