Τhe application of oxidized carbon derived from Luffa cylindrica for caffeine removal. Equilibrium, thermodynamic, kinetic and mechanistic analysis

Functionalization of loofah sponge as a natural cellulose-based material for water environment remediation and sustainability assessment

Loofah-derived biomass sponges, as a natural, porous, and environmentally friendly material, demonstrate significant potential in the field of water environmental remediation due to their unique three-dimensional interconnected multi-channel structure and superior mechanical properties. The inherent structure of loofah sponges endows them with excellent mechanical strength, hydrophilicity, ion transport capacity, sound absorption properties, adsorption performance, and antibacterial activity. Physical, chemical, and biological modification methods can substantially enhance their adsorption capabilities and mechanical strength. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research on loofah sponges, systematically discussing their structural characteristics, performance, and functional modification techniques. Furthermore, it explores the forefront applications of loofah sponges in environmental science, including oil-water separation, heavy metal removal, dye removal, drug removal, bacterial removal, and desalination. Finally, the sustainability of loofah sponges is highlighted through sustainability footprint assessment, emphasizing their ecological friendliness and potential for sustainable development. The review also offers insights into optimizing large-scale production to support future applications in water environmental remediation.

Luffa-Ni/Al layered double hydroxide bio-nanocomposite for efficient ibuprofen removal from aqueous solution: Kinetic, equilibrium, thermodynamic studies and GEP modeling

Luffa is a robust, renewable biomaterial known for its low mass, high specific strength, and non-toxicity, making it ideal for composite development. This study modified luffa to create the LF@ppy@LDH nanocomposite, combining luffa, polypyrrole, and layered double hydroxides to efficiently remove ibuprofen from water. Techniques like FE-SEM, EDX, FTIR, and XRD confirmed the modification. To optimize adsorption efficiency, factors such as contact time( C t i m e ) , adsorbent dosage ( A d ) , drug concentration ( D c ) , temperature ( θ ) , stirring rate ( S r ) , and pH were carefully fine-tuned to maximize efficiency. The highest ibuprofen removal occurred at pH 5, with an adsorption capacity of 44.306 mg/g at 298 K. The Temkin isotherm model, which points to chemisorption as the mechanism, accurately depicted the adsorption process with a high correlation coefficient (R2 = 0.984). Moreover, the Elovich kinetic model proved to be the most precise in describing how ibuprofen adheres to the modified luffa, showing a very tight fit with the data (R2 = 0.993). LF@ppy@LDH demonstrated outstanding reusability, maintaining steady adsorption over five repeated rounds. In addition, a powerful data-driven model, namely gene expression programming (GEP), was employed to provide an explicit formula relating input variables to removal efficiency, highlighting the potential of LF@ppy@LDH for water purification and environmental remediation.

Cost-effective eggshell-modified LDH composite for caffeine adsorption, cytotoxicity and antimicrobial activity: exploring the synergy and economic viability in search processes

The rise of pharmaceutical residues poses a serious threat to ecological and aquatic environments, necessitating the development of cost-effective, convenient, and recyclable adsorbents. Given the high global consumption of eggs, a significant amount of waste eggshell is produced. The techniques outlined here aim to manage eggshell waste by transforming it into highly valuable products, addressing the issue of eggshell waste in communities and industries. This approach supports the concept of zero-waste operations to create value-added goods, contributing to sustainable development. In the future, this method of waste management and material recycling may be adopted as an alternative. CaO-based ZnFe-layered double hydroxide (LDH) is identified as an efficient adsorbent for caffeine (COF) residues due to its biodegradability and biocompatibility. We extensively analyzed the synthesized CaO, ZnFe-LDH, and CaO/ZnFe-LDH composites before the adsorption processes using FT-IR, XRD, SEM, EDX, BET surface area, PZC, TGA/DTG, and after the adsorption processes using FT-IR. We investigated factors affecting the adsorption process, such as pH, adsorbent dose, COF concentrations, and time. Six non-linear adsorption isotherm models were studied at pH 7 for the composite and pH 9 for LDH, showing maximum adsorption capacities (q max) of 152.35 mg g-1 for LDH and 194.87 mg g-1 for CaO/ZnFe-LDH. Kinetic studies were also conducted. Interestingly, the MTT assay conducted on WI-38 cells revealed minimal toxicity, with most tests indicating cell viability above 60%. The synthesized CaO, ZnFe-LDH, and CaO/ZnFe-LDH composite exhibit robust antimicrobial properties against two pathogens, including Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive bacteria (MRSA). The MIC values for the synthesized materials range from 0.87 to 7 µg mL-1, varying with the microbial species. Two green metrics were applied: the analytical Eco-scale and the Analytical GREEnness Calculator (AGREE).

