Synthesis of magnetic biochar composite using Vateria indica fruits through in-situ one-pot hydro-carbonization for Fenton-like catalytic dye degradation

Raja Selvaraj; Vasundra Nagendran; Gokulakrishnan Murugesan; Louella Concepta Goveas; Thivaharan Varadavenkatesan; Adithya Samanth; Ramesh Vinayagam; Kathirvel Brindhadevi

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2024.118414

Synthesis of magnetic biochar composite using Vateria indica fruits through in-situ one-pot hydro-carbonization for Fenton-like catalytic dye degradation

Environ Res. 2024 Jun 1:250:118414. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118414. Epub 2024 Feb 15.

Authors

Raja Selvaraj¹, Vasundra Nagendran¹, Gokulakrishnan Murugesan², Louella Concepta Goveas³, Thivaharan Varadavenkatesan⁴, Adithya Samanth¹, Ramesh Vinayagam⁵, Kathirvel Brindhadevi⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemical Engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India.
² Department of Biotechnology, M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, 560054, Karnataka, India.
³ Nitte (Deemed to be University), Department of Biotechnology Engineering, NMAM Institute of Technology (NMAMIT), Nitte, India.
⁴ Department of Biotechnology, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India.
⁵ Department of Chemical Engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India. Electronic address: ramesh.v@manipal.edu.
⁶ University Centre for Research & Development, Department of Chemistry, Chandigarh University, Mohali, 140103, India. Electronic address: kbrindha19@gmail.com.

PMID: 38365050
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118414

Abstract

The present study reports the synthesis, characterization, and application of sustainable magnetic biochar composite. The inedible fruits of Vateria indica, a powerful ayurvedic plant were hydrothermally transformed into magnetic biochar (BC-Fe₃O₄) in a single step and characterized by several sophisticated techniques. FESEM analysis portrayed fibrous irregular mesh-like biochar with surface clustered Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, while the incidence of carbon, oxygen, and iron in the elemental analysis by EDS established magnetic biochar formation. Numerous peaks consistent with planes of (220), (311), (400), (422), (511), (440), and (120) also substantiated the occurrence of magnetite nanoparticles and biochar respectively, as analyzed by XRD. XPS analysis showed signals at 285.65 eV, 533.28 eV, 711.08 eV, and 724.68 eV corroborating a strong C-O bond, O1s orbit, Fe²⁺, and Fe³⁺ respectively. BC-Fe₃O₄ was superparamagnetic with saturation magnetization of 4.74 emu/g, as per VSM studies, while its specific surface area, pore volume, and pore diameter were 5.74 m²/g, 0.029 cm³/g, and 20.86 nm respectively. The Fenton-like degradation of methylene blue (5.0-25.0 ppm) was accomplished by synthesized BC-Fe₃O₄, in the presence of H₂O₂. Within 180 min, almost complete degradation was achieved, with first-order kinetics having rate constants between 0.0299 and 0.0167 min^-1. Stability and recyclability studies performed over 7 cycles exhibited unaltered degradation between 93.98 and 97.59%. This study exhibits the exceptional characteristics and degradation capabilities of BC-Fe₃O₄ synthesized from a sustainable plant biomass.

Keywords: Biochar; Environmental pollution; Fenton-like degradation; Magnetic composite; Methylene blue dye.

MeSH terms

Catalysis
Charcoal* / chemistry
Coloring Agents / chemistry
Fruit / chemistry
Hydrogen Peroxide / chemistry
Iron / chemistry
Water Pollutants, Chemical / chemistry

Substances

biochar