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Low-cost adsorbent prepared from sewage sludge and corn stalk for the removal of COD in leachate

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Abstract

Sewage sludge (SS) with corn stalk (CS) was used to prepare SS-based activated carbon (SAC) by pyrolysis with ZnCl2. The effects of mixing ratio on surface area and pore size distribution, elemental composition, surface chemistry, and morphology were investigated. The results demonstrated that the addition of CS into SS samples improved the surface area (from 92 to 902 m2/g) and the microporosity (from 1.2 to 4.1 %) of the adsorbents and, therefore, enhancing the adsorption performance. The removal of leachate chemical oxygen demand (COD) was also determined. It was found that the COD removal rate reached 85 % at pH 4 with the SAC (90 wt% CS) dosage of 2 % (g/mL) and an adsorption time of 40 min. The adsorption experimental data were fitted by both Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms. Long-chain alkanes and refractory organics were found in raw leachate, but could be removed by SAC largely.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Key Technology R&D Program of China (no. 2012BAC18B02). Thanks are also due to the Analytical and Testing Center of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China, for the SEM, XPS, TG/DTA, DRIFTS, and Raman analyses. Finally, we thank Prof. Jeff Kuo, Prof. Hui Hu, and the reviewers for their constructive amendments and suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 430074, Wuhan, China

    Ying He, Xiaofeng Liao, Li Liao & Wei Shu

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  1. Ying He
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  2. Xiaofeng Liao
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  3. Li Liao
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  4. Wei Shu
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Correspondence to Li Liao.

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Responsible editor: Bingcai Pan

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He, Y., Liao, X., Liao, L. et al. Low-cost adsorbent prepared from sewage sludge and corn stalk for the removal of COD in leachate. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 8157–8166 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-2755-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-2755-5

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