Remediation of Phenol-contaminated Aqueous Solutions by Synthesized Organoclay

Sepideh Nasrollahpour ,Daryoush Yousefi Kebria ,Mohammad Ghavami

doi:10.5829/ijee.2019.10.04.03

Abstract

Phenol and its metabolites are among the hazardous organic compounds, due to their carcinogenicity, toxicity, long term persistence in the environment. The purposes of this study are the synthesis of organoclay as an adsorbent with high physicochemical stability, environmental compatibility and its application for remediation of aqueous solutions contaminated with phenol. In this research, organoclay was synthesized by the combination of sodium bentonite and Cetyl Trimethyl Ammonium Bromide (CTAB) surfactant with three different Cation Exchange Capacities (CECs). As well as, adsorption capacity of synthesized organoclay was determined during reuse until saturation. The results revealed that the removal efficiencies of phenol at concentrations of 100, 1000, 2000, and 3000 mg/L were 68, 84, 82, and 80%, respectively. In general, the use of organoclay can be an alternative to the complex and expensive systems for the removal of phenol from aqueous solutions with respect to its simplicity, high performance, and cost-effectiveness.

Highlights

In recent years, because of population growth, industry advancements and global challenges the use of oil and fossil fuels is inevitable
Increasing the amount of adsorbent in a system generally leads to the accumulation of clay minerals, which reduces the adsorption site for the adsorption of phenolic compounds
As pointed out, the adsorption capacity of organoclay with Cation Exchange Capacities (CECs) 200% has no significant differences with that of CEC 300%, even organoclay with CEC 200% in some cases had performed slightly better than CEC 300%

Summary

Introduction

Because of population growth, industry advancements and global challenges the use of oil and fossil fuels is inevitable. Among the physical removal methods, adsorption is the most widely used approach, in which contaminants in the water bind to the surface of solid adsorbents such as activated carbon, and the physical and chemical bonding is achieved [910]. Recent investigations are seeking to find alternative adsorbents for the removal of low-cost and accessible organic pollutants [12] Of these adsorbents, different clay minerals are desirable adsorbents because of their low cost, abundance in nature, high surface area, and high adsorption [13]. In this study, the efficiency of organoclay synthesized with CTAB surfactant was assessed because of its convenient preparation and high potential in increasing hydrophilicity and adsorption of aromatic and phenolic compounds at various Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC). The independent variables of contact time, different concentrations of phenol (low, medium, and high) were examined, and the capacity and adsorption process of organoclay for reuse until saturation were determined

Methods

Results

Conclusion