Adsorption Mechanisms for Antibiotic Removal in Aqueous Environments

Antibiotic residues in natural and engineered water systems pose a growing threat to public health and ecological balance. Adsorption has emerged as a versatile and cost-effective process to capture a wide range of antibiotic molecules from wastewater, surface water and aquaculture effluents. A myriad of adsorbents—including activated carbons, biochars, graphene derivatives, metal oxides and porous frameworks—has been engineered to exploit non-covalent forces such as π-π stacking, electrostatic attraction, hydrogen bonding and van der Waals interactions. Surface functionalisation, pore structure tuning and composite assembly all serve to enhance uptake capacity, selectivity and regeneration performance. Quantitative insight into adsorption equilibria is gained from isotherm models (Langmuir, Freundlich), while kinetic schemes (pseudo-first- and pseudo-second-order) inform on rate-limiting steps such as film diffusion or intra-particle transport. Advances in membrane incorporation and magnetic separation further facilitate practical deployment. Together, these developments underpin scalable strategies for safeguarding water quality and mitigating the spread of antimicrobial resistance on a global scale.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have explored lignin-based crosslinked adsorbents with tunable carboxymethylation, revealing synergistic capture of fluoroquinolone antibiotics via electrostatic attraction, π-π electron-donor–acceptor interactions and hydrogen bonds, accompanied by rapid kinetics and excellent regeneration. Developments in cellulose nanofibril–graphene oxide aerogels demonstrate interconnected three-dimensional networks that harness π-π, p–π and electrostatic forces for high-capacity removal across multiple antibiotic classes, sustaining performance over repeated cycles. Layered graphene oxide–activated carbon membranes with engineered interstitial nanochannels achieve near-complete tetracycline removal, driven by tailored pore architectures and surface functional groups, highlighting the importance of structural design in maximising adsorption efficiency.

Adsorption Mechanisms for Antibiotic Removal in Aqueous Environments publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in adsorption mechanisms for antibiotic removal in aqueous environments across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Adsorbent: Solid material onto which antibiotic molecules accumulate during treatment.

Adsorption isotherm: Equilibrium relationship between solute concentration and adsorbent uptake at a fixed temperature.

π-π interactions: Non-covalent stacking forces between aromatic rings of adsorbent and antibiotic molecules.

Electrostatic attraction: Coulombic force between charged adsorbent surfaces and ionic forms of antibiotics.

Langmuir model: Mathematical description of monolayer adsorption onto a homogeneous surface with finite sites.

Pseudo-second-order kinetics: Rate model assuming adsorption rate is proportional to the square of the number of unoccupied sites.

References

1. Investigation of multiple adsorption mechanisms for efficient removal of ofloxacin from water using lignin-based adsorbents. Scientific Reports (2019).
2. 3D assembly based on 2D structure of Cellulose Nanofibril/Graphene Oxide Hybrid Aerogel for Adsorptive Removal of Antibiotics in Water. Scientific Reports (2017).
3. Effective Removal of Tetracycline Antibiotics from Water using Hybrid Carbon Membranes. Scientific Reports (2017).
4. Core–shell TiO 2 @C ultralong nanotubes with enhanced adsorption of antibiotics. Journal of Materials Chemistry A (2019).
5. ZIF-8-Derived Hollow Carbon for Efficient Adsorption of Antibiotics. Nanomaterials (2019).
6. Removal of Tetracycline Pollutants by Adsorption and Magnetic Separation Using Reduced Graphene Oxide Decorated with α-Fe2O3 Nanoparticles. Nanomaterials (2019).