Sustainable Removal of Phenolic Compound from Petroleum Industry Wastewater Using KMnO4-Modified Sawdust-Based Biochar

Abstract

Produced water from oil and gas industries often contains phenol, heavy metals and other pollutants detrimental to the environment and ecosystem. Phenol is released into the environment due to insufficient industrial wastewater management procedures. This study looks into the adsorptive performance of prepared KMnO4-modified sawdust-based biochar (PMB) for phenol uptake from the liquid phase. Characterisation analysis with X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was carried out to elucidate the morphology and physico-chemical features of the prepared biochar. The performance of PMB for phenol entrapment was investigated under varied dosage, temperature, time, and initial concentration. The extent of phenol removal was influenced significantly by all parameters. The outcome of the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm methods revealed that the Langmuir approach fits into the adsorption equilibrium with 134.91 mg/g maximum capacity, establishing the domination of the monolayer sorption type. The kinetic analysis indicates the best fittings for the pseudo-second-order model, suggesting chemisorption as controlled mechanism. The exothermic and spontaneous nature of phenol uptake by PMB was revealed by thermodynamic analysis. The outcomes of this study revealed that PMB has high adsorption capacity and sustainable potential towards the separation of phenolic compounds from contaminated petroleum industry-produced water.