A review of recent advances in adsorptive removal of phenol and its derivatives using various adsorbents

Phenol and its derivatives are among the most hazardous organic pollutants frequently detected in industrial effluents owing to their high toxicity, persistence, and adverse effects on aquatic ecosystems and human health. Among the available treatment technologies, adsorption has emerged as one of the most efficient and economically attractive approaches for their removal because of its operational simplicity, high efficiency, and versatility. This review provides a comprehensive and critical assessment of recent advances in the adsorption of phenol and its derivatives using agricultural and biomass-derived adsorbents, carbonaceous materials, clay and mineral-based adsorbents, polymeric adsorbents, nanomaterials, and metal-organic frameworks. Unlike previous reviews that primarily summarize adsorption performance, the present review critically compares different adsorbent classes by correlating adsorption efficiency with physicochemical properties, surface chemistry, pore characteristics, adsorption mechanisms, kinetic and thermodynamic behavior, regeneration potential, and practical applicability. The strengths and limitations of each adsorbent category are systematically evaluated, with particular emphasis on their suitability for real wastewater treatment, scalability, environmental sustainability, and techno-economic feasibility. Furthermore, the review identifies key research gaps, including the lack of standardized experimental protocols, limited pilot-scale investigations, insufficient studies on multicomponent wastewater systems, long-term regeneration performance, and comprehensive techno-economic and life-cycle assessments. By integrating recent developments with critical scientific analysis, this review provides valuable insights into the rational selection and design of adsorbent materials and offers a practical framework for developing sustainable, cost-effective, and scalable adsorption technologies for the treatment of phenol-contaminated wastewater.