Application of Locally Produced Activated Carbons for Petroleum Produced Water Treatment

The treatment of petroleum produced water before discharge has been made a legal requirement to protect water resources and avoid acute and chronic toxicities. Activated carbon (AC) has been widely used worldwide as an effective medium for the adsorption of biological and chemical contaminants in advance waste water, but its use is limited by its high cost. This study aimed to apply locally prepared activated carbons from coconut and palm kernel shells waste for the abatement of chemical oxygen demand (COD), turbidity, total alkalinity and conductivity in petroleum produced water. Chemical analyses of the petroleum produced water were done to establish the characteristics of the water before and after contacting with the activated carbons for 60 min. The results revealed the COD was reduced to 9.38% by PKSAC, 15.63% by CNTAC and 45.31% by ZC at the 45th min. The total alkalinity reduction was 27.27% for both PKSAC and CNTAC, and 36.36% for ZC. Also, turbidity of the waste water was reduced to 3.48% for CNTAC, 5.56% for PKSAC at the end of 60 min but an anomaly was observed for ZC, where the percentage turbidity of the water increased from 2.78% to 5.36% from the first 45 to the 60 min. The reduction of conductivities of the solution occurred in the first 15 min. The anomalous behaviours observed by all the carbons are an indication of the consumption of vacant active sites on the surface of the carbons for further uptake. This study has revealed some latent facts about the usefulness and effectiveness of granular activated carbons produced from agricultural waste materials which advances existing knowledge in the use of local agro-waste materials for AC preparation