Physicochemical and Sorption Characteristics of Carbon Biochars Based on Lignin and Industrial Waste Magnetic Iron Dust

Abstract

Magnetosensitive biochars were prepared with mechanochemical ball-milling of lignin and blast furnace dust with further pyrolysis at 800 °C under an inert gas atmosphere. The physicochemical and sorption characteristics of the materials were analyzed using several techniques: low-temperature nitrogen adsorption–desorption, X-ray powder diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, elemental analysis, potentiometric titration, and thermal analysis. All the synthesized biocarbons were characterized by their specific surface areas (SBET) in the range of 290–330 m2/g and microporous structures with certain contribution of mesopores in the total porosity. Equilibrium adsorption studies revealed the potential applicability of the materials in water remediation from hazardous organic substances modelled with methylene blue (MB) dye. Generally, this study illustrates the effective conversion of sustainable waste into a functional carbon material.

Keywords

• metallurgical dust
• lignin
• magnetosensitive biochars
• carbons
• mechanochemical activation