Sustainable application of modified Luffa cylindrica biomass for removal of trimethoprim in water by adsorption with process optimization

The present study describes a set of methodological procedures (seldom applied together), including (i) development of an alternative adsorbent derived from abundant low-cost plant biomass; (ii) use of simple low-cost biomass modification techniques based on physical processing and chemical activation; (iii) design of experiments (DoE) applied to optimize the removal of a pharmaceutical contaminant from water; (iv) at environmentally relevant concentrations, (v) that due to initial low concentrations required determination by ultra-performance liquid phase chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). A central composite rotational design (CCRD) was employed to investigate the performance of vegetable sponge biomass (Luffa cylindrica), physically processed (crushing and sieving) and chemically activated with phosphoric acid, in the adsorption of the antibiotic trimethoprim (TMP) from water. The optimized model identified pH as the most significant variable, with maximum drug removal (91.1 ± 5.7%) achieved at pH 7.5, a temperature of 22.5 °C, and an adsorbent/adsorbate ratio of 18.6 mg µg-1. The adsorption mechanisms and surface properties of the adsorbent were examined through characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), point of zero charge (pHpzc) measurement, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), specific surface area, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The best kinetic fit was obtained by the Avrami fractional-order model. The hypothesis of a hybrid behavior of the adsorbent was suggested by the equilibrium results presented by the Langmuir and Freundlich models and reinforced by the Redlich-Peterson model, which achieved the best fit (R2 = 0.982). The thermodynamic study indicated an exothermic, spontaneous, and favorable process. The maximum adsorption capacity of the material was 2.32 × 102 µg g-1 at an equilibrium time of 120 min. Finally, a sustainable and promising adsorbent for the polishing of aqueous matrices contaminated by contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) at environmentally relevant concentrations is available for future investigations.

Efficient Decaffeination with Recyclable Magnetic Microporous Carbon from Renewable Sources: Kinetics and Isotherm Analysis

Rapid global urbanization and population growth have ignited an alarming surge in emerging contaminants in water bodies, posing health risks, even at trace concentrations. To address this challenge, novel water treatment and reuse technologies are required as current treatment systems are associated with high costs and energy requirements. These drawbacks provide additional incentives for the application of cost-effective and sustainable biomass-derived activated carbon, which possesses high surface area and low toxicity. Herein, we synthesized microporous activated carbon (MAC) and its magnetic derivative (m-MAC) from tannic acid to decaffeinate contaminated aqueous solutions. Detailed characterization using SEM, BET, and PXRD revealed a very high surface area (>1800 m2/g) and a highly porous, amorphous, heterogeneous sponge-like structure. Physicochemical and thermal analyses using XPS, TGA, and EDS confirmed thermal stability, unique surface moieties, and homogeneous elemental distribution. High absorption performance (>96 %) and adsorption capacity (287 and 394 mg/g) were recorded for m-MAC and MAC, respectively. Mechanistic studies showed that the sorption of caffeine is in tandem with multilayer and chemisorptive mechanisms, considering the models' correlation and error coefficients. π-π stacking and hydrogen bonding were among the interactions that could facilitate MAC-Caffeine and m-MAC-Caffeine bonding interactions. Regeneration and reusability experiments revealed adsorption efficiency ranging from 90.5-98.4 % for MAC and 88.6-93.7 % for m-MAC for five cycles. Our findings suggest that MAC and its magnetic derivative are effective for caffeine removal, and potentially other organic contaminants with the possibility of developing commercially viable and cost-effective water polishing tools.

