Publication Details
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to assess the efficiency of the selected biosorbents (banana peels, orange peels and date seed powder) for the removal of Cadmium, Zinc, Copper and Lead from aqueous solutions and to compare the efficiency of these biosorbents with activated carbon which acts as a conventional chemical adsorbent. The initial metal concentration was 50 mg/L, and the experiments were carried out under the experimental conditions of pH 6 and contact time of 0, 30 and 60 minutes. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) was used to determine the concentrations of the metals. It was found that for all of the adsorbents, the removal efficiency increased with the increase in contact time. The most effective removal was using date seeds powder, orange peels and banana peels respectively. Activated carbon was more effective in the removal efficiencies (90 – 97%) while the biosorbents were found to be satisfactory in the removal efficiencies (60 – 85%) with the added advantages of low cost, easy preparation and environmental friendly.Based on the results, it can be concluded that biosorbents can be used as a feasible and environmentally friendly solution for low cost water treatment systems especially in local applications if they can be chemically modified or allowed to contact water for longer periods.