Adsorption potential of biochar derived from cotton waste for efficient removal of methylene blue from aqueous solutions

Abstract

Agricultural product processing generates substantial quantities of agricultural waste and their disposal has become a critical concern, threatening human health and the environment. The pyrolysis process is an upgrading technology for producing valuable products from waste feedstocks. Hence, the potential of eco-friendly biochar derived from cotton waste was comprehensively investigated for methylene blue removal. The cotton-based biochar contained various pore sizes and functional groups on the surface verified by SEM and FTIR analyses. The impacts of adsorbent dose, methylene blue concentration, temperature, pH, and contact time on the adsorption of methylene blue were assessed to highlight the efficiency of the cotton-based biochar. The results revealed >90% removal under 10 mg/l methylene blue concentration, 0.7 g adsorbent dose, pH of 6, and contact time of 60 min at a temperature of 20 ⁰C. The adsorption isotherm was well-fitted with the Freundlich model, indicating the multilayer methylene blue adsorption. The adsorption process was chemisorption and endothermic based on kinetic and thermodynamic modeling. Summing up, it can be suggested that the cotton-based biochar can be easily and efficiently applied for methylene blue removal from aqueous solutions, and further investigations are required to modify its specific surface area by a green synthesis approach.