Several fly ash (FA) samples derived from Australian (FA-WA) and Brazilian coals (FA-JL and FA-CH) were used as supports to prepare Co oxide (Co)-based catalysts. These Co/FA catalysts were tested in peroxymonosulfate activation for sulphate radical generation and phenol degradation in aqueous solution. The physicochemical properties of FA supports and Co/FA catalysts were characterised by N₂ adsorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy coupling with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), elemental mapping, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. It was found that the FA supports did not show adsorption of phenol and could not activate peroxymonosulfate for sulphate radical generation. However, fly ash supported Co oxide catalysts (Co/FA) presented higher activities in the activation of peroxymonosulfate for phenol degradation than bulk Co oxide and their activities varied depending on the properties of the fly ash supports. Co/FA-JL showed the highest activity while Co/FA-WA showed the lowest. Activation energies of phenol degradation on three Co/FA catalysts were obtained to be 47.0, 56.5, 56.0 kJ mol⁻¹ for Co/FA-WA, Co/FA-JL and Co/FA-CH, respectively.

In this study, ash from sugarcane waste was used in the synthesis of biosilica using alkaline extraction followed by acid precipitation. Different parameters that could influence the silica particle synthesis were evaluated. The ash and synthesized biosilica were characterized by a combination of spectroscopic and chemical techniques such as XRD, XRF, SEM, particle size analyser, N₂ adsorption analysis, TGA, and FTIR. The best condition for biosilica production was achieved with fusion method and aging temperature of 80°C for 1 h during gel formation. X-ray powder diffraction pattern confirms the amorphous nature of synthesized silica. The purity of the prepared silica was 99% silica which was confirmed by means of XRF. The experimental data suggest that the sugarcane waste ash could be converted into a value-added product, minimizing the environmental impact of disposal problems.

Batch sorption experiments were carried out to remove methylene blue from its aqueous solutions using zeolite synthesized from fly ash as an adsorbent. Nearly 10 min of contact time are found to be sufficient for the adsorption of dye to reach equilibrium. Equilibrium data have been analyzed using Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms and the results were found to be well represented by the Freundlich isotherm equation. Adsorption data were fitted to both Lagergren first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models and the data were found to follow pseudo-second-order kinetics. Thermodynamic calculations suggest that the adsorption of methylene blue on zeolite synthesized from fly ash is spontaneous and exothermic reaction.