Study on the adsorption performance of amoxicillin by hydrothermally modified coconut shell activated carbon

Abstract

BACKGROUNDUtilizing biowaste derived carbon materials to remediate antibiotic‐rich wastewater has considerable ecological significance in the broader ecological cycle. In this study, coconut shell activated carbon was modified using KOH hydrothermal method, and the influence of modified coconut shell activated carbon on the adsorption of amoxicillin at different particle sizes and treatment temperatures was investigated. In addition, the adsorption kinetics of amoxicillin on different modified coconut shell activated carbon was also studied.RESULTSThe study found that unmodified coconut shell activated carbon itself had a certain adsorption capacity for amoxicillin, with a maximum adsorption capacity of 22.43 mg/g. After hydrothermal‐alkali modification, the adsorption capacity of coconut shell activated carbon for amoxicillin was greatly improved, with an adsorption capacity increase of 221%. In addition, the adsorption kinetic fitting results showed that the adsorption process of amoxicillin on coconut shell activated carbon was more consistent with the pseudo‐second‐order kinetic model.CONCLUSIONThe optimal modification condition for coconut shell activated carbon is to treat coconut shell activated carbon with a particle size of 80‐120 mesh at 160°C. The findings of this study could offer a green and environmentally sustainable approach for amoxicillin‐contaminated wastewater treatment, and could also provide a certain theoretical basis for the application of biowaste resources in organic wastewater treatment.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.