Adsorption of direct dye onto activated carbon prepared from areca nut pod--an agricultural waste

Activated carbons are made from various agricultural wastes by physical and chemical activation. The preparation of activated carbon from agricultural waste could increase economic return and also provides an excellent method for the solid waste disposal thereby reduce pollution. Areca nut pod, which is an agricultural waste, has been used as a raw material to produce activated carbon (AAC) by four different methods. The adsorption of Direct blue dye used in textile industry on the porous areca nut pod activated carbon was investigated. The activated carbon AAC has an average surface area of 502 m2/g. CAC, the commercial reference was mainly micro porous with a surface area of 1026 m2/g .The study investigated the removal of direct dye from simulated water. The effects of adsorbent dosage, initial dye concentration, pH and contact time were studied. The results showed that as the amount of the adsorbent was increased, the percentage of dye removal increased accordingly. The results indicate that AAC could be employed as low-cost alternative to commercial activated carbon in wastewater treatment for the removal of acid dyes.