Removal of As(V) and As(III) from water with a PEI-modified fungal biomass

Apple peels--a versatile biomass for water purification?

The presence of anions such as chromate, arsenate, and arsenite in drinking water is a major health concern in many parts of the world due to their high toxicity. Removal of such anions from water using low cost biomass is an efficient and affordable treatment process. Owing to the easy availability and biodegradability, we chose to use apple peel as a substrate for our investigations. Zirconium cations were immobilized onto the apple peel surface and used for the extraction of anions. Zirconium loaded apple peels were used to extract anions such as phosphate, arsenate, arsenite, and chromate ions from aqueous solutions. The presence of Zr cations on the apple peel surface was characterized using XPS. The modified adsorbent was characterized using SEM, EDS, and FT-IR. Zr treated apple peels showed efficient adsorption toward AsO2(-) (15.64 mg/g), AsO4(3-) (15.68 mg/g), Cr2O7(2-) (25.28 mg/g), and PO4(3-) (20.35 mg/g) anions. The adsorption and desorption studies revealed the adsorption mechanism involves electrostatic interactions. Anion removal efficiency was estimated by batch adsorption studies. Adsorption kinetic parameters for all anions at different concentrations were described using pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order rate equations. Langumir and Freundlich isotherms were used to validate our adsorption data. Arsenate and chromate anions were strongly adsorbed at the pH range from 2 to 6, while arsenite was extracted efficiently between pH 9 and 10. Overall, the Zr immobilized apple peel is an efficient adsorbent for common anionic pollutants.

As(III) and As(V) sorption on iron-modified non-pyrolyzed and pyrolyzed biomass from Petroselinum crispum (parsley)

The sorption of As(III) and As(V) from aqueous solutions onto iron-modified Petroselinum crispum (PCFe) and iron-modified carbonaceous material from the pyrolysis of P. crispum (PCTTFe) was investigated. The modified sorbents were characterized with scanning electron microscopy. The sorbent elemental composition was determined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The principal functional groups from the sorbents were determined with FT-IR. The specific surfaces and points of zero charge (pzc) of the materials were also determined. As(III) and As(V) sorption onto the modified sorbents were performed in a batch system. After the sorption process, the As content in the liquid and solid phases was determined with atomic absorption and neutron activation analyses, respectively. After the arsenic sorption processes, the desorption of Fe from PCFe and PCTTFe was verified with atomic absorption spectrometry. The morphology of PC changed after iron modification. The specific area and pzc differed significantly between the iron-modified non-pyrolyzed and pyrolyzed P. crispum. The kinetics of the arsenite and arsenate sorption processes were described with a pseudo-second-order model. The Langmuir-Freundlich model provided the isotherms with the best fit. Less than 0.02% of the Fe was desorbed from the PCFe and PCTTFe after the As(III) and As(V) sorption processes.

Biosorption of As(III) ions from aqueous solution using dry, heat-treated and NaOH-treated Aspergillus nidulans

The biosorption of As(III) ions on dry, heat-treated and NaOH-treated Aspergillus nidulans in aqueous solutions was studied. The effect ofpH (2-6), temperature (25, 30, 35, 45 degrees C), and initial concentration (250-700 mg L(-1)) of As(III) ions were investigated in a batch system. The maximum biosorption rate of As(III) ions on the tested biosorbent were obtained at pH 4 and 35 degrees C in about 240 min. The maximum biosorption capacities of dry, heat-treated and NaOH-treated fungal biomass were 127, 178 and 166 mg g(-1) of dry biomass, respectively. The As(III) adsorption data were analyzed using the first- and the second-order kinetic models. The experimental results suggest that the second-order equation is the most appropriate equation to predict the biosorption capacity by dry, heat-treated and NaOH-treated Aspergillus nidulans. Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were used to evaluate the data, and the regression constants were derived. Biosorption equilibrium data were best described by the Langmuir isotherm model followed by the Freundlich model.

Preparation, characterization and application of a Ce-Ti oxide adsorbent for enhanced removal of arsenate from water

Different metal doped TiO(2) adsorbents were prepared through the precipitation and hydrolysis-precipitation methods. The novel Ce-Ti oxide adsorbent obtained by the hydrolysis-precipitation had much higher sorption capacity for As(V) than both the pure titanium dioxide and cerium oxide adsorbents, and the preparation conditions including the Ti/Ce molar ratio and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) content were optimized. Environmental scanning electronic microscopy (ESEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopic investigations revealed that the amorphous Ce-Ti hybrid adsorbent was composed of some nanoparticles in the size range of 100-200 nm, which aggregated to form the porous hybrid adsorbents, and the amorphous compositions and the small nanoparticles were related to the high sorption capacity for As(V). Batch sorption experiments including sorption kinetics, isotherm, effect of pH and competitive ions were investigated. The Ce-Ti adsorbent exhibited high sorption capacity for As(V) at pH below 7. Column studies showed that about 72,085 bed volumes of As(V) solution at the concentration of 50 microg L(-1) and pH 6.5 were filtered when As(V) concentration in the effluent increased to 10 microg L(-1), and the average sorption capacity of As(V) on the Ce-Ti adsorbent was about 9.4 mg g(-1).

