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• A novel strategy was developed to prepare nitrogen rich biochar. • APBC has high affinity and strong sorption ability towards Pb(II). • APBC contains abundant nitrogen and oxygen-containing groups. • Sorption of Pb(II) is mainly dominant by inner–sphere surface complexation. Biochar was prepared by torrefaction of ammonium persulphate pretreated bamboo (labeled as APBC) and applied into elimination of Pb(II) from water solutions. APBC was characterized by N 2 adsorption–desorption isotherms, elemental and Zeta potential analyses, SEM-EDS, XPS, and FTIR. Abundant N- and O-containing groups appeared atop APBC. Batch sorption assays revealed that APBC had high affinity and strong sorption ability towards Pb(II). The high Pb(II) adsorbing ability was attributed to the high contents of N- and O-containing functional groups of APBC. The adsorption mechanism mainly occurred by inner–sphere surface complexation. Hence, torrefaction of ammonium persulphate pretreated bamboo is a promising strategy for producing efficient biochar that is applicable for industrial wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Acrylate-modified hydrochar with excellent adsorption properties was prepared easily. • The removal amounts of Pb(II) and methylene blue exceed 291.96 and 1014.96 mg/g. • Acrylate plays a key role in the adsorption process. • The acrylate content was more influential on adsorption than specific surface area. • The structure of hydrochar significantly affects its functional modification. Hydrochars are promising sorbents for wastewater treatment. Herein, two acrylate-modified hydrochars (AMHC 1 and AMHC 2) were obtained by grafting acrylic acid on the surface of two hydrochars (MHC 1 and MHC 2 hydrothermally carbonized in water and acidic medium respectively) with free radical polymerization. Characterizations show that MHC 2 is more prone to free radical polymerization than MHC 1 does, and has higher carboxylate content after modification. The adsorption amounts of AMHC 2 over methylene blue (MB) and Pb(II) are much higher than those of AMHC 1. Pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm equations well fit the Pb(II) and MB sorption data of AMHC 2. The Pb(II) adsorptive mechanism is mainly inner-surface complexation accompanied by ion exchange and cation-π interaction. MB adsorption involves ion exchange, electrostatic interaction, H-bonding and π-π interaction. Hence, the one-step modification method of free radical polymerization under alkaline condition has great potential for preparing carboxylate-modified hydrochars to adsorb cationic pollutants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]