Adsorptive purification of crude glycerol by sewage sludge-derived activated carbon prepared by chemical activation with H3PO4, K2CO3 and KOH

Abstract Adsorptive purification of crude glycerol (CG) from a used-oil/methanol utilizing biodiesel production plant was performed using sewage sludge-derived activated carbons (ACs) at a laboratory scale and ambient conditions. The effect of different chemical activating agents (H 3 PO 4 , K 2 CO 3 and KOH) and carbonization temperatures (500–900 °C) on the surface properties of the obtained sludge-derived ACs, as well as the adsorption efficiency of impurities from pre-treated crude glycerol (PTCG), was explored. The results showed that both the activating agent type and the carbonization temperature affected the textural properties and the surface chemistry of the sludge-derived AC. The oxygen-containing surface functional groups, particularly the carbonyl groups, as well as the textural properties played a more important role in the adsorptive purification of CG. Among the as-prepared sludge-derived AC, the activated carbon impregnated by KOH (KOH-AC) carbonized at 800 °C (KOH-800AC) exhibited suitable surface properties to enhance the purity of the PTCG up to 93.0 wt.% when using an AC dose of 67 g/L, 2 h adsorption time and a shaking rate of 250 rpm. The adsorption of either ash or other contaminants via the sludge-derived AC followed the Langmuir isotherm.

[1]  Mali Hunsom,et al.  Purification of crude glycerol derived from waste used-oil methyl ester plant , 2010 .

[2]  Vincent G. Gomes,et al.  Activated carbon from chickpea husk by chemical activation with K2CO3: preparation and characterization , 2002 .

[3]  G. Yu,et al.  Diesel fuel desulfurization with hydrogen peroxide promoted by formic acid and catalyzed by activated carbon , 2005 .

[4]  Andreas Acrivos,et al.  Pore- and Solid-Diffusion Kinetics in Fixed-Bed Adsorption under Constant-Pattern Conditions , 1966 .

[5]  R. Vidic,et al.  Impact of Oxygen-Containing Surface Functional Groups on Activated Carbon Adsorption of Phenols , 1997 .

[6]  M. Elkady,et al.  Treatment of oil–water emulsions by adsorption onto activated carbon, bentonite and deposited carbon , 2011 .

[7]  Ivan M. Uzunov,et al.  Kinetics of oil and oil products adsorption by carbonized rice husks , 2011 .

[8]  E. Marañón,et al.  Removal of residual phenols from coke wastewater by adsorption. , 2007, Journal of hazardous materials.

[9]  P. Carrott,et al.  Pore size control in activated carbons obtained by pyrolysis under different conditions of chemically impregnated cork , 2006 .

[10]  T. L. Ooi,et al.  CRUDE GLYCERINE RECOVERY FROM GLYCEROL RESIDUE WASTE FROM A PALM KERNEL OIL METHYL ESTER PLANT , 2001 .

[11]  Meisam Tabatabaei,et al.  High quality potassium phosphate production through step-by-step glycerol purification: a strategy to economize biodiesel production. , 2012, Bioresource technology.

[12]  F. Rodríguez-Reinoso,et al.  Porosity in granular carbons activated with phosphoric acid , 1995 .

[13]  Kevin Kendall,et al.  Steam reforming of biodiesel by-product to make renewable hydrogen. , 2008, Bioresource technology.

[14]  Marit Jagtoyen,et al.  Activated carbons from yellow poplar and white oak by H3PO4 activation , 1998 .

[15]  Chia-Yun Chen,et al.  Comparative adsorption of Cu(II), Zn(II), and Pb(II) ions in aqueous solution on the crosslinked chitosan with epichlorohydrin. , 2008, Journal of hazardous materials.

[16]  F. Schaffner,et al.  Bipolar electrodialysis for glycerin production from diester wastes , 2003 .

[17]  Duane T. Johnson,et al.  The glycerin glut: Options for the value‐added conversion of crude glycerol resulting from biodiesel production , 2007 .

[18]  J. Sunarso,et al.  Equilibrium and kinetic studies in adsorption of heavy metals using biosorbent: a summary of recent studies. , 2009, Journal of hazardous materials.

[19]  N. Graham,et al.  Physical and chemical properties study of the activated carbon made from sewage sludge. , 2002, Waste management.

[20]  Manal Ismail,et al.  Purification of crude glycerol from transesterification rbd palm oil over homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts for the biolubricant preparation , 2010 .

