Effect of Enteromorpha prolifera Biochar on the Adsorption Characteristics and Adsorption Mechanisms of Ammonia Nitrogen in Rainfall Runoff

Abstract

In order to study the performance and mechanisms of bioretention pond media (Enteromorpha prolifera biochar) for NH4+-N removal in rainfall runoff, three kinds of alkali modified biochars (marked as BC1, BC2, and BC3) were prepared with various concentrations of NaOH solution (1, 2, and 3 mol·L-1) to explore their adsorption performance for NH4+-N. The results showed that:① Appropriate modifications of the NaOH concentration increased the specific surface area and surface microstructure of biochar, with the content of O and the surface functional groups being enriched. In addition, BC2 possessed the best adsorption performance. ② The adsorption capacity reached a maximum when the pH was 9.0 and the dosage of biochar was 0.5 g·L-1. Compared with BC, the adsorption capacity of BC1 and BC2 increased by 6.4% and 10.8%, respectively, while BC3 decreased by 13.7%. Moreover, BC2 had an optimal adsorption efficiency with a saturated adsorption capacity of 16.76mg·g-1. ③ The adsorption mechanism of biochar belonged to chemical adsorption with a monomolecular layer. The adsorption process was promoted by the high pH of biochar, the electrostatic attraction of biochar pores, the complexation and oxidization of the functional groups of hydroxyl (-OH), carboxyl (-COOH), and carbon-oxygen single bond (C-O). To sum up, the proper amount of NaOH to modify biochar can improve the adsorption performance of NH4+-N, and the modified biochar can be used as media of the bioretention pond to remove NH4+-N.