Evaluation of permutite for removal of radiocobalt from nuclear wastewater

A synthetic zeolite, commercially available as permutite was tested for removing radiocobalt from aqueous solutions by sorption. The sorption process was studied as a function of contact time, pH, ionic strength and solid content by batch technique. The results revealed that the process is dependent on the pH and ionic strength under ambient conditions. The kinetic sorption was fitted well by a pseudo-second-order rate equation. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔH 0, ΔS 0, ΔG 0) suggested that sorption behavior of Co(II) is a spontaneous and endothermic process. The study shows that permutite has excellent potential for disposal of wastewaters containing radiocobalt.