Removal of Azo Dyes from Water Using Natural Luffa cylindrica as a Non-Conventional Adsorbent

Reducing high concentrations of pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, drugs, and dyes from water is an emerging necessity. We evaluated the use of Luffa cylindrica (Lc) as a natural non-conventional adsorbent to remove azo dye mixture (ADM) from water. The capacity of Lc at three different doses (2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 g/L) was evaluated using three concentrations of azo dyes (0.125, 0.250, and 0.500 g/L). The removal percent (R%), maximum adsorption capacity (Qm), isotherm and kinetics adsorption models, and pH influence were evaluated, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed. The maximum R% was 70.8% for 10.0 g L-1Lc and 0.125 g L-1 ADM. The Qm of Lc was 161.29 mg g-1. Adsorption by Lc obeys a Langmuir isotherm and occurs through the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Statistical analysis showed that the adsorbent dose, the azo dye concentration, and contact time significantly influenced R% and the adsorption capacity. These findings indicate that Lc could be used as a natural non-conventional adsorbent to reduce ADM in water, and it has a potential application in the pretreatment of wastewaters.

Removal of phenol from wastewater using Luffa cylindrica fibers in a packed bed column: Optimization, isotherm and kinetic studies

This research entails a comparison of the effectiveness of unmodified Luffa cylindrica fiber in a fully packed bed (RLCF) and NaOH-modified Luffa cylindrica fiber in another fully packed bed (MLCF) in the context of phenol removal from wastewater. Experimental data obtained through batch adsorption experiments were utilized to determine the most suitable model. It was observed that as the initial concentration of phenol increased from 100 to 500 mg/l, the maximum percentage removal increased from 63.5 to 83.1% for RLCF-PB and from 89.9 to 99.5% for MLCF-PB. The correlation coefficient (R2) was calculated for the Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Harkin-Jura, Halsey, and Flory-Huggins models for both materials. The analysis revealed that the pseudo-second-order model was the most suitable, followed by the Elovich model, with the pseudo-first-order model being the least suitable. The Weber-Morris diffusion model suggested that pore diffusion was the rate-determining step, and diffusion at the border layer was determined to be endothermic, feasible, heterogeneous, and spontaneous. In summary, this study indicates that MLCF-PB is a promising material for the efficient removal of phenol from aqueous solutions.

Optimization and characterization of silver nanoparticle-modified luffa for the adsorption of ketoprofen and reactive yellow 15 from aqueous solutions

In the current work, luffa was modified with silver nanoparticles to prepare LF/AgNPs adsorbent for the elimination of ketoprofen and reactive yellow 15 (RY15) from aqueous media. Various characterization techniques, including FT-IR, XRD, BET, and SEM-EDS analysis, were employed to confirm the successful modification of LF/AgNPs. Several key parameters such as contact time, adsorbent dosage, concentration, pH, and agitation technique were fine-tuned to optimize the adsorption process. Ketoprofen removal was found to be most effective in weakly acidic conditions (pH = 5), while reactive yellow 15 adsorption was enhanced in an acidic environment (pH = 2). At 298 K, the highest adsorption capacities reached 56.88 mg/g for ketoprofen and 97.76 mg/g for reactive yellow 15. In both scenarios involving the elimination of ketoprofen and RY15, the Temkin isotherm exhibits higher R2 values, specifically 0.997 for ketoprofen and 0.963 for RY15, demonstrating a strong correlation with the observed adsorption data. Additionally, the kinetics of ketoprofen adsorption were best described by the Pseudo-first order model (R2 = 0.989), whereas the Pseudo-second order model provided the most accurate fit for reactive yellow 15 adsorption (R2 = 0.997). Importantly, the LF/AgNPs adsorbent displayed consistent performance over five consecutive reuse cycles, affirming its stability and efficacy in removing both contaminants. These findings underscore the exceptional potential of LF/AgNPs as a reliable adsorbent for the removal of reactive yellow 15 and ketoprofen from aqueous solutions.

Mechanism and behavior of caffeine sorption: affecting factors

Caffeine is one of the emerging pollutants with a diverse chemical composition. It is mixed with the hydrobiota as a result of its high consumption, and when certain dose intervals are exceeded, it re-enters the human body through indirect routes such as plants, animals, soil, water, and the food chain, causing health problems that are difficult or impossible to treat, and irreversible environmental problems. This situation raises concerns about the presence of pollutants emerging in water resources, igniting interest in water treatment processes and the development of alternative methods. Although there are several methods for removing caffeine from aqueous media, adsorption is the most popular because it is less expensive than other methods and has the highest removal efficiency. Furthermore, it has the benefit of selectively attaching the molecules in solution. In this article, studies on the caffeine adsorption process have been examined, and the caffeine adsorption efficiency of various adsorbents has been summarized by compiling information such as pH, contact time, temperature, and concentration of adsorbent and adsorbate, which are considered as optimum processing conditions. The binding mechanism was investigated, and it was clearly stated how caffeine adheres to the adsorbent surface. Among the equilibrium adsorption isotherms, the isotherm model with the best agreement with the experimental data was attempted to be determined. Many studies clearly show that the process of developing environmentally friendly and high-capacity adsorbents in sustainable processes and in harmony with the circular economy is increasing day by day.

