Nitrate sorption on activated carbon modified with CaCl2: Equilibrium, isotherms and kinetics

Abstract

In this study, nitrate (NO3-) removal from aqueous solutions was investigated using granular activated carbon (GAC) modified with CaCl2. Batch sorption studies were performed as a function of sorbent dose, initial nitrate concentration and pH. Sorption was maximized between pH 3 and 9. Studies on the effect of pH showed that the ion exchange mechanism might be involved in the sorption process. The percentage of nitrate removed increased with increasing sorbent concentration, and the ideal sorbent dose was found to be 20 g?L-1. Four isotherm models-Langmuir, Freundlich, Redlich-Peterson and Sips-were used to fit the experimental data. The Redlich-Peterson isotherm model explained the sorption process well and showed the best coefficient of determination (0.9979) and Chi-square test statistic (0.0079). Using the Sips isotherm model, the sorption capacity (qe) was found to be 1.93 mg nitrate per g of sorbent. Kinetic experiments indicated that sorption was a fast process, reaching equilibrium within 120 min. The nitrate sorption kinetic data were successfully fitted to a pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The overall results demonstrated potential applications of modified GAC for nitrate removal from aqueous solutions.