Cellulose-based Waste Research Articles

Modified Cellulose-Based Waste for Enhanced Adsorption of Selected Heavy Metals from Wastewater.

Due to industrial growth and its impact on the environment, the increasing amount of industrial waste requires a comprehensive approach aligned with the principles of sustainable development. The main goals are not only to preserve natural resources but also to encourage innovation in the reuse of waste materials. In an attempt to reduce the problems regarding waste disposal and wastewater treatment in the textile industry, fibrous textile waste was used as a starting material to obtain carbon adsorbents for the removal of pollutants from wastewater. Waste cotton and mixed yarns, mainly consisting of polysaccharide cellulose, were hydrothermally carbonized and activated with KOH to convert them into efficient carbon adsorbents for heavy metal removal from water. Characterization of carbonized material showed that after activation, an increase in specific surface area (up to 872 m2/g) and content of surface oxygen groups (6.04 mmol/g) leads to a higher affinity towards heavy metal ions, especially lead ions, and high adsorption capacity of 19.98 mg/g obtained for activated cotton yarns. The results of this research represent a contribution to the reduction of waste materials by modifying them into adsorbents, while the regeneration of adsorbents is an example of the practical application of polysaccharide-based materials in the purification of wastewater containing various heavy metal ions.

Cellulose-Based Waste in a Close Loop as an Adsorbent for Removing Dyes from Textile Industry Wastewater

In an attempt to reuse fibrous textile waste and, at the same time, to address dye pollution in textile wastewater, waste cotton-based yarn was utilized as a cheap and sustainable adsorbent, as well as a row material for carbon adsorbent production. Unmodified yarn and cotton-based carbon adsorbents were used as adsorbents for dye removal from water. Cotton and cotton/polyester yarn samples underwent thermal modification through carbonization followed by chemical activation with KOH. Various techniques, including scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherms, and surface charge determination, were employed to analyze the morphological and surface characteristics of the cotton-based adsorbents. Adsorption properties were evaluated by testing the removal of selected cationic and anionic dyes from water. The impact of temperature, initial pH and concentration of the dye solution, and contact time on adsorption were investigated, and experimentally obtained data were analyzed using theoretical models. While carbonization alone did not significantly enhance adsorption properties, activated samples exhibited high efficacy in removing both cationic and anionic dyes from water. Despite the negative influence of the polyester component in the carbon precursor on the efficiency of activated samples in removing methyl orange, the results indicated that activated cotton and cotton/polyester yarn could be used to prepare highly efficient adsorbents for the rapid removal of methylene blue from real wastewater samples.

Modified Hybrid Catalyst of Fe<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub>/Cellulose Nanocomposite-Base and their Potential Application as Dye Waste Adsorbent

The population growth and the industrial revolution caused severe environmental pollution, especially pollution of clean water availability. Several ways have been conducted to overcome the pollution of clean water availability, one of which is by the adsorption of metal and cellulose-based waste materials as a hybrid catalyst. This study aims to fabricate and modify a hybrid catalyst composed of cellulose in the form of nanosized fibrils. Cellulose can be used as a catalyst by incorporating Fe from magnetite (Fe3O4) and can work effectively as an adsorbent for methylene blue (MB) dye waste. The method used in this research is a modified coprecipitation method by combining cellulose and Fe3O4 nanoparticles. Hybrid Catalyst of Fe3O4/Cellulose Nanocomposite-Base has been successfully characterized by using XRD, SEM-EDX, and UV-Vis, respectively to determine the particle structure, morphology, and adsorption capacity of the sample. The results of data analysis showed that Fe3O4/Cellulose could purify MB solution depending on the ratio of Fe3O4 and the mass of cellulose used. The higher the mass ratio of cellulose to Fe3O4, the absorbance value of the Fe3O4/Cellulose nanoparticle sample increases.

Prospects for fungal bioremediation of unburied waste packages from the Goiânia radiological accident.

