Sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from aqueous solution by hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide modified fibric peat

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Fibric peat was modified by hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HTAB) to improve its performance in sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The raw fibric peat (P-R) and surfactant modified peat (P-HTAB) were characterized by capillary rise test to determine the effect of HTAB on surface hydrophobicity. Effect of contact time was also investigated. Batch sorption data were fitted to the Freundlich model and pseudo-second-order model for isotherm and kinetics study.

Removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from aqueous solution using plant residue materials as a biosorbent

“…In contrast, the relationship between log K oc and log K ow for PAHs on heat-killed fungi [30], river sediments [34], raw and surfactant modified fibric peat [25] were reported as follows:…”

“…(2), the removal efficiency of phenanthrene could be up to 90% when the solid-to-water ratio (mg:mL) reached 1.7-3.6 ( Table 3). As shown in Table 4, biosorption of phenanthrene to pine needles is much lower than some natural or modified sorbents such as algae, lignin, humic acid [16], fibric peat [25], fruit cuticles [32], and some geosorbents and conventional abiotic materials (char and activated carbon) [33], but higher than those of pink bark [8], cellulose, aspen wood fibers [18], and tender tea leaves [22]. In view of its ubiquity, environmental compatibility, and cost effectiveness, plant materials could be a favorable biosorbent for PAHs pollution treatment.…”

“…Hydrolysis (acid or low/high temperature treatment) increases the aromaticity and decreases the polarity of sorbents, and hence dramatically enhances the sorption capability of raw plant materials [8,18]. While surfactant treatment increases the aliphatic carbon content of sorbents, which results in a greater sorption capacity and faster sorption rate of fibric peat [25]. Although the sorption capability of raw plant residues is often much lower than some conventional geosorbents such as kerogen [16], char and active carbon [33], it is still a promising biosorbent for POPs abatement due to its ubiquity, environmental compatibility, and cost effectiveness.…”

“…Several authors dealing with relatively fresh organic matter pointed out that aliphatic carbons rather than aromatic carbons play a regulating role on the sorption behavior of natural organic matter, especially the aliphatic-rich natural organic matter [16,25]. However, biosorption mechanisms and removal efficiency of POPs in wastewater by plant residues as a biosorbent are wanted.…”

Evaluation of full-scale vertical peat biofilters for treatment of septic tank effluents

“…The lignin in particular bears polar functional groups such as alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, acids, phenolic hydroxides and esters that are involved in chemical bonding. This complex nature makes peat an excellent adsorbent for both metals and polar organic molecules, including volatile organic compounds, pesticides and oils [7,[15][16][17][18]. The sorptive capacity of the medium is limited, so that the removal rate of recalcitrant organic and inert compounds will eventually decline as the adsorption sites become permanently used.…”