Abstract
In this work, cow manure (CM) was reused as a potential precursor in the production of activated carbon (AC) using a potassium hydroxide activation process at different temperatures (i.e., 500, 600 and 700 °C). The optimal activated carbon from cow manure (CM-AC) with high specific surface area (ca. 950 m2/g) was further investigated for its adsorption performance in the removal of a model compound (i.e., methylene blue) from aqueous solution with various initial concentrations and adsorbent dosages at 25 °C. It was found that the resulting AC could be an effective adsorbent for removal of cationic dye from aqueous solution in comparison with a commercial coal-based AC. Based on the observations of the energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), the CM-AC adsorbent has a stronger interaction with the cationic compound due to its more oxygen-containing complex on the surface. Furthermore, the adsorption kinetic parameters fitted using the pseudo-second order model with high correlations were in accordance with their pore properties.
Highlights
Water pollution caused by organic pollutants is a serious issue because it can degrade water quality and render it toxic to public health and the environment
As methylene blue was commonly selected as a probe compound for determining the adsorption capacity of activated carbon (AC) quickly [37], this cationic dye, which was purchased from Merck Co., was used as an organic pollutant target in the work
Using the data of total pore volume, the ratio of that of Filtrasorb-300 to that of cow manure (CM)-AC-700 was 0.68, close to 0.70. This result gave an indication of the pore size difference between CM-AC-700 and Filtrasorb-300
Summary
Water pollution caused by organic pollutants (e.g., dye, pesticide) is a serious issue because it can degrade water quality and render it toxic to public health and the environment. The adsorption process is not a low-cost method because commercial activated carbon (AC) products have higher prices and the regeneration or disposal when they are exhausted will generate additional issues. The CMC-derived activated carbon was tested to evaluate the liquid-phase adsorption performances of various adsorption targets, including phenol, methylene blue, water vapor, metal ions (i.e., Cu, Pb), and 2-methylisoborneol. In another recent study by Li et al [36], AC was produced from cow manure using chemical activators like potassium carbonate (K2 CO3 ) and ZnCl2 , showing that the values of specific surface area range from 114 to 893 m2 /g.
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