The focus of this study was on the preparation of a clinoptilolite-based adsorbent, utilizing natural zeolite, to adsorb and remove ammonia (NH3) emitted from various environmental facilities, and to evaluate its performance. To create an adsorbent suitable for humid environments, hydrophobicity was introduced through HCl acid treatment. The impact of acid concentration and treatment time was analyzed to optimize the preparation conditions. As a result, the adsorbent treated with 0.5 M HCl for 2 hours demonstrated the highest NH3 adsorption performance. These findings suggest that the developed adsorbent could serve as an effective solution for controlling NH3 emissions in humid environments, contributing to the mitigation of environmental pollution and odor issues.

Activated carbon is generally recognized as an applicable material for gas or liquid adsorption and electrochemical devices, such as electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs). Owing to the continuous increase in its price, research aimed at discovering alternative materials and improving its fabrication yield is important. Herein, organic pigments were ingeniously employed to enhance the fabrication of high-surface-area activated carbon with remarkable efficiency. Moreover, the focus was centered on the assessment of activated carbon derived from 2,9-dimethylquinacridone, also known as CI Pigment Red 122 for its capacity to adsorb tetracycline (TC) and its applicability as an electrode material for EDLCs. Activating these organic pigments with varying potassium hydroxide ratios allowed the fabrication of activated carbon with a higher yield than that for conventional activated carbon. Furthermore, it was confirmed that activated carbon with a very high specific surface area can be efficiently fabricated, demonstrating a remarkable potential in various application fields. Notably, this activated carbon exhibited an impressive maximum specific surface area and a total pore volume of 3,935 m2/ g and 2.324 cm3/ g, respectively, showcasing its substantial surface area and distinctive porous characteristics. Additionally, the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models were employed to examine the TC adsorption on the activated carbon, with the Langmuir model demonstrating superior suitability than the Freundlich model. Furthermore, the electrochemical performance of an activated carbon-based electrode for EDLCs was rigorously evaluated through cyclic voltammetry. The specific capacitance exhibited a considerable increase in proportion to the expanding specific surface area of the activated carbon.

본 연구는 해조류인 괭생이 모자반을 탄화하여 만든 바이오차의 중금속 흡착 및 제거 효과를 확인하고 중금속 흡착제로 이용 가능성을 확인하고자 연구가 수행되었다. 모자반 바이오차(SBC)는 500℃조건에서 2시간 열분해를 통해 생산하였다. 중금속 흡착실험은 Pb, Cd, Cu 및 Zn의 각 농도별 흡착량을 확인하였으며, Freundlich 및 Langmuir 등온흡착모델을 통해 중금속 흡착 효율성을 확인하였다. 모자반 바이오차의 중금속 제거효율은 Pb, Cd, Cu 및 Zn에서 각각 97.3, 85.2, 76.4 및 42.0%로 Pb＞Cd＞Cu＞Zn 순의 제거효율을 보였다. 등온흡착결과로 Freundlich 등온흡착패턴은 L형이었으며, 흡착강도(1/n)는 0.49 ~ 0.80 범위로 조사되었다. Langmuir 등온흡착식에서 최대흡착량은 Pb, Cd, Cu 및 Zn에서 각각 200, 92.6, 47.8 및 70.4 mg g-1이었으며, 흡착강도는 각각 0.4950, 0.1004, 0.0245 및 0.0188로 조사되었다. 본 실험 결과로 볼 때 모자반 바이오차는 중금속 흡착제로써 활용이 가능할 것으로 보여지며, 이를 활용하기 위한 추가 연구가 필요하다고 보여진다.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are commonly produced in the combustion of fossil fuels and in chemical industries such as detergents and paints. VOCs in atmosphere cause different degrees of harm to human bodies and environments. Adsorption has become one of the most concerned methods to remove VOCs in atmosphere due to its high efficiency, simple operation and low energy consumption. Biomass-based porous carbon (BPC) has been considered as the most promising adsorption material because of the low cost and high absorption rate. In this paper, the key characteristic (e.g., specific surface area, pore structure, surface functional groups and basic composition) of BPC affecting the adsorption of VOCs in atmosphere were analyzed. The improvement of adsorption capacity of BPC by common modification methods, such as surface oxidation, surface reduction, surface loading and other modification methods, were discussed. Examples of BPC adsorption on different types of VOCs including aldehydes, ketones, aromatic VOCs, and halogenated hydrocarbons, were also reviewed. The specific adsorption mechanism was discussed. Finally, some unsolved problems and future research directions about BPC for adsorbing VOCs were propounded. This review can serve as a valuable reference for future developing effective biomass-based porous carbon VOCs adsorption technology.

