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. 2023 Feb 25;13(1):3278.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-29674-x.

Removal of toxic lead from aqueous solution using a low-cost adsorbent

Mohammad Hadi Dehghani  1   2 , Sahar Afsari Sardari  3 , Mojtaba Afsharnia  4 , Mehdi Qasemi  5 , Mahmoud Shams  6
Affiliations

Removal of toxic lead from aqueous solution using a low-cost adsorbent

Mohammad Hadi Dehghani et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Valorization of waste materials and byproducts as adsorbents is a sustainable approach for water treatment systems. Pottery Granules (PG) without any chemical and thermal modification were used as a low-cost, abundant, and environmentally benign adsorbent against Pb(II), the toxic metal in drinking water. The porous structure and complex mineral composition of PG made it an efficient adsorbent material for Pb(II). The effect of key physicochemical factors was investigated to determine the significance of contact time, PG dose, pH, solution temperature, and coexisting ions, on the process. Pb(II) removal increased by PG dose in the range of 5-15 g/L, and agitation time from 5 to 60 min. Increasing Pb(II) concentration led to a drop in Pb(II) removal, however, adsorption capacity increased significantly as concentration elevated. Pb(II) removal also increased significantly from ~ 45% to ~ 97% by pH from 2 to 12. A ~ 20% improvement in Pb(II) adsorption after rising the solution temperature by 30˚C, indicated the endothermic nature of the process. The sorption was described to be a favorable process in which Pb(II) was adsorbed in a multilayer onto the heterogeneous PG surface. The qmax of 9.47 mg/g obtained by the Langmuir model was superior among many reported low-cost adsorbents. The Pb(II) adsorption was described well by the Pseudo- first-order kinetic model. Na+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Cd2+, and Zn2+ showed a negligible effect on Pb(II) adsorption. However, the presence of Mn2+ and Fe2+ significantly hindered the process efficacy. In conclusion, the use of waste material such as PG against Pb(II) is a viable option from the economic and effectiveness points of view.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
FESEM of PG adsorbent with two magnification.
Figure 2
Figure 2
XRD pattern of PG used for Pb(II) removal.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Pb(II) removal as a function of adsorbent dose (Pb(II): 10 mg/L).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Pb(II) removal as a function of Pb(II) concentrations. (PG: 10 g/L).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Adsorbent capacity (qt) as a function of Pb(II) concentration (PG: 10 g/L).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Effect of pH on Pb(II) adsorption (PG: 10 g/L, Pb(II): 10 mg/L).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Effect of temperature on Pb(II) adsorption (PG: 10 g/L, Pb(II): 10 mg/L).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Fitting the three widely kinetic models for Pb(II) adsorption by Pb(II).
Figure 9
Figure 9
Fitting the six widely isotherm models for Pb(II) adsorption by Pb(II).
Figure 10
Figure 10
Effect of co-existing ions on Pb(II) adsorption by PG (adsorbent dosage: 10 g/L, Pb(II): 10 mg/L).
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