Biosorption of Methylene Blue from Aqueous Solutions by Diospyrous melanoxylon Leaf Waste

Waste Tendu (Diospyros melanoxylon) leaves from bidi (local cigarette) industry has been used as a raw material to produce activated carbon applying sulfuric acid carbonization method. Batch experiments were conducted to assess the potential for the removal of methylene blue dye from aqueous solution using the activated carbon and compared to raw tendu leaves powder and commercial activated carbon. Equilibrium isotherm and kinetic studies have been done by varying the parameters such initial concentration of dye, adsorbent dose, pH of the dye solution, and varying the contact time between the carbon and the dye. It was found that the methylene blue adsorption on tendu waste-based activated carbon conformed to the Langmuir isotherm. The maximum monolayer adsorption capacities were found to be 219.3, 355.9 and 495.1 mg/g for raw tendu waste, carbonized tendu and commercial carbon, respectively. The kinetic studies were well characterized by a pseudo second order kinetic model. The results of this study indicate that raw tendu waste a renewable bioresource, as such as well as its carbonized form are attractive biosorbent for removing a cationic dye from the dye wastewater. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.erem.63.1.2735