Chemical activation of hickory and peanut hull hydrochars for removal of lead and methylene blue from aqueous solutions |
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| Authors: | June Fang Ahmed Mosa Lu Zhan |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA;2. Faculty of Agriculture, Soils Department, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt;3. Shanghai Key Lab for Urban Ecological Processes and Eco-Restoration, School of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China |
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| Abstract: | Hickory and peanut hydrochars were chemically activated with KOH and H3PO4 and tested for their ability to remove methylene blue and lead from aqueous solutions. The physicochemical characteristics of the activated hydrochars determined were surface area, pore volume, and elemental composition. Kinetics and isotherm studies were then conducted on methylene blue adsorption. Compared to their nonactivated counterparts, the chemically activated hydrochars had higher surface areas and more functional groups. Activated hydrochars also had greater methylene blue and lead adsorption rates, which can be attributed to the improved physicochemical characteristics. H3PO4 activated hydrochars removed more contaminants than the corresponding KOH ones. |
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| Keywords: | Activated carbon activation adsorption heavy metals organic pollutants |
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