Effect of HNO3 activated carbon on the decreasing basicity for cadmium ion sorption

Abstract

Toxic metal pollution in water has long been a significant environmental issue, with previous incidents emphasizing its harmful effects and raising awareness about it toxicity. The adsorption of cadmium ion has been investigated using HNO3 activated carbon from sesame stem to determine the effect of the decreasing basicity on adsorption of cadmium ion. Determination of metal ion in solution, effect of ionic strength on sorption capacity, effect of initial metal ion concentration on sorption capacity, effect of pH on sorption capacity, time on kinetic of absorption were investigated. From the results, the equilibrium absorption was attained after about 60 min for the HNO3 activated carbon. The sorption capacity of 84.48 % for HNO3-AC was observed. The removal efficiency of Cd2+ by HNO3-AC increases with increasing presence of the adsorbate. However, as the Cd2+ concentration becomes exceedingly high, the removal efficiency decreases. Low removal capacity of cadmium ion was observed when the drops of HCl were added in an increase manner. The group of cheap biosorbent materials based on natural and waste biomasses constitutes the basis for a new cost-effective technology that can find its largest application in the removal of metal contaminated industrial effluents.