Evaluation of the Adsorption Potential of Benzo(a)pyrene in Coal Produced from Sewage Treatment Station Sludge

Abstract

This work investigates the adsorption of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) using a charcoal adsorbent derived from sewage treatment plant sludge. BaP is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), carcinogenic to humans, which his used by the World Health Organization as a marker for all PAH mixtures. The charcoal was produced by the pyrolysis (500 °C, 4 h) of municipal sewage sludge. The resulting biochar presented mesoporous and oxygenated functional groups that are beneficial for the adsorption of benzo[a]pyrene. The material contained graphitic structures, suggesting potential sites for π–π interactions. The adsorption followed the Elovich kinetic model. A maximum adsorbed value of 60.8 µg g−1 was achieved for an initial BaP concentration of 100 µg L−1 of BaP at 298 K after 20 min. Parameters related to mass transfer phenomena, such as the intraparticle diffusion coefficient, were determined using the homogeneous solid diffusion model (HSDM). These experimental data demonstrate the great potential for computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applications. The value reached for the intraparticle diffusion coefficient was 1.63 × 10−13 m2s−1. Adsorption equilibrium experiments showed that the Langmuir model was most suitable for experimental data, suggesting a monolayer molecular adsorption process. The results showed that charcoal can be employed as an effective material for removing BaP.