ACTIVATED CARBON DEVELOPED FROM ORANGE PEELS: BATCH AND DYNAMIC COMPETITIVE ADSORPTION OF BASIC DYES

M. E. FERNANDEZ; G. NUNELL; P. BONELLI; A. L. CUKIERMAN

Industrial Crops and Products

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2014 vol. 62 p. 437 - 445

0926-6690

Activated carbon from orange (Citrus sinensis) peel was developed through H3PO4acid activation. Itsability as an adsorbent for the removal of two representative basic dyes (methylene blue and rhodamineB) from single and binary dyes solutions in batch and continuous modes was examined. The orange peel-based activated carbon presented a high specific surface area (1090 m2/g), predominance of mesoporesand acidic character. It also showed a high adsorption capacity for both dyes in batch and dynamic modes.Experimental equilibrium isotherms obtained from single-dye solutions fitted the Langmuir?Freundlichmodel, and those obtained from binary solutions were properly described by single and multi-componentmodels. Breakthrough curves obtained from single-dye solutions exhibited a better removal performancefor rhodamine B. Adsorption capacity at exhaustion time for this dye was 11% higher than for methy-lene blue. Additional experiments in dynamic conditions with a binary solution of both dyes pointed toadsorption competition for the active sites of the developed carbon. Breakthrough curves were adequatelyrepresented by a modified two-parameter model.Citrus sinensis) peel was developed through H3PO4acid activation. Itsability as an adsorbent for the removal of two representative basic dyes (methylene blue and rhodamineB) from single and binary dyes solutions in batch and continuous modes was examined. The orange peel-based activated carbon presented a high specific surface area (1090 m2/g), predominance of mesoporesand acidic character. It also showed a high adsorption capacity for both dyes in batch and dynamic modes.Experimental equilibrium isotherms obtained from single-dye solutions fitted the Langmuir?Freundlichmodel, and those obtained from binary solutions were properly described by single and multi-componentmodels. Breakthrough curves obtained from single-dye solutions exhibited a better removal performancefor rhodamine B. Adsorption capacity at exhaustion time for this dye was 11% higher than for methy-lene blue. Additional experiments in dynamic conditions with a binary solution of both dyes pointed toadsorption competition for the active sites of the developed carbon. Breakthrough curves were adequatelyrepresented by a modified two-parameter model.