Adsorbing micellar interface for enhanced removal of lead from aqueous solution

An enhanced removal of lead with polymerized saw dust (PSD) in the presence of micellar solutions of sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and Criton X-100 has been investigated. The PSD with micellar solution was found to be an effective sorbent for removal of lead from wastewaters in laboratory-scale experiments. Batch studies of PSD with and without micellar systems indicate that Pb removal is greater with micellar systems. The percentage removal of Pb on PSD with micelles increased on decreasing lead concentration and increasing sorbent dose, micellar concentration and electrolyte addition. The single and binary micellar systems also showed marked variations in percentage removal. In single systems of SDS, CTAB and Criton X-100 percentage removal enhancements of lead were 68.5, 65.0 and 3.2% respectively. The binary mixtures of Criton X-100 with SDS and with CTAB enhanced removal upto 74.0% and 69.3% respectively. The combination of SDS and CTAB had no significance effect. The adsorption equilibrium followed Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. The enhancement in removal was possibly due to interaction between Pb and micellar media and then adsorption on PSD. So, PSD is a good sorbent for both Pb and micelles.