Title : Investigation of Fe, Cu impregnated seaweed biochar-based catalysts for sustainable catalysis
Abstract:
The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission declared in 2023 that pollutant levels in the Baltic Sea during the observation period (2016-2021) are poor or low in 80% of the monitored sea areas. The main factors are high concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), mercury, cadmium, and lead. Algae harvested or cultivated for human consumption must comply with the specifications set out under the food safety regulation. In algae as foods also high concentrations of contaminants may occur, but so far occurrence data have been lacking to allow the establishment of maximum levels in food, in order to protect EU consumers against the health risks from those contaminants (in particular high concentrations of heavy metals) in algae. The European Commission has issued a Recommendation (2018/646) recognising the high concentrations of arsenic, cadmium, iodine, lead, and mercury in seaweed, and also encourages the regulation of these levels. This may render seaweed growing in the Baltic Sea unfit for consumption. It is therefore worth investigating the use of seaweed as a raw material for the production of bio-based catalysts - a carbon-rich 'biochar'. Char-based catalysts generally possess a large surface area, porous structure and abundant surface functional groups after activation or functionalization. Biochar can be produced with surface areas ranging from 1.15 to 1227 m²/g (as determined by BET analysis in various studies). This study proposes a method for making iron and copper metal-supported catalysts from Baltic Sea seaweed via pyrolysis and later impregnation. Characterization involves temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), and H2 and CO chemisorption. Our research aims to introduce the possibility of iron and copper catalyst production using seaweed-derived biochar. By collecting stranded seaweeds and utilizing them to produce catalysts, this study seeks to contribute to developing sustainable solutions for marine ecosystem management and catalytic applications.
Audience Take Away:
- The potential of using seaweed-derived biochar as a catalyst and data related to its characteristics.
- Learn of a potential solution of marine ecosystem management by increasing the incentive of stranded seaweed collection.
- ???????The methods used for characterizing catalysts and their effectiveness on char-based catalysts.
- ???????The implications of the research findings for advancing the field of catalysis and contributing to the development of environmentally friendly processes.
