Adsorption properties of active biochar: Overlooked role of the structure of biomass

Abstract

Vascular plants account for more than 80% of all biomass on earth and are potential precursors of biochar. However, the changes of vascular bundle have received less attention during the preparation of biochar. In this study, loofah sponge (LS), tangerine pith (TP), and rhodiola rosea (RR), were selected to show the role of vascular bundle in biochar through the pretreatment of vascular bundle. The results showed that the active biochar prepared with vascular bundle protection had high adsorption capacity for methylene blue (LS: 953.53 mg/g, TP: 714.77 mg/g, RR: 583.49 mg/g). The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method was used to measure the specific surface area (SSA) of active biochar. The SSA of LS active biochar prepared by vascular bundle protection was 2262.67 m²/g, and has high adsorption properties under different conditions. In conclusion, the protection of vascular bundle during biochar preparation is important to improve the utilization of biological resources and environmental adsorption.

Keywords: Adsorption; Hydrothermal pretreatment; Lignin removal; Vacuum freeze drying; Vascular bundle.