Application of Rice Husk and Rice Straw Biochar in Decontamination of Waste Streams

Application of Rice Husk and Rice Straw Biochar in Decontamination of Waste Streams | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Application of Rice Husk and Rice Straw Biochar in Decontamination of Waste Streams Eman ElSayed, Faisal Shahin, Bassim E. Abbassi, Ramesh P. Rudra, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8991890/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 5 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Biochar from rice residues was investigated as a low cost material to remediate heavy metals and female sex hormones in wastewater. Therefore, the biomass including rice husk and rice straw were used in the production of biochar at 340, 400 and 500 °C. In this study, continuous flow adsorption columns packed with rice derived biochars were used to evaluate the removal efficiency of six heavy metals and three hormones at different operating conditions. Then effluent samples were collected and analyzed for each type of biochar. Besides, the spent biochars were examined by thermogravimetric analysis and surface morphology to assess the weight loss for biochar. Results showed that the adsorption potential of biochar was significantly influenced by the hydraulic retention time, type of biochar and carbonization temperature. Rice straw derived biochar had a higher adsorption capacity and lower ash content compared to rice husk biochar. At flow rate of 1mL/min, sorption capacity of heavy metals indicated the order Fe > Pb > Cu > Cd > Zn > Cr. Additionally, after seven hours of continuous flow in rice straw derived biochar at 500 °C, the concentrations of 17-ß estradiol, estrone, and progesterone were decreased by 78, 75 and 99%, respectively. Therefore, rice straw derived biochar could be a feasible renewable tool for wastewater remediation. Heavy metals hormones wastewater biochar removal agricultural waste adsorption Full Text Supplementary Files Highlights.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Major revisions 29 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 28 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 28 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 03 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 27 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8991890","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":613865783,"identity":"59315503-5e4e-4273-a01c-038f2a2c6177","order_by":0,"name":"Eman ElSayed","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA90lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFACxgYgIcHAz8zY/uMDkMnGTqwWyfbmA5IzQFqYibXM4MyxBGkeEIuQFn6xw80ffuZY5DPcyDEwtvm1TZ6PmYHxw8cc3FokZye2SfZuk7BsnJFjkJzbd9uwjZmBWXLmNjzuuZ3YxsC7TcKAWSLH4HBuz21GoBY2Zl48WuxvJzZ//AvUwiaRY9hs2XPbnqAWA+nEBmmQLTw8x5KZGX4ALSWkRQKoRloWqEWCvfkYY2/D7eQ2ZsZmvH7hn53++OPbbXUG9ocZ2xh+/LltO7+9+eCHj3i0oAKgLgZo5BIN/pCieBSMglEwCkYKAAAZ506j1ahC7gAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7032-7207","institution":"University of Guelph - Guelph Campus: University of Guelph","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eman","middleName":"","lastName":"ElSayed","suffix":""},{"id":613865784,"identity":"a3d252ea-72b9-4872-8b1b-e9ef18e09b6b","order_by":1,"name":"Faisal Shahin","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Guelph - Guelph Campus: University of Guelph","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Faisal","middleName":"","lastName":"Shahin","suffix":""},{"id":613865785,"identity":"12421552-dc12-4573-87d1-a08e149684a9","order_by":2,"name":"Bassim E. 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Therefore, the biomass including rice husk and rice straw were used in the production of biochar at 340, 400 and 500 °C. In this study, continuous flow adsorption columns packed with rice derived biochars were used to evaluate the removal efficiency of six heavy metals and three hormones at different operating conditions. Then effluent samples were collected and analyzed for each type of biochar. Besides, the spent biochars were examined by thermogravimetric analysis and surface morphology to assess the weight loss for biochar. Results showed that the adsorption potential of biochar was significantly influenced by the hydraulic retention time, type of biochar and carbonization temperature. Rice straw derived biochar had a higher adsorption capacity and lower ash content compared to rice husk biochar. At flow rate of 1mL/min, sorption capacity of heavy metals indicated the order Fe \u0026gt; Pb \u0026gt; Cu \u0026gt; Cd \u0026gt; Zn \u0026gt; Cr. Additionally, after seven hours of continuous flow in rice straw derived biochar at 500 °C, the concentrations of 17-ß estradiol, estrone, and progesterone were decreased by 78, 75 and 99%, respectively. 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