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BR-102024018181-A2 - Fermented biomass from filamentous fungi as an adsorbent for removing textile dyes from wastewater.

BR102024018181A2BR 102024018181 A2BR102024018181 A2BR 102024018181A2BR-102024018181-A2

Abstract

This invention relates to the use of a method for treating dyes present in textile industry wastewater, based on a biotechnological adsorbent agent. The agent employed in this treatment consists of agro-industrial waste fermented by filamentous fungi and has improved pore size and surface area for greater adsorption. The biotechnological adsorbent agent can be used to remove dyes of different classes and colors, such as azo, anthraquinone, phthalocyanine, and indigoid, in batch or column systems, under different conditions of pH, temperature, dye concentration, adsorbent mass, and contact time. The claimed adsorbent has a high dye adsorption capacity, being able to remove up to 95% of them, with an adsorptive capacity of 12 mg/g. The use of raw material considered waste and the low operational costs associated with the solid-state fermentation employed propose a sustainable, efficient, and economical alternative for the concomitant treatment of textile industry effluents and recycling of agro-industrial waste.

Inventors

  • MÁRCIO DA SILVA SOUZA
  • MARCELO FRANCO
  • IGOR CARVALHO FONTES SAMPAIO
  • ISABELA VIANA LOPES DE MOURA
  • IASNAIA MARIA DE CARVALHO TAVARES
  • ADRIANO AGUIAR MENDES
  • GABRIEL LUCAS SILVA DE JESUS
  • ALISSON SANTOS DA SILVA QUINTO
  • MARISE SILVA DE CARVALHO

Assignees

  • UNIVERSIDADE ESTADUAL DE SANTA CRUZ

Dates

Publication Date
20260317
Application Date
20240904

Claims (11)

  1. 1. BIOMASS FERMENTED FROM FILAMENTOUS FUNGI AS AN ADSORBENT FOR THE REMOVAL OF TEXTILE DYES FROM WASTEWATER, characterized by the fermentation being carried out using any filamentous fungus, with inoculum concentrations between 10⁶ and 10⁶, but preferably 10⁶ spores/g of substrate.
  2. 2. BIOMASS, according to claim 1, characterized in that the fermentation utilizes agro-industrial residues as a substrate source for fermentation, such as cocoa bean residues, sugarcane bagasse, rice husks, wheat bran, etc.
  3. 3. BIOMASS, according to claims 1 and 2, characterized by carrying out fermentation under aerobic conditions, in fixed-bed, fluidized-bed, packed-bed bioreactors, etc., for a variable period of time, depending on the type of substrate and fungus.
  4. 4. BIOMASS, according to claims 1, 2 and 3, characterized by using fermented biomass as an adsorbent for the removal of textile dyes from wastewater or effluents, which may originate from the textile industry or other sources.
  5. 5. ADSORBENT, according to claim 4, characterized in that the dye removal efficiency is between 50 and 100%, more preferably 95%.
  6. 6. ADSORBENT, according to claims 1, 4, and 5, characterized by removing dyes of different classes, such as azo, anthraquinone, phthalocyanine, indigoid, etc., and of different colors, such as red, blue, green, yellow, etc.
  7. 7. ADSORBENT, according to claims 1, 4, 5 and 6, characterized by performing adsorption in batch, fed-batch or continuous flow systems, in minutes, depending on the type of dye to be removed and adsorbent biomass.
  8. 8. ADSORBENT, according to claims 1, 4, 5, 6 and 7, characterized in that the adsorption of dyes occurs at different pH parameters (4 to 10, preferably 7 when dealing with the removal of methylene blue), temperature (10 to 35 °C, preferably 25 °C), dye concentration in the effluent or wastewater (from 0.5 mg to 125 mg.L-1), adsorbent mass per dye mass from 1:250 to 2:250, preferably 1:250 when dealing with methylene blue at 50 mg.L-1.
  9. 9. ADSORBENT, according to claims 1, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, characterized in that the adsorption efficiency can be determined spectrophotometrically, by calculating the percentage of dye removal and the biomass adsorption capacity.
  10. 10. ADSORBENT, according to claims 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, characterized by recovering and regenerating the fermented biomass after adsorption, by washing with water, desorption with solvents, air drying, or other regeneration method, to remove the adsorbed dye and restore the adsorptive capacity of the biomass with at least 10% of the adsorptive capacity after three removal cycles.
  11. 11. FERMENTED BIOMASS FROM FILAMENTOUS FUNGI AS AN ADSORBENT FOR THE REMOVAL OF TEXTILE DYES FROM WASTEWATER, according to claims 1, 2, 3 and 4, characterized by comprising the following steps: Step A - fermentation of agro-industrial waste by filamentous fungi for the production of fermented biomass; Step B - use of the fermented biomass as an adsorbent for the removal of textile dyes from wastewater; Step C - recovery, regeneration and reuse of the biomass fermented by filamentous fungi after adsorption.

