Heat and ZnCl2 chemical carbonization of date stone as an adsorbent: optimization of material fabrication parameters and adsorption studies

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 29; no. 30; pp. 46038 - 46048
• Main Authors: Abderrahim, Nesrine, Boumnijel, Ibtissem, Amor, Hédi Ben, Djellabi, Ridha
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.06.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Activated carbon; Adsorbents; Adsorption; Adsorptivity; Agricultural wastes; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Carbon; Carbonization; Chemical synthesis; Condensates; Dehydration; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental cleanup; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Fabrication; Heat treatment; Heat treatments; Iodine; Lignocellulose; Methylene blue; Optimization; Particle diffusion; Phenols; Porosity; Reagents; Research Article; Stone; Technology transfer; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Zinc chloride; Waste valorization; Heat carbonization; Water remediation; activation; ZnCl
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-19132-y

In the present study, the optimization of factors for the fabrication of highly adsorptive activated carbon from agricultural waste (date stone) was investigated by using ZnCl 2 as a chemical agent during the heat treatment. ZnCl 2 acts as a dehydration agent during the heat treatment, allowing a better porosity. In addition, it boosts the fragmentation of the lignocellulosic structure and the condensation of carbon rings. The findings of this investigation showed that the synthesis conditions for better ZnCl 2 chemical/heat carbonization to fabricate an adsorbent from date stone are 700 °C, 120 min, and 2.0 g/g. The characterization analysis showed that the as-prepared activated carbon exhibits a surface area of 1036 m 2 /g, an iodine number of 928.5 mg/g, and phenol number of 2.1 mmol/g, which are comparable to commercial activated carbons. Batch sorption tests to remove methylene blue (MB) from water showed a maximum adsorption capacity of 384.6 mg/g using the prepared activated carbon. Equilibrium data was best fitted by the Langmuir isotherm model. It was found also that the kinetic adsorption data obeyed the pseudo-first order, and both external diffusion and intra-particle diffusion control the adsorption. Based on the obtained results, the optimization of synthesis conditions may help the transfer of technology in terms of agriculture-based material valorization towards the environmental remediation. Graphical abstract