Low temperature regeneration of activated carbons using microwaves: revising conventional wisdom.

The purpose of this work was to explore the application of microwaves for the low temperature regeneration of activated carbons saturated with a pharmaceutical compound (promethazine). Contrary to expectations, microwave-assisted regeneration did not lead to better results than those obtained under conventional electric heating. At low temperatures the regeneration was incomplete either under microwave and conventional heating, being this attributed to the insufficient input energy. At mild temperatures, a fall in the adsorption capacity upon cycling was obtained in both devices, although this was much more pronounced for the microwave. These results contrast with previous studies on the benefits of microwaves for the regeneration of carbon materials. The fall in the adsorption capacity after regeneration was due to the thermal cracking of the adsorbed molecules inside the carbon porous network, although this effect applies to both devices. When microwaves are used, along with the thermal heating of the carbon bed, a fraction of the microwave energy seemed to be directly used in the decomposition of promethazine through the excitation of the molecular bonds by microwaves (microwave-lysis). These results point out that the nature of the adsorbate and its ability to interact with microwave are key factors that control the application of microwaves for regeneration of exhausted activated carbons.

Equilibrium, kinetic and mass transfer studies and column operations for the removal of arsenic(III) from aqueous solutions using acid treated spent bleaching earth.

In the present study, a new adsorbent was produced from spent bleaching earth by H2SO4 impregnation method. The sorption of arsenic(III) by acid treated spent bleaching earth was studied to examine the possibility of utilizing this material in water treatment systems. The effect of time, pH, initial concentration, temperature on the adsorption of arsenic(III) was studied. Maximum adsorption was found to occur at pH 9.0. The adsorption process followed the first order Lagergren equation. Mass transfer coefficients and rate constants of intraparticle diffusion were calculated. The experimental data points were fitted to the Langmuir equation in order to calculate the adsorption capacity (Q0) of the adsorbent and the value of Q0 was found to be 0.46 mmol g(-1). In order to understand the adsorption mechanism, Dubinin-Radushkevich (DR) isotherm was used. The magnitude of E calculated from DR equation was found to be 5.12 kJ mol(-1). The heat of adsorption (deltaH0 = -30367 J mol(-1)) implied that the adsorption was physical exothermic adsorption. The column studies were also carried out to simulate water treatment processes. The capacity values obtained in column studies were found to be greater than the capacity values obtained in batch studies. This result was explained by the difference between batch system and column system. The factors that affect the capacity values of column and batch systems were explained. The effect of other anions on the adsorption of arsenic(III) in the presence of NO3-, SO4(2-), Cl-, Br- was studied. The presence of these anions did not affect the adsorption of arsenic(III) significantly.

Removal of 2,4-D from aqueous solution by the adsorbents from spent bleaching earth.

The removal of 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) from aqueous solutions by activated spent bleaching earths (SBE) was studied at 20 degrees C. Experiments were performed as a function of time, initial concentration, dose and particle size of the adsorbent. The Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption equations were fitted by the adsorption data obtained. The values of Langmuir and Freundlich constants were determined. The adsorption kinetic was found to follow Lagergren equation. Both the boundary layer and intraparticle diffusion played important roles in the adsorption rate of 2,4-D. As the size of the adsorbent increased, the time to reach equilibrium increased but adsorption capacity decreased.