Preparation of Al-Ce hybrid adsorbent and its application for defluoridation of drinking water

A novel Al-Ce hybrid adsorbent with high sorption capacity for fluoride was prepared through the coprecipitation method in this study, and its preparation conditions were optimized. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) results showed that the hybrid adsorbent was of amorphous structure and constituted by some aggregated nanoparticles. As the adsorbent had the zero point of zeta potential at pH 9.6, it was very effective in fluoride removal from aqueous solution via electrostatic interaction. The results of sorption experiments including sorption kinetics, isotherms, and the effect of solution pH showed that the sorption of fluoride on the Al-Ce adsorbent was fast and pH-dependent. Especially, the adsorbent had high sorption capacity up to 27.5 mg g(-1) for fluoride at the equilibrium fluoride concentration of 1 mg L(-1), much higher than that of the conventional adsorbents. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis and zeta potential measurement showed that the hydroxyl groups and the protonated hydroxyl groups on the adsorbent surface were involved in the fluoride adsorption.

Adsorption kinetic of arsenates as water pollutant on iron, manganese and iron-manganese-modified clinoptilolite-rich tuffs

Arsenate adsorption from aqueous solutions onto clinoptilolite-heulandite rich tuffs modified with iron or manganese or a mixture of both iron and manganese in this work was investigated. A kinetic model was considered to describe the arsenates adsorption on each zeolitic material. The modified clinoptilolite-heulandite rich tuffs were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. The elemental composition and the specific surface area of the zeolitic material were also determined. The arsenate adsorption by the modified zeolites was carried on in a batch system considering a contact time from 5 min to 24h for the kinetic experimentation. The arsenic was detected by atomic absorption spectrometer using a hydride generator. The kinetics of the arsenate adsorption processes were described by the pseudo-second-order model and the obtained parameter k varies from 0.15 to 5.66 microg/gh. In general, the results suggested that the kinetic adsorption of arsenates on the modified clinoptilolite-rich tuffs depend of the metallic specie that modified the surface characteristics of the zeolitic material, the chemical nature of the metal as well as the association between different metallic chemical species in the zeolitic surface.

Enhanced adsorption of arsenate on the aminated fibers: sorption behavior and uptake mechanism

Novel aminated polyacrylonitrile fibers (APANFs) were prepared through the reaction of polyacrylonitrile fibers (PANFs) with four multinitrogen-containing aminating reagents, and the best adsorbent was obtained after the optimization of preparation experiments. The APANFs were effective for arsenate removal from aqueous solution, and the sorption behaviors including kinetics, isotherms, effect of pH, and competitive anions were investigated. Experimental results show that the equilibrium of arsenate sorption on the fibers was achieved within 1 h, and Langmuir equation described the sorption isotherms well with a high sorption capacity of 256.1 mg/g obtained. The thermodynamic parameters calculated show that the sorption was spontaneous and exothermic under the condition applied. The zero point of zeta potential of the APANFs was at about pH = 8.2, in contrast with that of the PANFs at pH = 3.6. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for the APANFs before and after arsenate adsorption revealed that the amine groups on the fiber surface played an important role in the removal of arsenate from water, attributed to the electrostatic interaction between the positive protonated amine groups and negative arsenate ions.

Arsenic adsorption by polyvinyl pyrrolidone K25 coated cassava peel carbon from aqueous solution

Sorption of arsenic from aqueous solution was carried out using polyvinyl pyrrolidone K25 coated cassava peel carbon (PVPCC). Batch experiments were conducted to determine the effect of contact time, initial concentration, pH and desorption. Batch sorption data's were fitted to Lagergren kinetic studies. Column studies were also conducted using PVPCC as adsorbent. The optimized flow rate of 2.5 mL min(-1) and bed height 10 cm were used to determine the effect of metal ion concentration on removal of As(V). BDST model was applied to calculate the adsorption capacity (N(0)) of column. The N(0) value of 2.59 x 10(-5), 4.21 x 10(-5), 4.05 x 10(-5), 4.26 x 10(-5) and 3.2 x 10(-5) mg g(-1) were obtained for 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 mg L(-1) of As(V), respectively. The batch sorption proved to be more efficient than the column sorption. The sorption of As(V) and the nature of the adsorbent was examined by Fourier transmission infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies, respectively.