Removal of lead(II) from water using activated carbon developed from jujube stones, a low-cost sorbent

ABSTRACT

The preparation of activated carbon from jujube stones with H₂SO₄ activation and its ability to remove lead from aqueous solutions were reported in this study. The surface structure of the activated carbon was characterized by various physico-chemical methods. Sorption studies were carried out by varying the initial metal ion and the pH: the amount of sorbed Pb(II) ions increased with increasing pH and initial Pb(II) ions concentration. The removal of lead ions was rapid and the kinetic of sorption can be well described by pseudo-second order modelling. The Langmuir model conveniently fits the data of isotherm experiments and the monolayer sorption capacity of Pb(II) ions was determined as 71.43 mg/g at pH 6.0 and 25°C. These results showed that activated carbon prepared from jujube stones could be considered for application as a potential sorbent for the removal of lead from wastewaters.

KEYWORDS:

• Chemical activation
• jujube stones
• lead
• sorption isotherms
• sorption kinetics

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.