Preparation of Eucommia ulmoides lignin-based high-performance biochar containing sulfonic group: Synergistic pyrolysis mechanism and tetracycline hydrochloride adsorption.

Abstract In this study, the sulfonic group was introduced to prepare high-performance Eucommia ulmoides lignin-based biochar, which was used to remove tetracycline hydrochloride. The BET area (2008 m2 g-1) of sulfonated biochar was twice that of unmodified biochar. Through XRD and Raman analysis, the synergetic pyrolysis mechanism of the sulfonic group in the formation of the porous structure was discussed. Sulfonated biochar had excellent adsorption performance for tetracycline hydrochloride (Qm: 1163 mg g-1), while the adsorption performance of unmodified biochar was about only one-fourth (Qm: 277.7 mg g-1) of that. The adsorption of tetracycline hydrochloride by the sulfonated biochar was spontaneously endothermic and conformed to the Langmuir isotherm model. The adsorption process was confirmed by pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Moreover, the sulfonic group on the sulfonated biochar significantly promoted the formation of the hydrogen bond and greatly improved the adsorption performance.