Adsorption Batch Studies on the Removal of Pb(II) Using Maize Tassel Based Activated Carbon

Abstract

The demand for clean water is on the increase as rapid industrialization is still contributing to pollution. Nowadays, as water is the basic need for mankind, efforts have gathered momentum to decontaminate it in order to address the acute shortage of clean and pure water. Maize tassel was used as the precursor for making activated carbon for the adsorption of Pb(II) ions. The product obtained was characterized and utilized for the removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solutions over a wide range of initial metal ion concentration (10–50 mg/L), contact time (5–300 min), adsorbent dose (0.1–2.5 g), and pH (2–12). The optimum set of conditions for biosorption of Pb(II) ion were found to be initial concentration 10 mg/L, dosage 1.2 g, and pH 5.4. The adsorption data conformed to both the Langmuir and the Freundlich isotherms but fitted best into the Langmuir model. TheR2for Langmuir equation was 0.9997 and that for Freundlich was 0.9515. The Langmuir monolayer adsorption capacity of the activated carbon was calculated to be 37.31 mg/g. The results indicate that activated carbon might be used to effectively adsorb Pb(II) ions from wastewater treatment plants.

Application of response surface methodology for Cd(II) adsorption on maize tassel-magnetite nanohybrid adsorbent

“…The moisture content was low (2.76%) showing the adsorbent will not dilute the action of MT-MN during adsorption studies [13]. Smaller adsorbent particle size enhances the percentage removal of the metal ions from aqueous solution as greater surface area will be exposed to the metal ions by the adsorbent.…”

“…The MT-MN adsorbent was prepared using methods reported elsewhere [13,19,20,28]. Briefly, 2.0 g of maize tassel derived activated carbon was suspended in 120 mL of doubled distilled water and a solution of FeCl 2 Á4H 2 O and FeCl 3 Á6H 2 O in the ratio 1:2.…”

“…The most desirable method for the trace metal ions removal from aqueous solutions is adsorption due to its environmental compatibility, ease of operation and high efficiency [12][13][14]. The choice of suitable precursors for adsorption of trace metal ions from aqueous solutions is very important.…”

“…Maize plant is a versatile, fast growing tall cereal crop that is extensively grown in Zimbabwe every year producing tonnes and tonnes of the maize product. The desirable characteristics including binding functional groups have been reported on the maize tassel [13] hence it can be used as a good precursor in the preparation of the novel maize tassel-magnetite nanohybrid (MT-MN) adsorbent. The adsorbent was characterized via different techniques such as scanning electron microscope (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), XRD (X-ray diffraction spectroscopy) and Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET).…”

Horseradish Peroxidase Biosensor to Detect Zinc Ions in Aqueous Solutions

“…The maize tassel (MT) powder was prepared using a reported procedure [9]. Briefly, maize tassel was plucked off the woody parts of the maize plant, thoroughly washed with water and air-dried at room temperature.…”