Assessing the viability of bio-based adsorbents for PFAS removal

J.B. Roman; A.J.B. Kemperman; W.G.J. van der Meer; J.A. Wood

doi:10.1016/j.ces.2025.121215

Assessing the viability of bio-based adsorbents for PFAS removal

J.B. Roman, A.J.B. Kemperman, W.G.J. van der Meer, J.A. Wood^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Soft matter, Fluidics and Interfaces

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

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Abstract

Removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water resources is a pressing matter. This work assesses the viability of various bio-based materials for PFAS adsorption and in which scenarios they are preferable over using activated carbon. Lignin was found to be the most promising bio-based adsorbent, having adsorption capacities of 1.6, 4.3, 5.3 ng/g for PFBA, PFBS and PFOA respectively at environmentally relevant concentrations. Following this, carbonization of lignin improved the specific surface area from 5 m²/g to between 10 and 140 m²/g. Carbonization improved adsorption capacity by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude depending on the PFAS compound, which can largely be explained by the increased specific surface area. Subsequent column studies showed that the carbonized lignin performed 30 times worse than conventional activated carbon. A simple environmental impact and cost analysis showed that using the carbonized lignin is not preferable over conventional activated carbon.

Original language	English
Article number	121215
Number of pages	11
Journal	Chemical engineering science
Volume	306
Early online date	14 Jan 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ces.2025.121215
Publication status	Published - 1 Mar 2025

Keywords

UT-Hybrid-D
Bio-based
Lignin
PFAS
Water treatment
Adsorption

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title = "Assessing the viability of bio-based adsorbents for PFAS removal",

abstract = "Removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water resources is a pressing matter. This work assesses the viability of various bio-based materials for PFAS adsorption and in which scenarios they are preferable over using activated carbon. Lignin was found to be the most promising bio-based adsorbent, having adsorption capacities of 1.6, 4.3, 5.3 ng/g for PFBA, PFBS and PFOA respectively at environmentally relevant concentrations. Following this, carbonization of lignin improved the specific surface area from 5 m2/g to between 10 and 140 m2/g. Carbonization improved adsorption capacity by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude depending on the PFAS compound, which can largely be explained by the increased specific surface area. Subsequent column studies showed that the carbonized lignin performed 30 times worse than conventional activated carbon. A simple environmental impact and cost analysis showed that using the carbonized lignin is not preferable over conventional activated carbon.",

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AU - Roman, J.B.

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AU - van der Meer, W.G.J.

AU - Wood, J.A.

PY - 2025/3/1

Y1 - 2025/3/1

N2 - Removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water resources is a pressing matter. This work assesses the viability of various bio-based materials for PFAS adsorption and in which scenarios they are preferable over using activated carbon. Lignin was found to be the most promising bio-based adsorbent, having adsorption capacities of 1.6, 4.3, 5.3 ng/g for PFBA, PFBS and PFOA respectively at environmentally relevant concentrations. Following this, carbonization of lignin improved the specific surface area from 5 m2/g to between 10 and 140 m2/g. Carbonization improved adsorption capacity by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude depending on the PFAS compound, which can largely be explained by the increased specific surface area. Subsequent column studies showed that the carbonized lignin performed 30 times worse than conventional activated carbon. A simple environmental impact and cost analysis showed that using the carbonized lignin is not preferable over conventional activated carbon.

AB - Removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water resources is a pressing matter. This work assesses the viability of various bio-based materials for PFAS adsorption and in which scenarios they are preferable over using activated carbon. Lignin was found to be the most promising bio-based adsorbent, having adsorption capacities of 1.6, 4.3, 5.3 ng/g for PFBA, PFBS and PFOA respectively at environmentally relevant concentrations. Following this, carbonization of lignin improved the specific surface area from 5 m2/g to between 10 and 140 m2/g. Carbonization improved adsorption capacity by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude depending on the PFAS compound, which can largely be explained by the increased specific surface area. Subsequent column studies showed that the carbonized lignin performed 30 times worse than conventional activated carbon. A simple environmental impact and cost analysis showed that using the carbonized lignin is not preferable over conventional activated carbon.

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Assessing the viability of bio-based adsorbents for PFAS removal

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Keywords

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