Water contamination is a major health issue that can be addressed by using carbonaceous materials to adsorb and filter pollutants, yet adsorption mechanisms need to be better understood to improve the adsorption efficiency. Here we review the models that are used to study the mechanisms of adsorption of drugs, dyes and metal ions on carbonaceous materials, with emphasis on classical and advanced isotherms. We discuss the fitting frequency, lignocellulosic and fossil fuel-derived adsorbents, biomass composition, activating agents, surface functions, the carbonization temperature, the medium temperature effect and the use of several isotherms to explain the same mechanism. The adsorption capacity can reach up to 2651 mg of contaminant per g of lignocellulosic materials and 1274 mg of contaminant per g of fossil materials. Isotherm validation commonly depends on several parameters. The adsorption on lignocellulosic carbonaceous materials is best described by the Langmuir isotherm. In contrast, adsorption on fossil materials is best described by the Redlich-Peterson isotherm. Advanced and classical isotherms are in good agreement in 44% of reports.

水污染是一个主要的健康问题，可以通过使用碳质材料吸附和过滤污染物来解决，但需要更好地了解吸附机制以提高吸附效率。在这里，我们回顾了用于研究药物、染料和金属离子在碳质材料上吸附机制的模型，重点是经典和高级等温线。我们讨论了拟合频率、木质纤维素和化石燃料衍生的吸附剂、生物质成分、活化剂、表面功能、碳化温度、介质温度效应以及使用几个等温线来解释相同的机制。吸附能力最高可达每克木质纤维素材料 2651 毫克污染物和每克化石材料 1274 毫克污染物。等温线验证通常取决于几个参数。木质纤维素碳质材料上的吸附最好由朗缪尔等温线描述。相反，Redlich-Peterson 等温线最好地描述了化石材料上的吸附。 44% 的报告中高级等温线和经典等温线非常一致。