In this paper, the adsorption removal characteristic for 10 species of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was investigated using GAC and modified GAC (GAC-Cu). After modification with Cu(II), the amount of copper was to 1.93 and 4.73 mg/g for GAC and GAC-Cu, respectively. The total amount of 10 species of PFAS per specific area was obtained to 0.548 and 0.612 ng/m2 for GAC and GAC-Cu, respectively. A series of batch test confirmed lower efficiency was observed with a smaller number of carbon chain length and the removal efficiency of PFCA (perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids) was lower than that of PFSA (perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids) with the same carbon chain length. Regarding the pH effect, the adsorption capacity was decreased with increase of pH due to the increase of electrostatic repulsion. According to pseudo first and second order (PFO and PSO) kinetic models, while the values of equilibrium uptake and time did not show significant difference, a difference in uptake was observed between 24-48h. Furthermore, based on correlation analysis, Log Kow and uptake have a high correlation with molecular weight (M.W.) and initial concentration, respectively. These results show that long-chain PFAS have higher removal efficiency due to their increased hydrophobicity.

Moso bamboo, as a kind of renewable functional material, exhibits outstanding development potential. It is promising to prepare activated carbon with good mechanical strength and high specific surface area using moso bamboo as raw material. In this work, we employed a hydraulic extruder to extrude the bamboo charcoal and the adhesive to obtain the moso bamboo activated carbon, and improved the specific surface area of the columnar activated carbon through high-temperature water vapor activation. Through the catalytic role of the water vapor activation process, the formation and expansion of the pores were promoted and the internal pores were greatly increased. The obtained columnar activated carbon shows excellent mechanical strength (93%) and high specific surface area (791.54 m2/ g). Polyacrylamide@asphalt is one of the most effective adhesives in the high-temperature water vapor activation. The average pore size (22.99 nm) and pore volume (0.36 cm3/ g) of the prepared columnar activated carbon showed a high mesoporous ratio (83%). Based on the excellent pore structure brought by the activation process, the adsorption capacity of iodine (1135.75 mg/g), methylene blue (230 mg/g) and carbon tetrachloride (64.03 mg/g) were greatly improved. The resultant moso bamboo columnar activated carbon with high specific surface area, excellent mechanical properties, and outstanding adsorption capacity possesses a wide range of industrial applications and environmental protection potential.

In this paper, the formation and characterization of Pt2, Pt3 as well as Pt4 atomic clusters in cup-stacked carbon nanotubes (CSCNTs) are evaluated by DFT to examine the adsorption capacity under the clusters. The results show that the Pt clusters move toward the bottom edge or form rings in the optimized stable structure. Pt far from the carbon substrate possesses more active electrons and adsorption advantages. The three clusters can adsorb up to 17, 18, and 16 hydrogen molecules. Loading metal clusters at the bottom edge maintains a relatively good adsorption property despite the low binding energy through comparative studies. The adsorption capacity does not increase with the number of Pt for metal aggregation reducing the hydrogen adsorption area thus impacting the hydrogen storage ability and the aggregation phenomenon limiting the action of Pt metal. During adsorption, chemisorption occurs only in the Pt2 cluster, while multiple hydrogen molecules achieve physiochemical adsorption in the Pt3 and Pt4 clusters. Compared with the atomic loading of the dispersion system in equal quantities, the dispersion system features higher molecular stability and can significantly reduce the energy of the carbon substrates, providing more sites for hydrogen adsorption in space.

