Cellulose-based beads for the adsorptive removal of wastewater effluents: a review

Wastewater pollution is a major issue requiring advanced treatment methods such as nanotechnologies. In particular, nanocelluloses appear promising as adsorbents due to their elevated surface area, which can be functionalized. Here we review cellulose-based beads with focus on preparation, properties, kinetics, adsorption isotherm modeling and application for wastewater treatment, especially for the removal of metal ions and dyes. Preparation of cellulose-based beads is mainly done by the ionotropic gelation method. High adsorption capacities up to 568.62 mg g−1 for heavy metal ions and 1550.55 mg g−1 for dyes have been reported. We also discuss the regeneration capability of cellulose-based beads.