Research on the application of nanocellulose in adsorbent materials

As environmental pollution problems become increasingly serious, the treatment of heavy metal ions, organic dyes and micropollutants has become an important topic in the field of water treatment. Among many adsorbent materials, nanocellulose ( Nanocellulose ) has gradually become a hot topic in the field of adsorbent materials due to its natural renewable, large specific surface area, strong surface modification, and non-toxic and degradable properties. This article will focus on the application value of nanocellulose in adsorbent materials and specific application examples.

1. Advantages of nanocellulose as adsorbents

characteristic	Application Meaning
High specific surface area	Provide more adsorption sites and improve adsorption capacity
Rich in surface hydroxyl groups	Easy to chemically modify, introducing functional groups (carboxyl, amino, thiol, etc.)
Biodegradability	Environmentally friendly, no secondary pollution after use
Good dispersion	Can be used to prepare adsorbent materials in various forms such as hydrogels and composite films.

2. Adsorption objects and mechanisms

Nanocellulose can adsorb a variety of pollutants through various mechanisms such as physical adsorption, charge exchange, coordination complexation, etc., including:

1. Heavy metal ions

Such as Pb²⁺ 、Cd²⁺ 、Cu²⁺ 、Cr⁶⁺ 、Hg²⁺ etc.

Mechanism : The surface carboxyl or amino groups form coordination bonds with metal ions, and the adsorption efficiency is high;

Modification methods : oxidation (introduction of carboxylic groups), amination (introduction of amino groups), thiolation, etc.

2. Organic dyes

Such as methylene blue, Congo red, rhodamine B , etc.

Mechanism : electrostatic action, π-π action, hydrophobic interaction;

Composite materials : often compounded with graphene oxide ( GO ), zeolites, and MOFs to improve performance.

3. Drug residues and pesticides

It also exhibits good adsorption capacity for sulfonamides and benzene pesticides, which are suitable for repair of micro-polluted water bodies.

3. Typical material forms

1.

Nanocellulose hydrogel adsorbent

It has a soft shape and a three-dimensional network structure;

The adsorption capacity is large and can be used for the rapid removal of pollutants in water bodies;

Recyclable and recyclable.

2. Composite film adsorption material

Composite nanocellulose with activated carbon, polymer or metal organic frames ( MOFs ) and other materials;

It is applied in flowing water treatment systems and has high stability.

3. Functional powder adsorbent

After surface modification, it is dried to form a powder;

Suitable for batch processing or mixing and stirring adsorption processes.

IV. Case examples

Material Type	Modification method		Adsorbent objects	Adsorption capacity ( mg/g)
Oxidized nanocellulose		TEMPO oxidation method	Pb²⁺	150–200
Carboxylated nanocellulose hydrogel		Introducing carboxyl groups	methylene blue	400–600
Nanocellulose /GO composite membrane		π-π conjugated complex	Rodamming B	250–350
Aminolated nanocellulose		Ethylene diamine modification	Cr⁶⁺	120–180

V. Regeneration and reuse

Nanocellulose adsorbents usually have good renewability. Commonly used regeneration methods include:

Pickling or alkaline washing (for metal ion desorption);

Eluting of organic solvents (used for organic matter such as dyes);

Simple drying / rinsing (for reuse).

Studies have shown that high-quality nanocellulose adsorbents can be reused 3-5 times, and their performance decline is not significant.

6. Development prospects

With the strengthening of green environmental protection policies and the reduction of nanomaterial preparation costs, nanocellulose adsorbent materials have broad application prospects in industrial wastewater treatment, domestic sewage purification, and emergency treatment of sudden pollution incidents. Future research directions mainly include:

Multifunctional composite material development;

Intelligent responsive adsorbent design ( pH response, magnetic response);

Large-scale production and industrial application of adsorbents.

Conclusion

As an emerging environmentally friendly material, nanocellulose has shown great potential in the field of adsorbents. Through reasonable surface modification and composite design, nanocellulose adsorbents can achieve efficient, green and sustainable pollutant removal, helping the water treatment industry to move towards a new era of high performance and low carbon development.

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