Sustainable Management of Shrimp Waste to Produce High-Added Value Carbonaceous Adsorbents

Every year, large amounts of shrimp waste are disposed of in the environment, causing serious environmental problems. The prospect of recycling shrimp waste helps to reduce waste and protect the environment. In this study, three different shrimp species were used, including Pleoticus muellieri , Litopeneus vanamei , and Parapenaeus longirostris , separated into shells (PLMUS, LIVAS, PALOS) and tails (PLMUT, LIVAT, PALOT), and transformed into novel carbonaceous materials. Their adsorption properties were investigated using different chemical compounds (MB, MR, phenol, astaxanthin) in aqueous means. The materials were characterized through FTIR, BET, and SEM–EDS analyses. According to the results, the carbonaceous adsorbents presented high adsorption percentage of MB and astaxanthin (>90%), and low adsorption percentage of phenol and MR, owing to the different bonds that were formed between the functional groups of the organic substances and the corresponding groups on the surface of the materials. The results of the FTIR analysis show the presence of C=C groups from the aromatic rings of the adsorbed MB and MR at 1636 cm −1 , the presence of O-H functional groups from the adsorbed phenols at 3330 cm −1 , and the presence of C=C or C=O groups at 1730 cm −1 after the adsorption of astaxanthin. According to the BET analysis, the increase in the specific surface area follows the order: LIVAS > PLMUS > PALOT > PALOS > PLMUT > LIVAT. SEM–EDS analysis presented compact structures with the main elements of C (37–56%), O (25–35%), and Ca (12–23%) for all materials. Kinetic analysis showed that the experimental adsorption data of all the organic substances can be best described by the pseudo-second order model, indicating that chemisorption is the prevailing mechanism. Consequently, such methods promote the sustainable management and zero-waste fish farming practices, fostering the production of high-added value materials not only for decontamination purposes but also for the isolation of bioactive substances.