Chemical Engineering Journal 445 (2022) 136773 Available online 4 May 2022 1385-8947/© 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Enhanced adsorption of ketoprofen and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyactic acid on Physalis peruviana fruit residue functionalized with H 2 SO 4 : Adsorption properties and statistical physics modeling Fatma Dhaouadi a , Lotf Sellaoui a, * , Sonia Taamalli b , Florent Louis b , Abderrahman El Bakali b , Michael Badawi c , Jordana Georgin d , Dison S.P. Franco d , Luis F.O. Silva d , Adri´ an Bonilla-Petriciolet e , Sami Rtimi f, * a Laboratory of Quantum and Statistical Physics, LR18ES18, Monastir University, Faculty of Sciences of Monastir, Tunisia b Universit´ e de Lille, CNRS, UMR 8522 – PC2A – PhysicoChimie des Processus de Combustion et de l’Atmosph` ere, 59000 Lille, France c Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie Th´ eoriques, UMR 7019 – CNRS, Universit´ e de Lorraine, Nancy, France d Department of Civil and Environmental. Universidad de la Costa, CUC, Calle 58 # 55–66, Barranquilla, Atl´ antico, Colombia e Instituto Tecnol´ ogico de Aguascalientes, 20256, Mexico f Global Institute for Water, Environment and Health, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland A R T I C L E INFO Keywords: Pharmaceutical compounds Herbicide Biomass functionalization Water depollution ABSTRACT In this research, a functionalization of Physalis peruviana biomass with H 2 SO 4 and its application in the adsorption of ketoprofen and 2,2-dichlorophenoxyactic acid is reported. In particular, the adsorption properties of this biomass were improved through a sulfuric acid treatment to enhance its removal performance of organic molecules. Surface chemistry of this modifed biomass was also characterized. Experimental adsorption iso- therms of these organic pollutants were determined at 298 – 328 K and pH 2. A multilayer statistical physics model was used in the data modeling to analyze the corresponding adsorption mechanism. Results showed that the endothermic multilayer adsorption of ketoprofen was a multi-molecular process where molecular aggrega- tion could be expected. On the other hand, the adsorption of 2,2-dichlorophenoxyactic acid on this function- alized biomass was multi-anchoring. Adsorption energies (ΔE 1 ) varied from 4.13 to 5.53 kJ/mol for KTP and from 7.54 to 7.96 kJ/mol for 2,4-D herbicide. These results showed that physical adsorption forces were involved in the removal of these organic molecules with this functionalized biomass because the adsorption energies < 40 kJ/mol. 1. Introduction Physalis peruviana is a perennial herb cultivated in several countries from Asia, South Africa and America [1–3]. Its taxonomy corresponds to the Solanaceae family and the genus Physalis. The edible fruit produced by this plant is commercialized in different subtropical and tropical places where a residue is generated during the fruit development [4]. It has been determined that this residue contains bioactive compounds (e. g., favonols and hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives). Therefore, it has been already employed in the popular medicine due to its anti- infammatory, immunomodulatory, diuretic, antipyretic, antimicrobial and anticancer properties [5–10]. However, an integral approach to valorize this residue implies the analysis of other alternatives for obtaining added-value products from its processing and transformation. One potential application of this residual biomass implies its application as adsorbent for facing water pollution. This study reports the application of this biomass as an adsorbent to remove ketoprofen (KTP) and 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyactic acid (2,4-D) herbicide from aqueous solution. The utilization of these organic com- pounds in daily life has been associated to signifcant environmental pollution problems, especially when these chemicals are released into water. The presence of these organic pollutants has been directly linked to risks for human health and ecosystems. Therefore, the removal of these organic pollutants is relevant in terms of environmental depollu- tion and public health protection. In this work, a Physalis peruviana fruit residue treated with H 2 SO 4 * Corresponding authors. E-mail addresses: sellaouilotf@yahoo.fr (L. Sellaoui), rtimi.sami@gmail.com (S. Rtimi). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Chemical Engineering Journal journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cej https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2022.136773 Received 7 April 2022; Received in revised form 28 April 2022; Accepted 29 April 2022