Background:
Removal of lead (II) ions from supply water using an inexpensive adsorbent is essential. It is
recommended that low-cost adsorbents are developed to effectively remove lead (II) ions from aqueous solutions. The aim
of the study is to develop and validate models for predicting the performance of carboxylated jute stick derived activated
carbon (JSAC-COOH) in removing lead (II) ions from aqueous solution, which can assist the water supply authorities in
supplying lead (II) free drinking water to the communities at a low-cost.
Methods:
Controlled laboratory experiments were conducted following the statistical “Design of Experiments” through
varying the factors affecting the performance of JSAC-COOH in removing lead (II) ions. The performance of JSACCOOH was investigated for different concentrations of lead (II) ions (range: 50 - 500 mg/L) at variable experimental
conditions (temperature: 15°C and 27°C; pH: 4.0 and 7.0) and time (1, 10, 30 and 60 min). Several models (Linear and
non-linear) were investigated and validated for predicting the concentrations of lead (II) ions in aqueous solution.
Results:
The prepared JSAC-COOH had a surface area of 615.3 m2
/g. In 60 min, up to 99.8% removal of lead (II) ions
was achieved. Few models showed very good to excellent predictive capabilities with coefficients of determination in the
range of 0.85–0.95. The model validation experiments showed the correlation coefficients in the range of 0.84 – 0.98.
Conclusion:
The models have the capabilities to reasonably predict the final concentrations of lead (II) ions, which can be
used in controlling the effluent lead (II) ion concentrations. The proposed adsorbent is likely to be low-cost as it was
developed using the commonly available agricultural byproduct.
Spent Coffee Ground as Low-Cost Adsorbent for Congo Red Dye Removal from Aqueous Solution