Physicochemical Characterization of Miscanthus and its Application in Heavy Metals Removal from Wastewaters

Miscanthus species originated in Asia and were imported into Europe and North America as ornamental plants. They are perennial rhizomatous grasses with lignified stems and present very high growth rates, even in more temperate maritime climates. This potentially abundant biomass offers benefits to many sectors and is used to an extent in energy generation applications, however, issues with regards to its physicochemical combustion characteristics currently hinder this uptake. In this work, a novel alternative application, namely its direct use of dry miscanthus (DM) plant as an adsorbent for heavy metals removal (HMR) from wastewaters, was investigated. The physical, chemical, and leaching properties of DM were analyzed using XRD, SBET, TGA, DSC, SEM-EDX, elemental analysis, halogen, and ICP techniques. Subsequently, the HMR capacity of miscanthus was studied for lead, copper, and zinc from aqueous solutions. Results showed a high percentage removal of 66%, 83%, and 88%, respectively, with the majority being removed during the first hour of the test. Overall the results show that DM plant can be effectively utilized in wastewater treatment. (C) 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers