Nano-sized hematite-assembled carbon spheres for effectively adsorbing paracetamol in water: Important role of iron

This study developed a new α-Fe(2)O(3) (hematite) nanoparticles-loaded spherical biochar (H-SB) through the direct pyrolysis of glucose-derived spherical hydrochar and FeCl(3). The optimal impregnation ratio (hydrochar and FeCl(3)) was 1/1.25 (wt/wt). H-SB was applied to remove paracetamol (PRC) from water. Results indicated that H-SB exhibited a relatively low surface area (127 m(2)/g) and total pore volume (0.089 cm(3)/g). The presence of iron particles in its surface was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy. The dominant form of iron nanoparticles (α-Fe(2)O(3)) in its surface was confirmed by X-ray powder diffraction and Raman spectrum. The crystallite size of α-Fe(2)O(3) in H-SB was 27.4 nm. The saturation magnetization of H-SB was 6.729 cmu/g. The analysis of Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that the C-O and O-H groups were mainly responsible for loading α-Fe(2)O(3) nanoparticles in its surface. The adsorption study indicated the amount of PRC adsorbed by H-SB slightly decreased within solution pH from 2 to 11. The adsorption reached a fast saturation after 120 min. The Langmuir maximum adsorption capacity of H-SB was 49.9 mg/g at 25 °C and pH 7.0. Ion-dipole interaction and π-π interaction played an important role in adsorption mechanisms, while hydrogen bonding and pore filling were minor. Therefore, H-SB can serve as a promising material for treating PRC-contaminated water streams. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at 10.1007/s11814-021-1013-z.