Sustainable biowaste-derived carbon aerogel/MXene composite for mercury removal from water

Mercury is a major global health concern; it is widespread across all environmental media and it affects all forms of life. There is strong interest in materials that can effectively remove Hg from water. This study investigates a novel and sustainable approach for mercury removal that consist of macroporous aerogel composite derived from rice husk lignin and modified with MXene. The composite developed high specific surface area (320 m2/g) and remarkable potential for Hg2+ removal. Notably, 20 wt.% MXene modification increased the maximum adsorption capacity of the bare sorbent (lignin aerogel) from (82.4 mg Hg2+/g) to 135.8 mg Hg2+/g, which surpasses commercial adsorbents. The composite effectively removed Hg2+ even from tap water spiked with high metal concentrations (10 mg/L). These findings highlight the significance of lignin-MXene aerogels for real-world application in water purification and environmental remediation.