Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon

The level of contamination in industrial wastewater has been a serious environmental challenge of our time. Various researchers have reported that the adsorption process using different adsorbents is a promising technique for treating heavy metal-contaminated wastewater. This study investigated the...

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Main Authors: Sunusi Aliyu, Nurudeen Salahudeen, A. A. Rasheed
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Sumy State University 2024-07-01
Series:Журнал інженерних наук
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Online Access:https://jes.sumdu.edu.ua/adsorptive-removal-of-lead-ii-pollutants-from-wastewater-using-corncob-activated-carbon/
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author Sunusi Aliyu
Nurudeen Salahudeen
A. A. Rasheed
author_facet Sunusi Aliyu
Nurudeen Salahudeen
A. A. Rasheed
author_sort Sunusi Aliyu
collection DOAJ
description The level of contamination in industrial wastewater has been a serious environmental challenge of our time. Various researchers have reported that the adsorption process using different adsorbents is a promising technique for treating heavy metal-contaminated wastewater. This study investigated the adsorptive removal of lead (II) from wastewater using corncob-activated carbon. Activated carbon was synthesized from a raw corncob. The synthesized activated carbon was applied as a sorbent in batch lead (II) adsorption in an aqueous lead (II) solution. Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) theory characterized the synthesized activated carbon. A batch adsorption study investigated the effects of dosage, contact time, and the initial concentration of lead (II) on the sorption of Pb2+ on the synthesized activated carbon. The highest removal of lead recorded was 95 % at an adsorbent dosage of 2.5 g/L in 2 h. The highest adsorption capacity was 16.46 mg/g at the same conditions. The results showed that percentage removal increased with dosage and contact time but decreased with the initial metal ion concentration. Adsorption kinetics were best described with the pseudo-second-order kinetics, while the Langmuir isotherm model best fitted equilibrium adsorption in the study. The FTIR results showed the presence of several functional groups like carboxyl, hydroxyl, and amino, indicating good interaction with lead metal ions. The BET characterization revealed the activated corncob’s specific surface area and pore volume to be 249 m2/g and 0.164 cm3/g. This work shows that activated carbon can be synthesized from agricultural waste such as corncob and be used as an effective adsorbent for heavy metal removal, such as lead, from wastewater.
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spelling doaj-art-8fb64e0d4cce41b0bb0f49f8b6a57f6f2025-08-20T01:58:37ZengSumy State UniversityЖурнал інженерних наук2312-24982414-93812024-07-01112H1H1010.21272/jes.2024.11(2).h1Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated CarbonSunusi Aliyu0https://orcid.org/0009-0009-4033-6143Nurudeen Salahudeen1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7537-8011A. A. Rasheed2Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Bayero University, PMB 3011, Kano, NigeriaDepartment of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Bayero University, PMB 3011, Kano, NigeriaDepartment of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Bayero University, PMB 3011, Kano, NigeriaThe level of contamination in industrial wastewater has been a serious environmental challenge of our time. Various researchers have reported that the adsorption process using different adsorbents is a promising technique for treating heavy metal-contaminated wastewater. This study investigated the adsorptive removal of lead (II) from wastewater using corncob-activated carbon. Activated carbon was synthesized from a raw corncob. The synthesized activated carbon was applied as a sorbent in batch lead (II) adsorption in an aqueous lead (II) solution. Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) theory characterized the synthesized activated carbon. A batch adsorption study investigated the effects of dosage, contact time, and the initial concentration of lead (II) on the sorption of Pb2+ on the synthesized activated carbon. The highest removal of lead recorded was 95 % at an adsorbent dosage of 2.5 g/L in 2 h. The highest adsorption capacity was 16.46 mg/g at the same conditions. The results showed that percentage removal increased with dosage and contact time but decreased with the initial metal ion concentration. Adsorption kinetics were best described with the pseudo-second-order kinetics, while the Langmuir isotherm model best fitted equilibrium adsorption in the study. The FTIR results showed the presence of several functional groups like carboxyl, hydroxyl, and amino, indicating good interaction with lead metal ions. The BET characterization revealed the activated corncob’s specific surface area and pore volume to be 249 m2/g and 0.164 cm3/g. This work shows that activated carbon can be synthesized from agricultural waste such as corncob and be used as an effective adsorbent for heavy metal removal, such as lead, from wastewater.https://jes.sumdu.edu.ua/adsorptive-removal-of-lead-ii-pollutants-from-wastewater-using-corncob-activated-carbon/metal-contaminated wastewater treatmentadsorptioncorncob agro-wastelead ionadsorbentisothermkinetics
spellingShingle Sunusi Aliyu
Nurudeen Salahudeen
A. A. Rasheed
Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
Журнал інженерних наук
metal-contaminated wastewater treatment
adsorption
corncob agro-waste
lead ion
adsorbent
isotherm
kinetics
title Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
title_full Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
title_fullStr Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
title_full_unstemmed Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
title_short Adsorptive Removal of Lead (II) Pollutants from Wastewater Using Corncob-Activated Carbon
title_sort adsorptive removal of lead ii pollutants from wastewater using corncob activated carbon
topic metal-contaminated wastewater treatment
adsorption
corncob agro-waste
lead ion
adsorbent
isotherm
kinetics
url https://jes.sumdu.edu.ua/adsorptive-removal-of-lead-ii-pollutants-from-wastewater-using-corncob-activated-carbon/
work_keys_str_mv AT sunusialiyu adsorptiveremovalofleadiipollutantsfromwastewaterusingcorncobactivatedcarbon
AT nurudeensalahudeen adsorptiveremovalofleadiipollutantsfromwastewaterusingcorncobactivatedcarbon
AT aarasheed adsorptiveremovalofleadiipollutantsfromwastewaterusingcorncobactivatedcarbon