Comparative removal of hazardous cationic dyes by MOF-5 and modified graphene oxide

Among cationic dyes, malachite green (MG) is commonly used for dying purposes and also as an inhibitor in aquaculture, food, health, and chemical industries due to its cytotoxic effects. Therefore, MG removal is essential to keep the ecosystem and human health safety. Adsorption is a viable and versatile option and exploring efficient adsorbents have high priority. Herein, MOF-5 and aminated corn Stover reduced graphene oxide (ACS-RGO) of typical adsorbents of metal-organic-frameworks (MOFs) and carbon-based classes were studied for MG removal. MOF-5 and ACS-RGO had a specific surface area and total pore volume of 507.4 and 389.0 m2/g, and 0.271 cm3/g and 0.273 cm3/g, respectively. ACS-RGO was superior for MG adsorption and the kinetic rate coefficient for ACS-RGO was ~ 7.2 times compared to MOF-5. For ACS-RGO, MG removal remained high (> 94%) in a wide range of pH. However, dye removal was pH-dependent for MOF-5 and increased from ~ 32% to ~ 67% by increasing pH from 4 to 12. Increasing dye concentration from 25 mg/L to 100 mg/L decreased adsorption by MOF-5 and ACS-RGO for ~ 30% and 7%, respectively. Dye removal was evident in a few tens of seconds after adding ACS-RGO at doses above 0.5 g/L. A significant loss of 46% in adsorption was observed by decreasing MOF-5 mass from 1 to 0.1 g/L. ACS-RGO removed MG in multilayer with an exceptional adsorption capacity of 1088.27 mg/g. In conclusion, ACS-RGO, and MOF-5 showed promising kinetic rates and adsorption capacities toward MG.

Highly effective adsorption of caffeine by a novel activated carbon prepared from coconut leaf

The disposal of coconut wastes is costly and damaging to the environment, but its uses are advantageous activated carbons production. Coconut leaves waste were used for activated carbon production by pyrolysis at 500° C and activation with potassium carbonate. The activated carbon was used for caffeine removal from aqueous solution. The coconut leaves activated carbon showed a predominantly amorphous structure from X-ray diffraction analysis and a pH at the zero charge point of 7.9. From the N₂ adsorption/desorption method, the adsorbent showed a predominance of mesopores, with average pore size of 45.48 ηm and a surface area of 678.03 m²/g. From kinetic studies the data followed the pseudo-second order, where the intraparticle diffusion can be neglected. The adsorption isotherms were satisfactorily adjusted for the Redlich-Peterson model and a type curve L was identified. The thermodynamic parameters showed that adsorption occurred spontaneously, was exothermic and governed by physical adsorption. The artificial neural networks developed were capable of predicting both kinetics and equilibrium adsorption data under different operating conditions and was comparable to the traditional models available in literature in the training experiments, encouraging its use for data generalization when an efficient dataset is used. In conclusion, coconut leaves waste showed to be a promising feedstock to produce activated carbon aiming caffeine removal from water and wastewater.

Ground coffee waste-derived carbon for adsorptive removal of caffeine: Effect of surface chemistry and porous structure

Carbon-based adsorbents show high adsorption capacity towards caffeine due to their porosity and surface functionality. However, the main limiting factor for high performance has not been addressed; furthermore, the adsorption interaction with different active sites needs to be explored. In this study, we synthesized a hierarchical porous nitrogen-doped carbon with unique surface functionality by single-step calcination of coffee waste with KOH under N₂. The porous structure, nitrogen content, and types are optimized by varying calcination temperature and KOH concentration. The result of the adsorption experiments shows that both the nitrogen type and the pore size distribution are the limiting factors to adsorption. In addition, the effect of acidic and basic functional groups is studied in detail. The adsorption of caffeine on CW-C is dominantly governed by EDA interaction between the resonance structure of pyridonic-N and the electron-withdrawing group of the caffeine, and the dispersive force caused by the oxidized-N and delocalized π electron of caffeine. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the surface of CW-C is not suitable for the formation of electrostatic and non-electrostatic interaction with caffeine. The maximum adsorption capacity of caffeine at 25 °C is 274.2 mg/g. Moreover, we demonstrate that the unique physio-chemical properties of CW-C are capable of adsorbing other emerging contaminants such as diclofenac, where maximum adsorption capacity of 242.3 mg/g diclofenac is recorded.

