The one-step synthesis of Fe-N co-doped peony pod-based porous carbon for the removal of tetracycline

The peony pod is a component of the cash crop oil peony (Paeonia suffruticosa Andr.), it accounts for more than half of the quality of the peony seed. However, indiscriminate disposal leads to resource waste. In addition, the pollution caused by the overuse of antibiotics and the evolution of resistance have been a conundrum. There is an urgent need to find a pollutant removal method that conforms to the current concept of sustainable development. In this study, the biomass porous carbon (PC N, Fe -0.5) was prepared and modified by one-step synthesis method using the by-product peony pod as carbon precursor, urea as nitrogen source, and steel slag as magnetic material. The utilization of biomass waste solved resources waste caused by the unreasonable disposal of agricultural solid waste. The doped materials were cheap and easy to obtain, and they improved the structure and function of porous carbon. The maximum adsorption capacity of PC N,Fe -0.5 reached 726.4 mg·g −1 with 100 mg·L −1 of tetracycline (TC). The adsorption mechanism was summarized as pore filling, van der Waals force, π-π EDA, surface complexation, hydrogen bonding and chemisorption . A low-budget tetracycline (TC) removal method was explored through the investigation on the adsorption performance and recovery capability of PC N,Fe -0.5, which was also conducive to realizing the recycling of biomass waste and industrial waste.