Efficient removal of arsenic from groundwater using iron oxide nanoneedle array-decorated biochar fibers with high Fe utilization and fast adsorption kinetics

Abstract Although Fe-based biochar adsorbents are attractive for removing arsenic from water due to their advantages of costing little and being producible at a large scale, the practical applications of these granular adsorbents are mainly limited by low Fe utilization and slow adsorption kinetics. In this study, iron oxide nanoneedle array-decorated biochar fibers (Fe-NN/BFs) adsorbents have been prepared through a simple hydrothermal reaction. The vertical growth of iron oxide nanoneedle arrays on the surface of biochar fibers maximizes Fe utilization and shortens As diffusion distance, thereby increasing As removal kinetics and capacity. Batch experiments show that the adsorption capacities of Fe-NN/BFs for As(V) and As(III) reach to 93.94 and 70.22 mg/g-Fe at pH 7.0, respectively. As(V) levels (275 μg/L) in groundwater are rapidly reduced (less than 5 min) to below 10 μg/L using Fe-NN/BFs (1 g/L) at pH 6.7. Similar As(III) levels can be reduced to below 10 μg/L within 30 min by Fe-NN/BFs (1.5 g/L). In fixed-bed experiments, the treatment volumes of As(V) and As(III) spiked groundwater reach to 2900 BV (26.2 L) and 2500 BV (22.6 L), respectively, using two columns packed with Fe-NN/BFs in tandem (C0 = 275 μg/L, 2 g of adsorbents in each column). When the As concentration in the influent is reduced to 50 μg/L (As(V): 25 μg/L + As(III): 25 μg/L), the treatment volume using one column reaches up to 11000 BV. The Fe-NN/BFs packed column can be easily regenerated and reused many times. After four regenerations, the treatment volume of As(V) and As(III) were reduced by 10.4% and 22.8%, respectively.