Adsorption of chlortetracycline onto biochar derived from corn cob and sugarcane bagasse

Biochar was prepared from two different types of biological waste materials, corn cob (CC) and sugarcane bagasse (SB). The adsorption capacity of each class of adsorbent was determined by chlortetracycline (CTC) adsorption tests. The adsorption kinetics and isotherms of chlortetracycline onto sugarcane bagasse biochar (SBB) and corn cob biochar (CCB) were studied. Experimental results indicated that pseudo-second-order adsorption kinetics of CTC onto SBB and CCB were more reasonable than pseudo-first-order kinetics, and the adsorption kinetic model of CTC onto SBB was slightly better than that onto CCB. The maximum adsorption capacity of CTC onto SBB was 16.96 mg/g at pH 4, while the highest adsorption efficiency of CTC onto CCB was achieved at pH 5 with a maximum adsorption of 12.39 mg/g. The Freundlich isotherm model was better than the Langmuir model at illustrating the adsorption process of CTC onto SBB and CCB. These results provide a way to understand the value of specific biochars, which can be used as efficient and effective adsorbents for CTC removal from waste-water. Compared with raw pinewood, SBB and CBB were considered as alternative materials to remove antibiotics from aqueous environments.