Adsorptive Recovery of Cd(II) Ions with the Use of Post-Production Waste Generated in the Brewing Industry

Tomasz Kalak, Jakub Walczak and Malgorzata Ulewicz
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Tomasz Kalak: Department of Industrial Products and Packaging Quality, Institute of Quality Science, Poznań University of Economics and Business, 61-875 Poznań, Poland
Jakub Walczak: Department of Industrial Products and Packaging Quality, Institute of Quality Science, Poznań University of Economics and Business, 61-875 Poznań, Poland
Malgorzata Ulewicz: Faculty of Civil Engineering, Częstochowa University of Technology, 42-200 Częstochowa, Poland

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 17, 1-19

Abstract: Post-production waste generated in the brewing industry was used to analyze the possibility of Cd(II) ion recovery in biosorption processes. Brewer’s grains (BG), which are waste products from beer manufacturing processes, are a promising material that can be reused for biosorption. The biomass contains appropriate functional groups from fats, proteins, raw fibers, amino acids, carbohydrates and starch, showing a strong affinity for binding metal ions and their removal from wastewater. The biosorbent material was characterized by several research methods, such as particle size distribution, elemental composition and mapping using SEM-EDX analysis, specific surface area and pore volume (BET, BJH), thermogravimetry, electrokinetic zeta potential, SEM morphology and FT-IR spectrometry. Initial and equilibrium pH, adsorbent dosage, initial metal concentration and contact time were parameters examined in the research. The highest biosorption efficiency was obtained at a level of 93.9%. Kinetics analysis of the processes and sorption isotherms were also carried out. Based on the conducted experiments, it was found that this material has binding properties in relation to Cd(II) ions and can be used for wastewater treatment purposes, being a low-cost biosorbent. This research studies are in line with current global trends of circular and sustainable economies.

Keywords: water quality; brewing industry; residual brewer’s grains; biosorption; Cd(II) ions; kinetics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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