[21]  C. Solisio,et al.  Removal of exhausted oils by adsorption on mixed Ca and Mg oxides. , 2002, Water research.

[22]  Fu-Shen Zhang,et al.  Mercury removal from water using activated carbons derived from organic sewage sludge. , 2005, Water research.

[23]  A. Lua,et al.  Characteristics of activated carbons prepared from pistachio-nut shells by potassium hydroxide activation , 2003 .

[24]  Hartmut Fuess,et al.  Heterogeneously catalysed partial oxidation of acrolein to acrylic acid--structure, function and dynamics of the V-Mo-W mixed oxides. , 2007, Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP.

[25]  Abdul Latif Ahmad,et al.  Residual oil and suspended solid removal using natural adsorbents chitosan, bentonite and activated carbon: A comparative study , 2005 .

[26]  Mohammad J. Taherzadeh,et al.  Strategies for enhancing fermentative production of glycerol—a review , 2002 .

[27]  M. Lillo-Ródenas,et al.  High surface area materials prepared from sewage sludge-based precursors. , 2006, Chemosphere.

[28]  Johnathan E. Holladay,et al.  Top Value Added Chemicals From Biomass. Volume 1 - Results of Screening for Potential Candidates From Sugars and Synthesis Gas , 2004 .

[29]  A. Varma,et al.  Selective Oxidation of Glycerol to Dihydroxyacetone over Pt−Bi/C Catalyst: Optimization of Catalyst and Reaction Conditions , 2010 .

[30]  A. Borgna,et al.  Desulfurization of diesel fuels by selective adsorption on activated carbons: Competitive adsorption of polycyclic aromatic sulfur heterocycles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons , 2011 .

[31]  Xiaoyi Liang,et al.  Preparation of polystyrene-based activated carbon spheres with high surface area and their adsorption to dibenzothiophene , 2009 .

[32]  Mali Hunsom,et al.  Sequential-refining of crude glycerol derived from waste used-oil methyl ester plant via a combined , 2011 .

[33]  Á. Pérez,et al.  Purification of glycerol/water solutions from biodiesel synthesis by ion exchange: sodium and chloride removal. Part II , 2009 .

[34]  M. A. Hassan,et al.  Adsorption of crude oil from aqueous solution by hydrogel of chitosan based polyacrylamide prepared by radiation induced graft polymerization. , 2011, Journal of hazardous materials.

[35]  R. T. Yang,et al.  Desulfurization of liquid fuels by adsorption on carbon-based sorbents and ultrasound-assisted sorbent regeneration. , 2007, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[36]  A. Lua,et al.  Surface Functional Groups on Oil-Palm-Shell Adsorbents Prepared by H3PO4 and KOH Activation and their Effects on Adsorptive Capacity , 2003 .

[37]  Wimolporn Wainipee,et al.  The effect of crude oil on arsenate adsorption on goethite. , 2010, Water research.

[38]  S. Adhikari,et al.  Hydrogen production from glycerin by steam reforming over nickel catalysts , 2008 .

[39]  Á. Pérez,et al.  Purification of glycerol/water solutions from biodiesel synthesis by ion exchange: sodium removal Part I , 2009 .

[40]  A. Ramiro,et al.  Thermal regeneration of activated carbon saturated with p-nitrophenol , 2004 .

[41]  Maria Angeles Lillo-Rodenas,et al.  Understanding chemical reactions between carbons and NaOH and KOH: An insight into the chemical activation mechanism , 2003 .

[42]  J. Tascón,et al.  Synthetic carbons activated with phosphoric acid: I. Surface chemistry and ion binding properties , 2002 .

[43]  T. Otowa,et al.  Development of KOH activated high surface area carbon and its application to drinking water purification , 1997 .

[44]  M. Guerrero-Pérez,et al.  Recent Inventions in Glycerol Transformations and Processing , 2009 .

[45]  B. Hameed,et al.  Adsorption of residue oil from palm oil mill effluent using powder and flake chitosan: equilibrium and kinetic studies. , 2005, Water research.

[46]  F. Skopal,et al.  Treatment of glycerol phase formed by biodiesel production. , 2010, Bioresource technology.

[47]  Zhengxiang Wang,et al.  Glycerol production by microbial fermentation: a review. , 2001, Biotechnology advances.

[48]  Chun-I Lin,et al.  Adsorption kinetics of β-carotene from soy oil using regenerated clay , 2004 .