The magic of algae-based biochar: advantages, preparation, and applications

ABSTRACT

Compared with other biomass sources, the use of algae as a raw material to prepare biochar (BC) has important advantages including safety, high yield and economy. The protein content of algae cells is as high as 3.2 mg DCW/L, and the graphitic-N and N-O functional groups generated by the pyrolysis of proteins could effectively activate free radicals. Combined with the generated pore structure, the electron transfer/exchange capability was enhanced, which is conducive to improving its catalytic performance. Algae as a natural N source, the manuscript analyzed the surface properties and physicochemical properties of algae-based BC, and investigated its degradation effect on organic/inorganic pollutants in wastewater. Subsequently, the effect of nitrogen-doped BC on the adsorption/catalysis capacity was discussed. Finally, the directed preparation of algae-based BC applied in different scenarios was summarized. Algae-based BC has the property of N doping, which broadens its application efficiency in the environmental field. Overall, this manuscript reviews how to achieve efficient utilization of algae-based BC in wastewater.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

Highlights

• Toxin type and domain sequence affect accumulation of recombinant immunotoxins.

• Transient expression in plant cell packs and intact plants correlates well.

• IC50 values of toxicity correlate with the cell surface receptor concentration

Keywords:

• Algal biomass
• carbon neutrality
• biomass reuse
• environmental protection
• sewage treatment

Acknowledgments

The authors are highly thankful to Beijing Key Laboratory of Fuels Cleaning and Advanced Catalytic Emission Reduction Technology/College of New Materials and Chemical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Petrochemical Technology, Beijing 102617, China

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data available on request from the authors

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, upon reasonable request.

Author contributions

Xuefei Tan: Conceptualization and drafting the manuscript; Fengfa Zhang: Data curation and original draft review; Huiwen Wang: Data curation and formal analysis; Shih-Hsin Ho: Project administration and original draft review.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (Harbin Institute of Technology) (No. 2022TS13), the Key Projects of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 2019YFC0408503), the National Science Foundation of China (No. 51961165104), Heilongjiang Province Fundamental Scientific Research Expenses of Undergraduate Universities (No. 2020CX05), Heilongjiang Province key research and development plan guidance project (GZ20210140).