Goiânia, the Goiás State capital, starred in 1987, where one of the largest radiological accidents in the world happened. A teletherapy machine was subtracted from a derelict radiotherapy clinic and disassembled by scavengers who distributed fragments of the 50 TBq 137CsCl source among relatives and acquaintances, enchanted by the blue shine of the substance. During the 15days before the accident was acknowledged, contaminated recycling materials were delivered to recycling factories in four cities in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, in the form of recycling paper bales. The contaminated bales were spotted, collected, and stored in fifty 1.6 m3 steel boxes at the interim storage facility of the Nuclear and Energy Research Institute (IPEN). In 2017, a check of the content was performed in a few boxes and the presence of high moisture content was observed even though the bales were dry when conditioned and the packages were kept sealed since then. The main objective of this work was to report the fungi found in the radioactive waste after they evolved for 30years in isolation inside the waste boxes and their role in the decay of the waste. Examination of the microbiome showed the presence of nematodes and fungal communities. The fungi species isolated were Aspergillus quadricinctus, Fusarium oxysporum, Lecanicillium coprophilumi, Scedosporium boydii, Scytalidium lignicola, Xenoacremonium recifei, and Pleurostoma richardsiae. These microorganisms showed a significant capacity to digest cellulose in our trials, which could be one of the ways they survive in such a harsh environment, reducing the volume of radioactive paper waste. These metabolic abilities give us a future perspective of using these fungi in biotechnology to remediate radioactively contaminated materials, particularly cellulose-based waste.

CO2-assisted hydrolytic hydrogenation of cellulose and cellulose-based waste into sorbitol over commercial Ru/C

A single-step protocol was developed for the hydrolytic hydrogenation of microcrystalline cellulose into sorbitol over commercial carbon-supported Ru, in the presence of gaseous CO2 as an acid source and molecular hydrogen as a reductant.

Valorization of textile waste hydrolysate for hydrogen gas and levulinic acid production

The objective of this research was to explore the potential for utilizing cellulose-based waste fluff that constitute a significant portion of the solid waste of textile industry to obtain high yield hydrogen gas and levulinic acid by using two-step conversion process. In the first step, hydrothermally hydrolysis of cellulose-based waste fluff was achieved and then the hydrolysate solution was further treated by two different catalysts (Pt/AC and BT500S) in different reaction conditions for producing hydrogen gas and levulinic acid. The results showed that in reforming process the highest gasification performance and hydrogen selectivity (increased up to 25.6%) were achieved from waste fluff hydrolysate compared to other lignocellulosic/cellulosic hydrolysates studied in the literature. On the other hand, 655.3 mg/mL hydrolysate of levulinic acid was produced at the reaction temperature of 200 °C with BT500S solid acid catalyst corresponding to a higher concentration than during one-step conversion process.

Sustainable tetra pak recycled cellulose / Poly(Butylene succinate) based woody-like composites for a circular economy

Long term sustainability requires the elimination of waste products and their integration in the circular economy according to goals set by the European Union. Such is the case with Tetra pak one of the most extensively used food packaging materials in the world. More than half of the Tetra pak packaging ends up in the landfills due to the complicated disposal that requires special processing plants. The objective of this study is to investigate recycled cellulose (rCell) that has been separated from polypropylene and aluminum in the industrial processing plant as a structural filler for functional biocomposites. Cellulose-based waste products are widely used as filler materials for the composites classified as wood-plastic composites (WPC) and are one of the leading materials for sustainable building materials, furniture and packaging industry. We have selected one of the most promising bio-based and biodegradable polymers poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) that has comparable mechanical properties to polyethylene and polypropylene as a matrix for the composites. Thus, we propose a novel application route for rCell obtained during Tetra pak recycling process and evaluate its performance. High filler loading from 10 to 50 wt% has been used in the melt blending process to prepare 5 compositions that contain 55–75% bio-based carbon content. Life cycle inventory has been combined with excessive thermal and mechanical analysis to access the suitability of the composite for various application including submerging in water. The addition of 50 wt % of rCell into PBS leads to improvement of the hardness of the composites. Further, the rCell composites were found to have much higher Young’s modulus compared to pristine PBS. The dynamic mechanical analysis showed that the storage modulus and the loss modulus were significantly enhanced in measured temperature range between −70 and 70 °C. The PBS/rCell composites were biodegradable in soil under composting conditions. Scanning electron microscopy analysis of fractured composites’ surfaces testifies the filler agglomeration process in the PBS/rCell composites and generation of voids, but the FTIR measurements indicate the generation of hydrogen bonding between the polymer and cellulose components. TGA evidence the increase in thermal stability of the rCell after incorporation in the PBS/rCell composites.

Effect of graphene oxide on thermal stability of aerogel bio-nanocomposite from cellulose-based waste biomass

By combining the waste of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) and graphene oxide (GO), a GO/cellulose aerogel bio-nanocomposite was produced via a simple mixing method. The thermal properties of this nanocomposite were examined using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and the GO/cellulose aerogel bio-nanocomposite exhibited good thermal stability indicated by a delay in the degradation of the nanocomposite even at low GO incorporation. Experimental and modeled TGA curves were compared. The morphology of the GO/cellulose aerogel composite was observed under field emission scanning electron microscope. In GO/cellulose aerogel composite with 4 wt% GO, the pore volume and porosity decreased by more than 50% compared to aerogel without GO, and the density of the 4 wt% GO/cellulose aerogel composite showed a onefold increase compared with the pure cellulose aerogel. The degree of swelling and equilibrium-swelling ratio of regenerated GO/cellulose hydrogel and aerogel decreased with the higher GO concentration. The phase transition from EFB to regenerated GO/cellulose aerogel composite was evaluated using X-ray diffraction. This study has provided a simple pathway to produce environmentally friendly biocomposite materials.

Polyurethane foams synthesized from cellulose-based wastes: Kinetics studies of dye adsorption

In the present work the polyurethane foams containing cellulose from wood furniture industry waste were synthesized for adsorption of dyes. Polyurethane foam without cellulose, with unmodified cellulose, with chemically modified cellulose by 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) at molar ratios 1OH:1NCO (cellulose 1:1) and 3OH:1NCO (cellulose 3:1) were produced and their efficiency in adsorption processes for the Methylene Blue, Procion Yellow HE-4R and Procion Red HE-7B dyes was evaluated from the adsorption kinetic data. Through Fourier transformed infra-red (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance 13C (NMR 13C) analysis it was confirmed that maceration process to extract cellulose from wood waste and the reaction between cellulose and MDI was effective. Thermal, morphological and chemical properties of polyurethane foams and chemically modified cellulose were performed by thermogravimetric analyses (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and FTIR. The adsorption kinetic studies showed that the removal of dyes reaches its highest efficiency at approximately 420min for Methylene Blue at pH 7 and 240min for Procion Red and Procion Yellow at pH 5. According to the obtained results, it was possible to achieve an efficient dye removal of approximately 70%. Kinetic studies revealed that the experimental adsorption data of Methylene Blue, Procion Yellow HE-4R and Procion Red HE-7B dyes on foams are best fitted by the model of pseudo-second-order (r2>0,971). The Qe (maximum adsorption capacity) values obtained by pseudo-second-order agreed with experimentally obtained Qe values. It suggests that the rate of the adsorption process is preferably controlled by chemisorption. The intraparticle diffusion model describes the adsorption mechanism.

Green and facile fabrication of carbon aerogels from cellulose-based waste newspaper for solving organic pollution

Carbon-based aerogel fabricated from waste biomass is a potential absorbent material for solving organic pollution. Herein, the lightweight, hydrophobic and porous carbon aerogels (CAs) have been synthesized through freezing–drying and post-pyrolysis by using waste newspaper as the only raw materials. The as-prepared CAs exhibited a low density of 18.5mgcm−3 and excellent hydrophobicity with a water contact angle of 132° and selective absorption for organic reagents. The absorption capacity of CA for organic compounds can be 29–51 times its own weight. Moreover, three methods (e.g., squeezing, combustion, and distillation) can be employed to recycle CA and harvest organic pollutants. Combined with waste biomass as raw materials, green and facile fabrication process, excellent hydrophobicity and oleophilicity, CA used as an absorbent material has great potential in application of organic pollutant solvents absorption and environmental protection.

Leachability of Solidified Degraded Radioactive Cellulose-Based Wastes

Leachability of Solidified Degraded Radioactive Cellulose-Based Wastes Cellulosic wastes are considered as one component of radioactive solid wastes generating during daily peaceful applications of nuclear materials. In the current article, the residual waste solution arising from the wet oxidative degradation of mixed cellulosic wastes(towel paper, filter paper and spent cotton clothes) using hydrogen peroxide as oxidant under 100°C and atmospheric pressure was solidified/stabilized through incorporation into a Portland cement matrix. Leachability as one of the most important characterizations of the final solidified radioactive waste form was evaluated to meet the final disposal requirements.

