Study of phenol adsorption from wastewater using pumice modified by Mg/Cu bimetallic particles

The major sources of phenol pollution in the aquatic environment are wastewaters from dyeing, pesticide, polymeric resins, petroleum and petrochemicals industries. Introducing phenolic compounds into the environment especially water bodies are one of the most important issues due to their toxicity for human and aquatic organisms. The aim of this work was to assess the capability of pumice- bimetal particles as an adsorbent for phenol removal from wastewater. In this experimental study, the pumice volcanic stone that was provided from the Kurdistan province was used. The pumice particles (mesh 30) were modified by metals of magnesium and copper, as bimetal compound. The functional groups and specific surface area of pumice bimetal particles were determined. After the preparation of a synthetic wastewater contain phenol, the influences of parameters including wastewater pH (2–12), reaction time (3–60 min), initial phenol concentration 25- 150 mg/L), and the adsorbent dose (0.5–2.5 mg/L) were investigated. The phenol concentration was measured using photometric method. Adsorption isotherm was evaluated using Freundlich and Langmuir models. The specific surface area, total pore volume, and mean pore diameter were determined to 4.67 m2/g, 0.0046 m3/g, and 48.23 nm, respectively. Results showed that the pumice bimetal exhibited the best performance for phenol removal (97.3%) at dose 2 mg/L, pH 8, and contact time 30 min. The equilibrium data fitted well with the Freundlich model (R2= 0.985). According to results, the pumice-bimetal particles are an efficient adsorbent and promising option for eliminating various concentrations of phenol from water and wastewater.