The biosorption capacity of biochar for 4-bromodiphengl ether: study of its kinetics, mechanism, and use as a carrier for immobilized bacteria

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are known as ubiquitous pollutants in ecological systems and thus pose a great threat to the health of humans and other organisms due to their bioamplification and bioaccumulation along the food chain. The present study was designed to investigate the biosorption capacity of biochar for the removal of 4-monobromodiphengl ether and its synergistic effect when used as a carrier to immobilize the 4-monobromodiphengl ether-degrading strain Sphingomonas sp. DZ3. The raw biochar material was prepared by pyrolyzing maize straw at 350 °C under oxygen-limited conditions. The maximum biosorption capacity of biochar for 4-bromodiphengl ether was determined to be 50.23 mg/L under an initial concentration of 800 mg/L at pH 7.0 and 40 °C. The data obtained from the biosorption studies were fitted successfully with the pseudo-first-order kinetic and Freundlich isotherm models. The Weber–Morris model analysis indicated that intraparticle diffusion was the limiting step in the biosorption of 4-bromodiphengl ether onto the biosorbent. The values of thermodynamic parameters △G0 were calculated as −24.61 kJ/mol (20 °C), −24.35 kJ/mol (30 °C), and −23.98 kJ/mol (40 °C), △S ⁰ was −8.45 kJ/mol/K, and △H ⁰ was 21.36 kJ/mol. The artificial neural network analysis indicated that the initial concentration appeared to be the most influential parameter on the biosorption processes. The removal rate of 4-bromodiphengl ether achieved using the biochar-microorganism system was increased by 63 and 83 % compared with the rates obtained with biochar and the strain individually, respectively. The morphology of the biochar and immobilized strain was determined using a scanning electron microscope, and information of the surface functional groups of biochar was obtained through an infrared spectra study.