Tailored activated carbons from biomass components for aqueous PFAS adsorption

Delaney E. Clouse, Jianzhou He, Dengjun Wang, Virginia A. Davis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The US Environmental Protection Agency recently released strict regulations limiting per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water. In response, this study used activated carbons derived from biomass waste components for effective water treatment. By varying the composition of feedstock mixtures, perfluorobutane sulfonic acid adsorption efficiencies ranged from 31 to 98 %, indicating that biomass structure influences PFAS sorption. Activated carbon from a feedstock mixture of 50 % lignin, 35 % cellulose nanocrystals, and 15 % cellulose nanofibers achieved over 98 % removal of three regulated and four unregulated PFAS compounds without requiring additives or surface functionalization.

Original languageEnglish
Article number138050
JournalMaterials Letters
Volume384
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 1 2025
Externally publishedYes

Scopus Subject Areas

  • General Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Mechanical Engineering

Keywords

  • Activated carbon
  • Biomass waste
  • PFAS
  • Water treatment

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