Influencing Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes for the Removal of Ismate Violet 2R Dye from Wastewater: Isotherm, Kinetics, and Thermodynamic Studies

Abstract

In this study, a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) was synthesized and used as an adsorbent for the removal of Ismate violet 2R dye from contaminated water. The morphology and structure of the synthesized adsorbent were examined via the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) analysis, infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Raman spectroscopy. The effects of an MWCNT on the removal of IV2R were examined via a batch method using different factors such as pH, agitation time, adsorbent dosage, temperature, and initial dye concentration. The results showed that, at the acidic pH 4, 0.08 g of an MWCNT with 10 mg L−1 at 120 min realized the favorable removal of IV2R dye using an MWCNT. Under these operation conditions, the maximum elimination efficiency for real wastewater reached 88.2%. This process benefits from the ability to remove a large amount of dye (approximately 85.9%) in as short as 10 min using 0.005 g of MWCNTs. Moreover, the investigational isotherm data were examined by different models. The equations of error functions were used in the isotherm model to show the most appropriate isotherm model. The highest adsorption capacity for the removal of the dye was 76.92 mg g−1 for the MWCNT. Moreover, the regression data indicated that the adsorption kinetics were appropriate with a pseudo-second order and an R2 of 0.999. The thermodynamic study showed that the removal of IV2R is an endothermic, spontaneous, and chemisorption process. The MWCNT compound appears to be a new, promising adsorbent in water treatment, with 91.71% regeneration after three cycles.