Twin-fold new methodology arising from microwave induced carbonization of newspaper waste for the adsorptive desulfurization of model oil

Abstract

Abstract The removal of sulfur from diesel is an important concern. In this context, it is vital to explore the potential of low-cost adsorbents for desulfurization. In the present study, a mesoporous carbonaceous material was produced from the newspaper waste and utilized in the removal of Dibenzothiophene (DBT) through adsorptive desulfurization. The microwave-assisted mesoporous carbon fostered π interaction with DBT molecules and augmented the adsorptive desulfurization. The synthesized mesoporous carbon is endowed with good textural properties, porosity and uniformly distributed active sites. The characterization techniques such as SEM-EDX, FT-IR, XRF, XPS and pore size measurements ascertained the desulfurization and the adsorption process gave best fit for Langmuir adsorption isotherm model following the pseudo-second-order kinetics. The regeneration studies ascertained the reusability of the adsorbent using toluene as the solvent for three adsorption-desorption cycles.