Low cost bio-sorbent banana peel for the removal of toxics removal of toxic substances from water

Abstract

An ability of fresh banana peel without surface modification was evaluated for the removal of lead ions from aqueous solution. Batch adsorption was performed at room temperature. The experimental conditions, including dosage, contact time, initial concentration of lead( II) ion were studied. The characterization of fresh banana peel was carried out by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence ( ED-XRF) . The isotherm models of Langmuir and Freundlich were used to describe the adsorption mechanism involving the relationship between adsorbent surface capacity and adsorbed degree of lead(II)ion in the equilibrium conditions. The experimental data fitted well to the Langmuir isotherm with a correlation coefficient of r2 greater than 0.86. The Maximum adsorption capacity (qm) was found to be 0.9151 mg/g. The results of ED-XRF of fresh banana peels before and after treatment with lead( II) ion confirmed that lead( II) ion was occupied onto the surface of fresh banana peel. Moreover, the inside of fresh banana peels was found the lead(II)ion larger than the outside peels. It was concluded that waste of banana could be used as a low-cost adsorbent for removal of lead(II)ion from aqueous solution based on a simple adsorption method.