Effect of environmental conditions on the sorption of radiocobalt from aqueous solution to treated eggshell as biosorbent

Abstract

Carbonate hydroxylapatite (CHAP), prepared from eggshell waste, was used to remove 60Co(II) from aqueous solutions. The sorption of 60Co(II) on CHAP as a function of contact time, pH, ionic strength and foreign ions in the absence and presence of humic acid and fulvic acid under ambient conditions was studied. The sorption of 60Co(II) on CHAP was strongly dependent on pH and ionic strength. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔH 0, ΔS 0, ΔG 0) of 60Co(II) sorption on CHAP were calculated from the temperature-dependent sorption isotherms, and the results indicated that the sorption process of 60Co(II) on CHAP was endothermic and spontaneous. At low pH, the sorption of 60Co(II) was dominated by outer-sphere surface complexation and ion exchange with Na+/H+ on CHAP surfaces, whereas inner-sphere surface complexation was the main sorption mechanism at high pH. Experimental results also indicated that CHAP was a suitable low-cost adsorbent for pre-concentration and solidification of 60Co(II) from large volumes of aqueous solutions.