Laboratory and Field Investigation of Sulfolane Removal from Water Using Activated Carbon
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146, Issue 5
Abstract
Batch and fixed-bed adsorption experiments were conducted to evaluate the feasibility of using activated carbon to remove sulfolane from aqueous media. Nine commercially available activated carbons with different particle sizes and surface characteristics were obtained, and their effectiveness in removing sulfolane from water was examined. The impact of operational parameters such as pH, temperature, water quality, and presence of cocontaminants on sulfolane adsorption was also investigated. In addition, pilot-scale experiments were conducted to assess the applicability of activated carbon adsorption under field conditions. The results indicated that coconut shell–based activated carbon had the highest sulfolane adsorption capacity. Adsorption was significantly affected by the presence of cocontaminants. The pilot study indicated that activated carbon can be used to remove sulfolane from groundwater.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Bonavista Energy Corporation and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) for providing financial support for this research.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146 • Issue 5 • May 2020
Copyright
©2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 4, 2019
Accepted: Oct 2, 2019
Published online: Feb 19, 2020
Published in print: May 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Jul 19, 2020
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