The removal of recalcitrant heavy metal pollutants from industrial effluents is a major concern due to the exponential effect it can have on the environment. Heavy metal pollutants could be hazardous even at low concentration and can have adverse effects on vital organs in the human body including the nerves, kidney, liver, and bones, and can also block functional groups of vital enzymes. Adsorption is a low cost and environmentally friendly process that has great potential for the removal of these pollutants before disposal, as studies have shown it to have high efficiency when removing heavy metals from effluents. In addition, adsorption is a very effective treatment system owing to the reversible nature of most adsorption processes, and so the adsorbents can be regenerated by suitable desorption processes for multiple uses.

The synthesis and application of biocomposites have been the subject of much research in recent years. Biocomposites are readily available biomaterials which are abundant, low cost, and easy to process, for example, biocomposites from waste-derived biochars are a promising prospect. These materials could cause environmental problems if they are left unutilized, therefore their synthesis and application for the removal of heavy metals from industrial effluents such as textile, leather, cosmetic, or detergent production is environmentally significant. Biocomposites can be fabricated to have a significantly higher removal capacity of pollutants and regeneration potential by choosing a suitable biomaterial based on the target heavy metal pollutants.

This Special Issue aims to receive articles with a core focus on the synthesis and fabrication of biocomposites from waste precursors for the removal of heavy metals, using different preparation techniques. This Special Issue places emphasis on the synthesis, characterization, adsorption, modelling, and optimization of pollutant parameters and applications of various biocomposites. We welcome both original research and review articles.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Synthesis of magnetic nano-biocomposites for heavy metal removal
• Fabrication of chitosan-based biocomposites for adsorption of heavy metal ions
• Synthesis, characterization, and application of lignin-based biocomposites
• Use of imprinted biocomposites for selective removal of toxic metals
• Fabrication of organic-inorganic hybrid biocomposites for toxic metal removal
• Synthesis of polyaniline-based biocomposites for the removal of heavy metals from wastewater
• Synthesis and characterization of cellulose-derived biocomposites for metal ion removal
• Fabrication of nanobiocomposites for heavy metal removal
• Calcite-based biocomposites for the removal of metal ions from industrial effluents
• Facile in situ preparation of bacterial cellulose nanofiber-based biocomposites for heavy metal removal