Contribution of zeolite to remove malachite green in aqueous solution by adsorption processes: Kinetics, isotherms and thermodynamic studies

Abstract

The textile industry produces huge amounts of wastewaters containing synthetic dyes. In the textile industry, acid, basic, reactive, dispersed chemicals are widely used for dyeing. The aim of this study was to evaluate the adsorption of malachite green onto zeolite from aqueous solutions was realized in batch system. The adsorbent was characterized by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray analysis, and zero point charge (pHzpc = 10.42). However, some examined factors were found to have significant impacts on the adsorption capacity of zeolite such as the initial malachite green concentration (Co), solution pH, adsorbent dose, agitation speed, particles size, and temperature. The best capacity was found at pH 8 with an adsorbent dose 0.2 g/l, an agitation speed 200 rpm and a contact time of 40 min. The kinetic adsorptions were found to follow rather a pseudo-second order kinetic model with a determination coefficient (R2) of 0.999. The equilibrium adsorption data for the malachite green adsorption onto the zeolite were analyzed by the Langmuir, Freundlich, Elovich, and Temkin models. The results indicate that the Langmuir model provides the best correlation with a capacity qmax of 83.33 mg/g at 25°C. The adsorption isotherms at different temperatures have been used for the determination of thermodynamic parameters, namely the free energy (ΔG°); enthalpy (ΔH°) and entropy (ΔS°) to predict the nature of adsorption. The positive values of ΔG° and ΔH° indicate that the overall adsorption is not spontaneous and endothermic with a physisorption process. The adsorbent elaborated from the zeolite was found to be efficient and suitable for the elimination of reactive dyes from aqueous solutions, due to its availability of adsorption sites, low cost preparation, and good uptake capacity.