## 3 Results and Discussion
### Maximum sorption Capacity of MES and MMS
Table 4 shows the sorption capacity of the sorbents towards RB5 and RY84. The sorption capacities of the tested mealworm exoskeletons and molts towards RB5 and RY84 are several times higher than those of plant-based sorbents (e.g., seed hulls and shells, fruit peel, and crop stems). MES and MMS have higher sorption capacity than some types of activated carbons (e.g., those derived from walnut wood, palm tree hunks, or bamboo) and are exceeded only by commercial activated carbon and pure chitin (Table 4). The sorption capacity of non-processed mealworm exoskeletons and molts towards RB5 is 35.0% and 54.0% lower than that of pure chitin. Nevertheless, it seems that extracting chitin from mealworm exoskeletons/molts to be used as a sorbent for RB5 and RY84 is not commercially reasonable. Bearing in mind that exoskeletons and molts contain only up to 10% and 18% chitin, respectively, it follows that 1 g of mealworm exoskeletons and 1 g of mealworm molds have at least 549.3% and 155.4% higher sorption capacity, respectively, than chitin extracted from the equivalent amount of biomass (Table 5). This seems to confirm the starting hypothesis assuming that \"the total sorption capacity of mealworm exoskeletons and molts against dyes is greater than the sorption capacity of pure chitin extracted from the same quantity of raw material\". \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l l c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Dye**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**Sorbent**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**Sorption Capacity**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**pH of Sorption**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**Time of Sorption**} & \multirow{2}{*}{**Source**} \\  & & & **[mg/gl]** & & **[min]** & \\ \hline
**RB5** & Cocont shells & 0.82 & 2.0 & 60 & [39] \\  & Pumpkin seed hunks & 1.00 & 3.0 & 60 & [40] \\  & Surflower biomass & 1.10 & 2.0 & 210 & [41] \\  & Macadama seed hunks & 1.21 & 3.0 & 510 & [42] \\  & Cotton fibers & 2.74 & 3.0 & 240 & [30] \\  & Sunflower seed shells & 2.89 & 3.0 & 210 & [31] \\  & Buckwheat hulls & 4.43 & 3.0 & 300 & [43] \\  & Hen feathers & 5.19 & 2.0 & 210 & [28] \\  & Cotton seeds hunks & 12.90 & 2.0 & 30 & [44] \\  & The seed scales of _Eriobtray japonica_ & 13.76 & 3.0 & 150 & [34] \\  & Beech sawdust & 13.90 & 3.0 & 1440 & [45] \\  & Wheat straw & 15.70 & 7.0 & 195 & [46] \\  & Wheat straw (other research) & 16.72 & 3.0 & 210 & [47] \\  & Wood (walnut) activated carbon & 19.30 & 5.0 & 400 & [48] \\  & Activated carbon from palm shell & 25.10 & 2.0 & 300 & [49] \\  & Banana peel (powder) & 26.90 & 3.0 & 60 & [50] \\  & Rape stalks (waste) & 32.80 & 2.5 & 30 & [51] \\  & Cotton stems & 35.70 & 1.0 & 360 & [52] \\  & Activated carbon from Carob tree & 36.90 & 2.0 & 120 & [33] \\  & Activated carbon from bamboo & 39.02 & 2.0 & 60 & [53] \\  & Moits of mealworm (MMS) & 55.72 & 2.0 & 150 & This study \\  & Powdered activated carbon & 58.82 & - & - & [54] \\  & Chitin flakes from shrimp shells (produced by Sigma-Aldrich, Darmstadt, Germany) & 60.00 & 6.0 & 600 & [55] \\  & Modified activated carbon (SPC) & 69.90 & 2.0 & \textless[60] & [56] \\  & Mealworm exoskeletons (MES) & 78.70 & 2.0 & 150 & This study \\  & Chitin from the molts of mealworm (own study) (CH) & 121.15 & 3.0 & 300 & [15] \\  & Powdered activated carbon & 125.79 & 2.0 & 240 & [29] \\  & Chitin flakes from snow crab shells (produced by BioLog Heppe, Hayward, CA, USA) & 131.56 & 3.0 & 360 & [27] \\ \hline
**RY84** & Composit Sunflower seed hunks & 2.20 & 3.0 & 180 & [57] \\  & Wool & 4.15 & 2.0 & 90 & [31] \\  & Activated carbon from the _Boussinesq flabellifer_ plant & 11.00 & 7.0 & 180 & [35] \\  & Activated carbon from the _Boussinesq flabellifer_ plant & 40.00 & No data & No data & [58] \\  & Cotton fibers & 43.34 & 2.0 & 240 & [30] \\  & Mealworm exoskeletons (MES) & 44.25 & 2.0 & 150 & This study \\  & Hydroxyapatite & 50.25 & 5.0 & 180 & [59] \\  & Molts of mealworm (MMS) & 60.49 & 2.0 & 150 & This study \\  & Chitin from the molts of mealworms & 138.54 & 3.0 & 270 & [15] \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}