SYNTHESIS OF MAGNETIC BIOCHAR MATERIALS FROM CORN COBS

Tóm tắt

Achieving ecologically sustainable development requires utilizing the added value of waste sources to synthesize functional materials. Currently, Vietnam is a country with developed agriculture, and agricultural by-products are increasing over the years. Making the most of agricultural byproducts is a difficult task for local authorities. Agricultural by-products account for a large amount of output such as straw, rice husk, and bagasse. However, the agricultural byproduct that accounts for the highest proportion is corn cobs. Due to its physical characteristics, corn cobs are difficult to decompose, leaving a large output for food processing factories. This study describes the process of converting corn cobs by pyrolysis under oxygen limitation into magnetic biochar. The described magnetic biochar can be produced by an improved pyrolysis process at 500°C using iron sulfate as a magnetic precursor and limited oxygen from scavenging gas (gas mixture ratio is 4:1 nitrogen/oxygen). Iron oxide impregnation improves heavy metal ion removal efficiency and increases adsorption capacity for application in wastewater treatment processes. Results are evaluated through material analysis methods such as SEM, FTIR, BET, XRD, and TGA. This article proposes a feasible waste filtration method to turn corn cobs into valuable materials used as effective heavy metal adsorbent.