Application of araçá fruit husks (Psidium cattleianum) in the preparation of activated carbon with FeCl3 for atrazine herbicide adsorption

Abstract

The residual husks of the edible fruits of Psidium cattleianum were carbonized with FeCl3 as an activating agent and used as an adsorbent to remove the toxic herbicide. After the carbonization step, changes in the material’s structure were found. Activated carbon showed characteristics of microporous materials with a pore volume of 0.280 cm3 g−1 and surface area of 431 m2 g−1. Micrographs revealed the emergence of new cavities with a uniform and circular shape. The FTIR spectra showed the disappearance of some bands, remaining bands belonging to functional groups containing carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen. The XRD patterns confirmed the amorphous structure of the material even after the carbonization step, composed of amorphous graphitic carbon. EDS analysis showed that the carbon percentage increased and the oxygen decreased after the carbonization. The experiments were performed at neutral pH using 1 g L−1 of adsorbent. In equilibrium isotherms, the temperature played a considerable role in the adsorption capacity, increasing from 26.39 mg g−1 to 35.67 mg g−1 when the temperature varied from 298 to 328 K. The Liu isotherms were the ones that best fit the isotherm data. The changes in the adsorption enthalpy were endothermic (ΔH° 129.5 kJ mol−1). The general order kinetic model was the most adequate for kinetic data, presenting the lowest values of the Bayesian Information Criterion. Thus, activated carbon developed from the residues of the “araça” fruit showed promise in removing atrazine from aqueous solutions, with the great advantage of its high efficiency under neutral pH solutions and mild temperatures.