The aim of this study is to examine the efficiency of biobased Spanish broom (SB) surface modified cellulose fibers to remove bisphenol A (BPA), a well-known endocrine disruptor, from water. Spanish brooms are flowering plants, which are native and abundant to Mediterranean regions. The functionalized fibers (FF) were found to have the best adsorption efficiency at pH 5, due to the optimal hydrophobic interaction between the FF fiber and BPA. Adsorption kinetics of BPA was found to fit well a pseudo-second order reaction. Equilibrium isotherm data were fitted by Langmuir and Freundlich models. A very fast and simple regeneration method was developed and it was observed that adsorption capacity of the fibers was kept almost unchanged after 3 consecutive uses. Bottled water and synthetic wastewater were also tested to assess the efficiency of the process under more realistic water and wastewater treatment conditions. It was found that BPA removal was slightly decreased from 77% in ultrapure water to 64% in synthetic wastewater matrix, indicating that FF has a high selectivity toward BPA, even in the presence of other organic compounds. Overall, it was observed that SB-modified fibers can be a new promising green biotechnology for water purification.
Keywords: EDCs; Spanish broom; endocrine disruptors; priority pollutants; surface modified cellulose; wastewater treatment.