Evaluation of a low-cost adsorbent for removal of toxic metal ions from wastewater of an electroplating factory

Green coconut shells applied as adsorbent for removal of toxic metal ions using fixed-bed column technology

“…Activated charcoal is the adsorbent of choice, but high costs are a concern (Pollard et al, 1992;Gupta et al, 2003;Aravindhan et al, 2009). Therefore, cheap bioderived materials of renewable sources are suitable alternatives (Saeed et al, 2005;Horsfall et al, 2006;Agarwal et al, 2006;Moreira et al, 2009;Wang et al, 2009;Sousa et al, 2009).…”

Low-Cost Technologies for Mining Wastewater Treatment

“…It reduces the toxicity of free cyanide and acts as an intermediary to reduce cyanide mobility via adsorption onto organic and inorganic surfaces or precipitation of metal cyanide salts [39]. In treating electroplating wastewater using sugar cane bagasse, Sousa, F. W., et al [12] reported a considerable decrease in adsorption of zinc and nickel, probably due to electrostatic repulsive forces between the cationic sugar cane bagasse surface and the metal ions. In contrast, Acheampong, M. A. and Lens, P. N. [36] reported that coconut shell used in their study was negatively charged at the gold mining effluent pH due to the lower point of zero charge pH of 6.5.…”

“…Heavy metals such as As, Cu, Pd, Zn, Fe, Cr, Ni and Hg are toxic [6][7][8] and therefore the discharge of untreated metal-laden effluent from the mining industry poses serious environmental challenges [9,10]. Sorption using natural and agricultural materials has been proposed as a cost effective and environmentally friendly alternative to chemical treatment [11][12][13][14]. The discovery and further development of biosorption phenomena provide a basis for a whole new technology aimed at the removal of various pollutants or the recovery of valuable resources from aqueous systems.…”

Sugarcane Under Pressure: An Overview of Biochemical and Physiological Studies of Abiotic Stress

“…These results have shown that sugarcane is a crop that is able to grow in areas contaminated with metals (SeguraMunoz et al 2006). Extra findings revealed that the cane residue or bagasse can also be used to remove Cu and Zn from the wastewater of electroplating industries (Sousa et al 2009) and swine raising installations (De Matos et al 2003).…”