The effect of isosaccharinic acid (ISA) on the mobilization of metals in municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) dry scrubber residue

Co-landfilling of incineration ash and cellulose might facilitate the alkaline degradation of cellulose. A major degradation product is isosaccharinic acid (ISA), a complexing agent for metals. The impact of ISA on the mobility of Pb, Zn, Cr, Cu and Cd from a municipal solid waste incineration dry scrubber residue was studied at laboratory using a reduced 2 5−1 factorial design. Factors investigated were the amount of calcium isosaccharinate (Ca(ISA) 2), L/ S ratio, temperature, contact time and type of atmosphere (N 2, air, O 2). The effects of pH and Ca(ISA) 2 as well as other factors on the leaching of metals were quantified and modelled using multiple linear regression ( α = 0.05). Cd was excluded from the study since the concentrations were below the detection limit. The presence of Ca(ISA) 2 resulted in a higher leaching of Cu indicating complex formation. Ca(ISA) 2 alone had no effect on the leaching of Pb, Zn and Cr. A secondary effect on the mobilization was predicted to occur since Ca(ISA) 2 had a positive effect on the pH and the leaching of Pb, Zn and Cr increased with increasing pH. The leaching of Pb varied from 24 up to 66 wt.% of the total Pb amount (1.74 ± 0.02 g(kg TS) −1) in the dry scrubber residue. The corresponding interval for Zn (7.29 ± 0.07 g(kg TS) −1) and Cu (0.50 ± 0.02 g(kg TS) −1) were 0.5–14 wt.% of Zn and 0.8–70 wt.% of Cu. Maximum leaching of Cr (0.23 ± 0.03 g(kg TS) −1) was 4.0 wt.%. At conditions similar to a compacted and covered landfill (4 °C, 7 days, 0 vol.% O 2) the presence of ISA can increase the leaching of Cu from 2 to 46 wt.% if the amount of cellulose-based waste increases 20 times, from the ratio 1:100 to 1:5. As well, the leaching of Pb, Zn, and Cr can increase from 32 to 54 wt.% (Pb), 0.8–8.0 wt.% (Zn), and 0.5 to 4.0 wt.% (Cr) depending on the amount of cellulose and L/ S ratio and pH value. Therefore, a risk ( α = 0.05) exists that higher amounts of metals are leached from landfills where cellulose-containing waste and ash are co-disposed. This corresponds to an additional 29 t of Pb and 17 t of Cu leached annually from a compacted and covered landfill in the north of Sweden.

Adsorption of heavy metals from water using banana and orange peels

Liquid-phase adsorption removal of Cu2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, and Pb2+ in the concentration range of 5-25 mg/L using low-cost banana and orange peel wastes was examined at 30 degrees C. Under comparable conditions, the amount of adsorption decreased in the order Pb2+ > Ni2+ > Zn2+ > Cu2+ > Co2+ for both adsorbents. The adsorption isotherms could be better described by the Freundlich equation. The amount of adsorption increased with increasing pH and reached a plateau at pH > 7, which was confirmed by the variations of zeta potentials. The application potential of such cellulose-based wastes for metal removal (up to 7.97 mg Pb2+ per gram of banana peel at pH 5.5) at trace levels appeared to be promising.

Use of cellulose-based wastes for adsorption of dyes from aqueous solutions

Low-cost banana and orange peels were prepared as adsorbents for the adsorption of dyes from aqueous solutions. Dye concentration and pH were varied. The adsorption capacities for both peels decreased in the order methyl orange (MO) > methylene blue (MB) > Rhodamine B (RB) > Congo red (CR) > methyl violet (MV) > amido black 10B (AB). The isotherm data could be well described by the Freundlich and Langmuir equations in the concentration range of 10–120 mg/l. An alkaline pH was favorable for the adsorption of dyes. Based on the adsorption capacity, it was shown that banana peel was more effective than orange peel. Kinetic parameters of adsorption such as the Langergren rate constant and the intraparticle diffusion rate constant were determined. For the present adsorption process intraparticle diffusion of dyes within the particle was identified to be rate limiting. Both peel wastes were shown to be promising materials for adsorption removal of dyes from aqueous solutions.