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Dried sewage sludge as an efficient adsorbent for pollutants: cationic methylene blue removal case study

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Abstract

Sewage sludge valorization must be the favored solution of management for a residue that does not present the desired improvement in terms of wastewater treatment. The objective of this research work was to study the dye fixation capacity of the adsorbents produced from sewage sludge. The dried sewage sludge (DSS) was used as an adsorbent to remove a cationic dye, methylene blue (MB), from an aqueous solution in a batch system, as a function of contact time, pH, temperature and initial concentration. The proposed adsorbent was characterized using several techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The adsorption equilibrium of MB was described using Langmuir, Freundlich and Sips equations. The equilibrium is perfectly adapted to the Langmuir model with a maximum adsorption capacity of 44.39 mg g−1 on a single layer. In order to study the adsorption mechanisms, first- and second-order kinetic models were used. The adsorbent produced from the sludge was capable of absorbing MB from the solution, with the expression of the second-order rate being preferred to that of the first order. In addition, the thermodynamic parameters were evaluated, demonstrating that the adsorption process is spontaneous and endothermic. Thus, this study convinced that the DDS proved to be an alternative, attractive, effective, economic, and environmentally friendly adsorbent for MB dye removal from aqueous solution.

Graphic abstract

Schematic illustration of the prepared dried sewage sludge adsorbent for the removal of methylene blue from aquatic samples

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Acknowledgments

The research work was supported by Ministry of Energy, and Mines and the Environment within the Research Project with grant number 018-1212-00019.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de L’Eau, Les Etudes Et Les Analyses Environnementales, Département de Chimie, Faculté Des Sciences, Université Abdelmalek Essaadi, Mhannech II, B.P. 2121, 93002, Tétouan, Marocco

    Youssef Aoulad El Hadj Ali, Farida El Yousfi & Mostafa Stitou

  2. Laboratoire Matériaux Et Systèmes Interfaciaux LMSI, Faculté Des Sciences, Université Abdelmalek Essaadi, Mhannech II, B.P. 2121, 93002, Tétouan, Morocco

    Mohammadi Ahrouch

  3. Departamento C.M., I.M. Y Química Inorgánica, Universidad de Cádiz, 11510, Puerto Real, Spain

    Mohammadi Ahrouch

  4. Advanced Membranes and Porous Materials Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia

    Abdellatif Ait Lahcen

  5. Laboratoire de Chimie, Service de Toxicologie Et de Contrôle de Qualité, Institut National de Recherches en Santé Publique, BP 695, Nouakchott, Mauritanie

    Abdoulaye Demba N’diaye

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  1. Youssef Aoulad El Hadj Ali
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  2. Mohammadi Ahrouch
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AEHAY and AM have contributed equally to this work.

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Correspondence to Youssef Aoulad El Hadj Ali or Mostafa Stitou.

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Aoulad El Hadj Ali, Y., Ahrouch, M., Ait Lahcen, A. et al. Dried sewage sludge as an efficient adsorbent for pollutants: cationic methylene blue removal case study. Nanotechnol. Environ. Eng. 6, 17 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41204-021-00111-6

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