Equilibrium Adsorption of Phenol from Water by Activated Carbon of Different Brands

• Published in: Journal of water chemistry and technology 2023-02, Vol.45 (1), p.30-36
• Main Authors: Smolin, S. K., Zabneva, O. V., Nevynna, L. V., Synelnikova, A. V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Activated carbon; Adsorption; Aquatic Pollution; Aqueous solutions; Aromatic compounds; Dissolved oxygen; Earth and Environmental Science; Efficiency; Environment; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Organic compounds; Phenols; Physical Chemistry of Water Treatment Processes; Porosity; Room temperature; Sorbents; Sorption; Surface chemistry; Waste Water Technology; Water Industry/Water Technologies; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Water Quality/Water Pollution
• ISSN: 1063-455X; 1934-936X
• DOI: 10.3103/S1063455X23010095

Sorption on activated carbon (AC) are the most widely used method for deep extraction of synthetic aromatic organic compounds from their aqueous solutions. To achieve maximum efficiency, it is necessary to correctly select the adsorbent by taking into account its structural and sorption characteristics and surface chemistry, as well as the size of molecules of the pollutant and their ability to ionize in a solution at a certain pH value. In this study, the equilibrium adsorption extraction of phenol under static conditions by commercial sorbents with different physicochemical characteristics (Sibunit, KAD, Akant, F300, and KAU) is investigated. Room temperature adsorption isotherms at a dissolved oxygen concentration of 5–6 mg/dm 3 and pH = 5.2–7.2 are studied. The effects of the porosity and the nature and number of surface active sites of AC on the efficiency of phenol adsorption from dilute aqueous solutions are studied. It is shown that the small concentrations of surface active sites of the studied commercial sorbents have no substantial effect on the efficiency of purifying aqueous solutions from phenol, but structural and sorption characteristics—in particular, the volume of the narrowest but accessible micropores—have the greatest effect. Among the studied ACs, sorbents Akant, F300, and KAU have such characteristics.