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Effective and selective separation of perrhenate from acidic wastewater by super-stable, superhydrophobic, and recyclable biosorbent

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Abstract

The recovery of scattered metal ions such as perrhenate (Re(VII)) from industrial effluents has enormous economic benefits and promotes resource reuse. Nanoscale-metal/biochar hybrid biosorbents are attractive for recovery but are limited by their insufficient stability and low selectivity in harsh environments. Herein, a superstable biochar-based biosorbent composed of ZnO nanoparticles with remarkable superhydrophobic features is fabricated, and its adsorption/desorption capabilities toward Re(VII) in strongly acidic aqueous solutions are investigated. The ZnO nanoparticle/biochar hybrid composite (ZBC) exhibits strong acid resistance and high chemical stability, which are attributable to strong C-O-Zn interactions between the biochar and ZnO nanoparticles. Due to the advantages of its hydrolytic stability, superhydrophobicity, and abundance of Zn-O sites, the ZBC proves suitable for the effective and selective separation of Re(VII) from single, binary and multiple ion systems (pH = 1), with a maximum sorption capacity of 29.41 mg/g. More importantly, this material also shows good recyclability and reusability, with high adsorption efficiency after six adsorption-desorption cycles. The findings in this work demonstrate that a metal/biochar hybrid composite is a promising sorbent for Re(VII) separation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemical Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou, 350116, China

    Hui Hu, Lei Jiang, Longli Sun, Yanling Gao & Chenguang Lv

  2. Army Infantry College, Nanchang, 330103, China

    Tian Wang

Authors
  1. Hui Hu
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  2. Lei Jiang
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  3. Longli Sun
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  4. Yanling Gao
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  5. Tian Wang
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  6. Chenguang Lv
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hui Hu.

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Highlights

• A ZnO-biochar hybrid composite was prepared by solvothermal-pyrolysis synthesis.

• The superhydrophobic composite is suitable for selective recovery of Re(VII).

• The adsorption mechanism is elucidated by experiments and material characterization.

Supporting Information

11783_2021_1456_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

Effective and selective separation of perrhenate from acidic wastewater by super-stable, superhydrophobic, and recyclable biosorbent

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Hu, H., Jiang, L., Sun, L. et al. Effective and selective separation of perrhenate from acidic wastewater by super-stable, superhydrophobic, and recyclable biosorbent. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng. 16, 21 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-021-1456-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-021-1456-9

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