Axial Dispersion and Mass Transfer Controlled Simulation Study of Chromium (VI) Adsorption onto Tree Leaves and Activated Carbon
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 135, Issue 10
Abstract
In this paper, the feasibility and efficacy of chromium (Cr(VI)) removal using three different kinds of tree leaves viz. Emblica officinalis, Azadirachta indica, Eucalyptus agglomerata, and the activated carbon is examined through batch and continuous flow experiments. Pretreatments were given to the selected tree leaf powders to remove the natural pigments and lignin present. Batch and continuous flow experiments have been conducted to study the kinetics of adsorption, effects of pH, adsorbent dose, contact time, bed depth, flow rate, and initial Cr(VI) concentration on Cr(VI) adsorption onto the selected adsorbents. The adsorption capacity is observed higher for Emblica officinalis followed by Eucalyptus agglomerata and Azadirachta indica. The adsorption equilibrium is reached in less than 30 min and the maximum Cr(VI) uptake occurred at pH 3.0 under the test conditions. The results are also compared with the commercially available activated carbon. A mathematical model incorporating diffusion, advection, and mass transfer mechanisms available in the literature has been simplified and is then tested to simulate the laboratory and literature data. A simple method for the determination of saturation Cr(VI) concentration along the length of column has been presented. The study reveals that the model incorporating the molecular diffusion and the mass transfer mechanisms simulates better the Cr(VI) adsorption onto tree leaf powders than the literature model and the advection term plays only a negligible role due to low flow rates applied during the experiments. The model parameters, i.e., axial dispersion coefficient, “ ” and the external mass transfer coefficient, “ ” are found in the order of and , respectively.
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Acknowledgments
This work was completed at the Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT), Deemed University, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India and supported by the funding from this institute. The writers are grateful to the Director, MNNIT for extending the required help and encouragement from time to time during this work. However, the writers are responsible for any errors, omissions, or interpretations in the manuscript.
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 135 • Issue 10 • October 2009
Pages: 1071 - 1083
Copyright
© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Jan 23, 2008
Accepted: Jan 20, 2009
Published online: Sep 15, 2009
Published in print: Oct 2009
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