Conversion of Spiky Sweetgum tree (Liquidambar styraciflua) Seeds as into Bio-adsorbent: Static and Dynamic Adsorption Assessment
Wen's Research Group
Wen Zhang, Ph.D., P.E., BCEE
Principal Investigator
Professor
Phone: (973) 596-5520
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Email: wen.zhang@njit.edu
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Dr. Wen Zhang’s group in New Jersey Institute of Technology published a paper in Journal of Hazardous Meterial Advance. This study evaluated the adsorption performances of sweetgum tree (Liquidambar styraciflua) seeds (spiky balls) to remove methylene blue (MB) and lead ions (Pb2+) from water. The pristine spiky balls yielded higher adsorption capacities than the thermally treated ones at 200oC. The static adsorption of 10 mg∙L-1 methylene blue (MB) dye and 10 mg∙L-1 lead (Pb2+) from water reached high removal rates of MB and Pb2+ up to 89.1±1.3% and 92±4% respectively. The adsorption kinetics of MB and Pb2+ on pristine spiky balls followed the pseudo-second-order and the pseudo-first-order models (R2 = 0.998, and 0.953, respectively), suggesting that MB and Pb2+ follows chemosorption and physisorption, respectively. Consequently, the adsorption capacity for MB (143.5 mg·g-1) was significantly greater than that for Pb2+ (0.9 mg·g-1). The isotherm analysis further reveals that spiky balls may have a heterogeneous surface with multilayered adsorption and stronger adsorption interactions with MB than with Pb2+. Finally, dynamic adsorption was evaluated in packed adsorption columns, which provide insightful information (e.g., adsorption capacity and break-through dynamics) in practical applications.
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