A Review of Caffeine Adsorption Studies onto Various Types of Adsorbents

A systematic literature review of publications from 2000 to 2020 was carried out to identify research trends on adsorbent materials for the removal of caffeine from aqueous solutions. Publications were retrieved from three databases (Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar). Words "adsorption AND caffeine" were examined into titles, abstracts, and keywords. A brief bibliometric analysis was performed with emphasis on the type of publication and of most cited articles. Materials for the removal of caffeine were classified according to the type of material into three main groups: organic, inorganic, and composites, each of them subdivided into different subgroups consistent with their origin or production. Tables resume for each subgroup of adsorbents the key information: specific surface area, dose, pH, maximum adsorption capacity, and isotherm models for the removal of caffeine. The highest adsorption capacities were achieved by organic adsorbents, specifically those with granular activated carbon (1961.3 mg/g) and grape stalk activated carbon (916.7 mg/g). Phenyl-phosphate-based porous organic polymer (301 mg/g), natural sandy loam sediment (221.2 mg/g), composites of MCM-48 encapsulated graphene oxide (153.8 mg/g), and organically modified clay (143.7 mg/g) showed adsorption capacities lower than those of activated carbons. In some activated carbons, a relation between the specific surface area (SSA) and the maximum adsorption capacity (Q max) was found.

Caffeine removal from aqueous media by adsorption: An overview of adsorbents evolution and the kinetic, equilibrium and thermodynamic studies

Caffeine is an emerging pollutant and is considered the most representative pollutant of the Pharmaceutical Active due to its high consumption by the general population. It can be used to track pollution caused by humans. Different technologies have been employed to remove the caffeine from aqueous media, however the adsorption has been preferred due to its simplicity, high removal efficiency, operational and implementation facility and low cost. This paper provides a systematic review of the published peer-reviewed literature concerned with caffeine removal by the adsorption process. The Scopus and ScienceDirect databases were used to identify relevant articles researches on caffeine removal. Many authors have studied caffeine's adsorption equilibrium in aqueous media, different conditions, and different adsorbents. This paper aims to uncover the overall trend of adsorbent used, kinetic and thermodynamic studies. The impact of pH, temperature, adsorbent dosage and competitive effect were presented and analyzed. It was observed that the adsorption capacities ranged between 10 and 1000 mg g^-1, according to the nature and properties of the adsorbent. The pseudo-second order (kinetic model) and the Langmuir isotherm model showed the best adjustment of the experimental data from caffeine adsorption in most studies. The mechanistic understanding of adsorption and the development of new adsorbents are still a matter of future research, as well as the use of other kinetic models based on statistical factors and the thermodynamic studies should be considered.

Magnetic solid-phase extraction of caffeine from surface water samples with a micro–meso porous activated carbon/Fe3O4 nanocomposite prior to its determination by GC-MS

A novel micro–meso porous activated carbon/Fe₃O₄ (Bm) composite was synthesized from the active charcoal precursor BAX-1500 and used in the magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) of caffeine prior to its determination by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The main factors affecting the extraction and desorption steps of the MSPE procedure were investigated and optimized. These factors include extraction time, sorbent mass and salt addition for the adsorption step and type of eluent, desorption time and volume of desorption solution for the desorption step. Under optimum conditions, the absolute extraction recovery was found to be 91.1% and good linearity was observed in the investigated concentration range of 0.6–12.5 ng mL⁻¹ (R² = 0.9997). The limit of detection was 0.18 ng mL⁻¹ and the limit of quantification was 0.60 ng mL⁻¹. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of surface water samples. The proposed MSPE method is simple, rapid, sensitive and environmentally friendly.

A novel magnetic solid phase material based on a micro–meso porous activated carbon/Fe₃O₄ nanocomposite was used to extract caffeine from surface water samples. The method is efficient and rapid, and has minimum solvent consumption.