Description

Field of invention [001] The present invention relates to a method for producing adsorbents for removing dyes from textile industry wastewater, using lignocellulosic biomass enhanced by biological processing. [002] More specifically, lignocellulosic biomass is transformed into a biotechnological adsorbent through solid-state fermentation by filamentous fungi in order to increase its pores and surface area for the dye adsorption process. [003] Specifically, the biotechnological adsorbent agent allows up to 95% adsorption and removal of dyes such as methylene blue present in aqueous solutions. [004] The developed biotechnological adsorbent agent makes it possible to reduce the pollutant load and toxicity of textile effluents. Fundamentals of the invention [005] The textile industries play a significant role in the global economy. In 2023 they generated approximately $3 trillion in revenue, contributing 2% to world exports and employing 17% of the global workforce. However, this activity also has a high environmental impact, being responsible for more than 10% of industrial water consumption and 20% of industrial effluents worldwide. [006] Dyes are organic compounds that can adhere to natural or synthetic surfaces to impart color. In the textile industry, dyes can be classified by fiber type, such as dyes for nylon, cotton, polyester, etc.; by application methods to the substrate, i.e., by the way they are fixed to the fiber; and according to their chemical structure. Structurally, the dye molecule used for dyeing textile fibers is divided into two distinct parts: a chromophore group, also known as azo, anthraquinone, triarylmethane. [007] To treat textile effluents containing dyes, there are several processes that can remove these substances. The most common are physicochemical processes, which involve techniques such as adsorption, coagulation, precipitation, chemical degradation, electrochemistry, and photochemistry. After these processes, the effluents still undergo biological treatment. [008] Biological treatment aims at the decolorization and degradation of dyes present in effluents. Several species of microorganisms have been used to degrade various types of dyes. This methodology offers advantages such as relatively low implementation and operating costs and possible mineralization of substrates with the formation of byproducts that are not toxic. However, it is sensitive to variations in load and composition, requires more space and treatment time, and produces biosolids and gases that must be managed after treatment. [009] Although chemical treatments for colored effluents are simple, such as the widely used chemical oxidation, they have low efficiency in insoluble and dispersive dyes, formation of byproducts that can be toxic and require additional treatment, and high cost. [0010] Physical methods, such as ultra- and nano-filtration, and reverse osmosis, use synthetic membranes that form a selective barrier between two phases. Their disadvantages include the high cost of reagents for precipitation and pH adjustments, the formation and increased restrictions on the disposal of sludge containing pollutants, and the high concentration of cations that remain in the supernatant, requiring subsequent treatment. [0011] Another important treatment method is adsorption, which consists of separating the components of a mixture by mass transfer, with one compound diluted in a fluid phase and the other a solid adsorbent. An efficient adsorbent must be insoluble, stable, and contain active groups that interact with the pollutant to be removed. The economic viability of the process is based on low energy consumption and the use of low-cost adsorbent matrices. [0012] Agro-industrial waste stands out as a low-cost material that can be used as adsorbents. Materials such as orange peel, green coconut fiber, sugarcane bagasse, and cocoa bean shell residue have a porous morphology, high organic matter content, and a large amount of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. These latter biopolymers are rich in functional groups, carboxyl, hydroxyl, carbonyl, among others, responsible for adsorption and which can be applied for dye removal. [0013] Lignocellulosic materials can be used as supports for new adsorbents or used in their natural state or fermented by filamentous fungi as a way to modify their structure and physicochemical properties. Filamentous fungi can grow in solid-state fermentation mode on a variety of agro-industrial residues, secreting enzymes that degrade these materials and presenting hyphae that penetrate the solid matrix, modifying its surface and porosity. [0014] Thus, the use of low-cost and highly available fermented agro-industrial waste proves to be a sustainable approach for removing dyes present in textile industry wastewater. The claimed invention is the first to use fermented biomass as an improved adsorptive medium for dye removal from the textile industry. Finally, the invention also propose