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Dysprosium Removal from Water Using Active Carbons Obtained from Spent Coffee Ground
Lorena Alcaraz1, María Esther Escudero2, Francisco José Alguacil3
1National Center for Metallurgical Research (CENIM), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Avda. Gregorio del Amo, 8, 28040 Madrid, Spain. alcaraz@cenim.csic.es.
Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 28, 2019
Summary
Spent coffee grounds yield activated carbons effective for removing dysprosium (Dy3+) from water. Both chemically and physically activated carbons show high adsorption capacity, with the process being exothermic and spontaneous.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Chemistry
- Materials Science
Background:
- Rare earth elements, including dysprosium (Dy3+), pose environmental concerns when present in aqueous solutions.
- Activated carbons derived from waste materials offer a sustainable approach for pollutant removal.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the physicochemical adsorption of Dy3+ onto activated carbons synthesized from spent coffee grounds.
- To evaluate the performance of chemically (KOH) and physically (water vapor/N2) activated carbons for Dy3+ removal.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of two types of activated carbons from spent coffee grounds: one using KOH activation (microporous) and another using water vapor/N2 activation (mesoporous).
- Characterization of activated carbons using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis and pore size distribution.
- Adsorption experiments to study the effect of pH, dysprosium concentration, and temperature on adsorption capacity.
- Analysis of adsorption isotherms using the Langmuir model and kinetics using the pseudo-second-order model.
Main Results:
- The KOH-activated carbon exhibited a BET surface area of 2330 m2·g-1 with 3.2 nm pores, while the water vapor/N2-activated carbon had a surface area of 982 m2·g-1 with 5.7 nm pores.
- Adsorption capacity was significantly dependent on solution pH but not on Dy3+ concentration or temperature.
- Maximum adsorption capacities were 31.26 mg·g-1 and 33.52 mg·g-1 for chemically and physically activated carbons, respectively.
- Adsorption data best fit the Langmuir model and pseudo-second-order kinetics.
- Thermodynamic analysis indicated an exothermic, spontaneous, and favorable adsorption process.
Conclusions:
- Activated carbons derived from spent coffee grounds are effective adsorbents for removing dysprosium from aqueous solutions.
- The choice of activation method influences the pore structure and adsorption performance.
- The adsorption process is favorable, spontaneous, and exothermic, suggesting potential for practical application in wastewater treatment.