Fabrication of Zn-based magnetic zeolitic imidazolate framework bionanocomposite using basil seed mucilage for removal of azo cationic and anionic dyes from aqueous solution

The Basil seeds mucilaginous polysaccharide exhibits remarkable physical and chemical properties like high water-absorbing capacity, emulsifying, and stabilizing properties. The metal-organic frameworks are one of the most promising precursors made of metal clusters and organic connectors for the fabrication of advanced adsorbents due to their unique properties. In this study, the bionanocomposite of magnetic zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 was successfully synthesized and applied to adsorb azo cationic and anionic dyes. The synthesized magnetite nanoparticles were pretreated with mucilage extracted from basil seeds to acquire negatively charged magnetite surface, followed by nucleation through attracting zinc cation, and then the growth of metal-organic frameworks which yields high-quality ZIF-8 crystals. The samples were characterized by Field Scanning Electron Microscopy, X-ray Diffraction, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry, vibrating sample magnetometer, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area analysis. In the process of adsorption, influencing factors and recycling regeneration were discussed, and the adsorption mechanisms such as kinetics, isotherm, and thermodynamics were explored. The results of the adsorption process showed that maximum adsorption capacities were 9.09 and 13.21 mg/g for Methylene blue and Eriochrome Black T, respectively. The excellent reusability combined with its magnetic separation property makes the nanocomposite a promising adsorbent for the removal of cationic and anionic dyes.

Caffeine removal using Elaeis guineensis activated carbon: adsorption and RSM studies

The palm (Elaeis guineensis), known as dendê, is an important oleaginous Brazilian plant with a high performance of oil production. In this work, a 2³ full experimental design was performed and the response surface method (RSM) was used to indicate the optimum parameter of caffeine adsorption on Elaeis guineensis endocarp activated carbon, since the endocarp is the main by-product from dendê oil production. It was set the adsorbent point of zero charge (pH_pzc), and the material was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The RSM results indicate removal efficiency (%) at the optimal conditions, 0.20 g of adsorbent, and caffeine initial concentration of 20 mg/L, and acidic medium was about 95%. Based on ANOVA and F test (F_calculated > F_standard), the mathematical/statistical model obtained fits well to the experimental data. The overall kinetic studies showed time was achieved after 5 h and caffeine adsorption followed the pseudo-second-order model suggesting chemisorption is a predominant mechanism. Redlich-Peterson and Sips models best represented the experimental data (0.967 < R² < 0.993). Thermodynamic revealed that caffeine adsorption was spontaneous at all temperatures studied, exothermic, and probably with changes in the adsorbate-adsorbent complex during the process. The tests conducted in different water matrixes corroborate the suitability of this adsorbent to be used in caffeine removal even in a complex solution.

Removal of caffeine, nicotine and amoxicillin from (waste)waters by various adsorbents. A review

The fast growth in the anthropogenic activities, that involve a wide use of pharmaceuticals, has led to the appearance of new toxic and hazardous chemical compounds, called "emerging pollutants", which could cause unpredictable consequences to the ecosystems. The current review is focused on emerging pollutants occurring in food or air and include caffeine and nicotine, as well as on pharmaceuticals, in particular amoxicillin, and the concerns caused by its wide usage for medical purposes. This review, for the first time, analyzes and discusses the potential risks and implications of caffeine, nicotine and amoxicillin as emerging environmental pollutants, a field that remains underrepresented to date. Both caffeine and nicotine belong to life style compounds, while pharmaceutical amoxicillin is one of the very popular β-lactam antibiotics used to take care of human and animal infections. The review covers the toxic effect caused by caffeine, nicotine and amoxicillin on humans and animals and describes some of the main adsorbents utilized for their removal (e.g., grape stalk, tea waste, wheat grains, bentonite, activated carbon, acid and base modified grape slurry wastes, graphene oxides, modified graphene oxides, zeolites, etc.). The isotherm and kinetic models for the analysis of caffeine, nicotine and amoxicillin adsorption by different adsorbents are presented. The impact of pH, temperature, adsorbent dosage and thermodynamic studies were deeply analyzed. The review also discusses the mechanism of adsorption for the above-mentioned emerging pollutants, which includes π-π interaction, cation-π bonding, electron-donor and electron-acceptor forces, van der Waals forces, electrostatic interactions, etc. The present review has a potential value for chemists, ecologists, toxicologists, environmental engineers, and other professionals that are involved in environmental protection.