Batch Adsorption for Iron and Chromium Removal by Low Cost Adsorbents: Studies on Affecting Parameters

Heavy metal removal from wastewater can be carried out by various chemical, physical and biological methods. The presence of heavy metal can affect man and environment adversely. The heavy metal treatment by using adsorption can be carried out by using low cost adsorbents. In the present research, the bagasse and groundnut shells are used as low cost starting materials for adsorbent preparation. Batch studies are carried out for studying removal of iron and chromium from synthetic wastewater for bagasse adsorbent (BA) and groundnut shell adsorbent (GSA). It was observed that optimum adsorbent dosage of 2.5 g/100 ml and 1.5 g/100 ml were sufficient for adsorption of almost 90% of the initial metal concentration for iron and chromium respectively. The amount of the metal removed at optimum pH increased with increase in adsorbent dosage. The optimum pH for the removal of chromium (VI) and iron (III) was in the range of 2 to 4 for both, BA and GSA.