ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Evaluation of acyclovir adsorption on granular activated carbon from aqueous solutions: batch and fixed-bed parametric studies

Anju Gupta and Raj K. Vyas

Department of Chemical Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, India

E-mail: rkvyas.chem@mnit.ac.in

Received: 13 November 2022  Accepted: 1 April 2023

Abstract:

The present study is aimed to assess the adsorptive potential of carbonaceous material for the acyclovir (ACVR) removal from the aquatic environment using batch and fixed-bed processes. In batch mode, the impact of various process conditions (contact time, pH, adsorbent dose, initial ACVR concentration, and temperature) on ACVR adsorption was investigated. Experimental results revealed that Langmuir isotherm and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model adequately represent the ACVR adsorption mechanism, indicating homogeneous adsorption. The process was found exothermic and spontaneous. Thermodynamic studies concluded that adsorption is a result of both physisorption and chemisorption. To understand the dynamic regime for the design of large-scale column studies, experimental data obtained from breakthrough curve were fitted to various analytical kinetic models. Yan model followed by Thomas model demonstrated a greater correlation of breakthrough data, confirming that the results are significant and are in line with Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic. G-AC exhibits sufficient adsorption capacity for ACVR. Hence, it is concluded that it can be used in a fixed-bed column in continuous mode for the treatment of ACVR-contaminated wastewater.

Graphical abstract

Keywords: Granular material; Kinetics; Isotherms; Fixed-bed; Breakthrough curve

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-023-02810-7

Chemical Papers 77 (8) 4599–4612 (2023)