Intensification of a continuous adsorption system by applying an external magnetic field for the removal of heavy metals in the ionic state

• Published in: Chemical engineering and processing 2022-11, Vol.181, p.109140, Article 109140
• Main Authors: González-Vázquez, O.F., Moreno-Virgen, M.R., Hernández-Montoya, V., Tovar-Gómez, R., Kamaraj, Sathish-Kumar, Ortiz-Morales, Martín, Frausto-Reyes, Claudio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0255-2701; 1873-3204
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cep.2022.109140

•Continuous enhanced adsorption systems.•Magnetic field assistance.•Heavy metal removal.•Computer simulations of magnetic sistems.•Mathematical modeling of the mobilization of ionic particles. Were carried out adsorption studies in a continuous system subjected to external magnetic fields of three different intensities; non intensity (NI), low intensity (LI) and high intensity (HI), generated from permanent magnets, in order to evaluate the removal of three different heavy metals in ionic state (Cd2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+). The design of magnetic field application systems is supported by finite element computational simulations. The results show that the application of an external magnetic field improves the adsorbate retention proportionally to the intensity of the applied magnetic field, intensifying said process compared to a system without the application of a magnetic field, increasing the maximum adsorption capacity. The results show an increase in adsorption capacity of 16.02% for the removal of Cd2+ and 6.81% for Zn2+; however, the removal of Pb2+ had a small difference of 2.41%, which is attributed to the subtle differences in the physicochemical and magnetic characteristics of this adsorbate and the others such as hydrated ion radius and magnetic susceptibility. Additionally, a proposal of the mathematical model that could describe the phenomenon based on the variables shown here is made. [Display omitted]