From waste to water savior: Fe-Mn-boosted waste-derived cellulose for sustainable tetracycline treatment

Selective removal of tetracycline (TC) from antibiotic-contaminated wastewater represents one of the most effective strategies for promoting environmentally sustainable ecosystems, given the increasing persistence of tetracycline effluents from wastewater treatment processes. Unlike conventional strategies aimed at developing adsorbents with high adsorption capacities for the removal of TC from aqueous solutions, there is a growing interest in designing and creating environmentally friendly, cost-effective adsorbents made from readily available waste materials. Hence, an environmental-friendly adsorbent prepared from newspaper waste as source of cellulose and covering provided cellulose with Fe and Mn cluster nanostructures (FeMn NCs/ waste-derived cellulose) through a series of universally applicable methods. From a selectivity standpoint, prepared adsorbent indicated that in the presence of competing anions have maintained TC adsorption efficiency above 80 %. Thanks to the presence of Fe and Mn NCs, which facilitate fast adsorption kinetics and enhance mass transport of TC to the active sites of the adsorbent, along with their acceptable regeneration ability (maintaining a removal efficiency of over 80 % after four cycles), the FeMn NCs/waste-derived cellulose achieved a maximum adsorption capacity for TC of 103 mg g^-1, utilizing 0.3 g L^-1 of adsorbent and 10 mg L^-1 TC. It can be inferred that enhancing porous properties, introducing various and abundant functional groups, and creating a high-alkalinity adsorption microenvironment on the surface of the adsorbent highlight the crucial role of Fe and Mn NCs. Overall, this study pioneers a promising frontier in the design of cost-effective and environmentally friendly adsorbents, showcasing remarkable potential to enhance the performance of adsorption systems across a wide range of applications.