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Fixed-bed column method for removing arsenate from groundwater using aluminium-modified kapok fibres

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Abstract

Groundwater contamination with arsenic is a real problem, especially for people living in rural areas. This study prepared natural sorbents through an easy hydrothermal surface modification method using aluminium (Al-kapok) to remove As(V) from groundwater with a fixed-bed column approach. The characteristics of the natural adsorbent were investigated by performing specific surface area (BET) isotherm and nitrogen adsorption/desorption tests, capturing scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, and performing energy-dispersive X-ray (EDS) spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The specific surface area BET (1.655 m2/g) and the pore volume (0.023 cm3/g) values of Al-kapok were higher than the values of raw kapok, indicating the availability of more As(V) adsorption sites. The groundwater chemical parameters did not substantially affect the As(V) adsorption efficiency of the natural sorbent, even in the presence of competing ions such as sulfate (\({\text{SO}}_{{4}}^{{{2} - }}\)). An increase in the flow rate from 1 and 3 to 5 mL/min and an increase in the initial As(V) concentration from 50 to 100 µg/L and 150 µg/L caused a decrease in As(V) adsorption. However, increasing the sorbent dosage from 2 to 4 g led to an increase in the amount of As(V) adsorbed from 9 to 12.6 g. The adsorption reaction was endothermic, and the optimal pH for optimum As(V) removal was neutral. Thomas’s model fit the linear curve well and predicted the adsorption curve better than the model proposed by Bohart and Adams; the adsorption capacity was 3.37 mg/g at 25 °C. The new sorbents showed good regeneration and reusability after eight adsorption cycles.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements, Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd., Xi’an Jiaotong University (No. 201912131) and the Science Technology Project of Yulin (No. YF-2020-007).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Human Settlements and Civil Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, 28 Xianning West Road, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710049, People’s Republic of China

    Kanfolo Franck Herve YEO, Yingying Dong, Tongxuan Xue, Ye Yang, Zhiwen Chen, Liu Han, Nan Zhang, Kibir Kolani & Wendong Wang

  2. Loess Plateau Eco-Environment Restoration & Liveable Villages Research Center Xi’an, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710000, People’s Republic of China

    Wendong Wang

  3. Key Laboratory of Education Ministry for Modern Design and Rotor-Bearing System, Institute of Design Science and Basic Components, School of Mechanical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China

    Fagla Jules Mawignon

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  1. Kanfolo Franck Herve YEO
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Contributions

KFHYEO: Conceptualisation, formal analysis, laboratory investigation, writing—original draft, and methodology. YD: Laboratory investigation and validation. TX: Validation. YY: Validation. ZC: Validation. LH: Validation. NZ: Validation. FJM: Validation. KK: Validation. WW: Writing—review & editing, resources, supervision, and validation.

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Correspondence to Wendong Wang.

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YEO, K.F.H., Dong, Y., Xue, T. et al. Fixed-bed column method for removing arsenate from groundwater using aluminium-modified kapok fibres. J Porous Mater 30, 1221–1232 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10934-022-01420-0

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