In the present study, a novel pH-sensitive hydrogel composite of pectin-grafted-poly (acrylic acid-co-itaconic acid)/MWCNTs- COOH was prepared by using graft copolymerization of acrylic acid and itaconic acid on pectin backbone with incorporation of MWCNTS- COOH. The prepared hydrogel composite has been employed for the adsorption and controlled release of the diclofenac sodium (DS) drug. The hydrogel composite was characterized by the analysis methods: FTIR, XRD, SEM, and TGA to analyze structural characteristics before and after DS drug adsorption. The swelling ratio of the hydrogel composite was investigated at different pH values from pH 1.2 to 10. According to the results, the swelling ratio of the hydrogel composite was found 4195% at pH 7.4. Adsorption process parameters such as pH, contact time, adsorbent dose, and temperature were investigated and found to have a significant influence on DS drug adsorption. The maximum DS drug loading through adsorption of 91% was obtained at pH 3, adsorbent dose of 0.05 g, contact time of 150 min, and temperature of 15 °C. The adsorption isotherm and kinetic results were well-fitted to Freundlich and second-order models. Thermodynamic parameters including changes in Gibb’s free energy, enthalpy, and entropy suggested that the adsorption of DS drug onto hydrogel composite was a spontaneous and exothermic process. The in vitro drug release experiment showed that the cumulative release of DS drug from hydrogel composite after 35 h was significantly higher in simulated intestinal fluid at pH 7.4 than in simulated gastric fluid at pH 1.2.

Exploring highly efficient, and low-cost oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts is extremely vital for the commercial application of advanced energy storage and conversion devices. Herein, a series of graphene-like C2N supported TMx@C2N, (TM = Fe, Co, Ni, and Cu, x = 1, 2) single- and dual-atom catalysts are designed. Their catalytic performance is systematically evaluated by means of spin-polarized density functional theory (DFT) computations coupled with hydrogen electrode model. Regulating metal atom and pairs can widely tune the catalytic performance. The most promising ORR/OER bifunctional activity can be realized on Cu2@ C2N with lowest overpotential of 0.46 and 0.38 V for ORR and OER, respectively. Ni2@ C2N and Ni@C2N can also exhibit good bifunctional activity through effectively balancing the adsorption strength of intermediates. The correlation of reaction overpotential with adsorption free energy is well established to track the activity and reveal the activity origin, indicating that catalytic activity is intrinsically governed by the adsorption strength of reaction intermediates. The key to achieve high catalytic activity is to effectively balance the adsorption of multiple reactive intermediates by means of the synergetic effect of suitably screened bimetal atoms. Our results also demonstrate that lattice strain can effectively regulate the adsorption free energies of reaction intermediates, regarding it as an efficient strategy to tune ORR/OER activity. This study could provide a significant guidance for the discovery and design of highly active noble-metal-free carbon-based ORR/OER catalysts.

This paper aims to review the odor removal performance and operating parameters of pilot and full-scale chemical scrubbers, bioscrubbers, biofilters, and biotrickling filters for odor control in wastewater treatment plants. Based on the performance of full-scale facilities installed in wastewater treatment plants, empty-bed residence times were the shortest for bioscrubbers (7.5±2.5s), followed by chemical scrubbers (20±8.1s), biotrickling filters (22.2±26.2s), and biofilters (48±30s). The removal efficiencies of complex odors by biofilters, biotrickling filters, bioscrubbers, and chemical scrubbers were 97.7±1.9%, 87.7±15.6%, 89.0±9.0%, and 70.0%, respectively. The investment cost was the lowest for biofilters, followed by biotrickling filters, bioscrubbers, and chemical scrubbers. In addition, the operating costs of these deodorization technologies were in the following order: biofilters < bioscrubbers and biotrickling filters < chemical scrubbers. However, most studies on odor control for wastewater treatment processes have been conducted on a laboratory scale with model odors (single odorous compound or mixtures of 2-3 odorous compounds). Therefore, field research to develop deodorization technologies for wastewater treatment plants should be more actively conducted to accumulate data for the design and operation of full-scale deodorizing systems.