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

Cationic dye removal via eco-adsorbent: column and modeling study

Mamta Bhagat, Neeraj Dahiya, Vishal Vilvas, Surinder Singh, and Suresh Sundaramurthy

Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Murthal, Sonepat, India

E-mail: ssbdcet@gmail.com

Received: 6 February 2025  Accepted: 12 April 2025

Abstract:

Textile industries nowadays are at the helm of pollution-causing units due to the utilization of organic dyestuffs such as methylene blue (MB) and others. This has led to severe criticism of the textile industry, and local governments have adopted strict pollution abatement campaigns in these industries to curb water pollution due to the usage of organic dyes. To facilitate the adsorption of MB and control the dye levels in the effluent, this study utilized rice husk (RH) as a potential adsorbent. The influence of different operating parameters, viz. initial concentration (10–30 mg/L), depth of adsorbent bed (25–45 cm) and flow rate (10–20 mL/min.), was studied using column adsorption. The analysis of the results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of MB was found to be 3.15 mg/g at 20 mg/L feed, 35 cm bed depth and 10 mL/min flow rate. Comprehensive mathematical models, viz. Bohart–Adams, Hutchins and Yoon–Nelson, Wolborska and Michael’s equations, were used to evaluate different column bed design parameters. Along with the surface diffusion model, the Clark model and other models for calculating mass transfer effects were also investigated. Thomas and Wolborska models were investigated to determine the adsorption capacity of RH amounting to 2.0 mg/g and 5.625 mg/g, respectively, at an optimum flow rate of 10 mL/min. The results exhibited that rice husk exhibited a vast potential for the treatment of MB dye and the applied models validated the experiment data with good fit.

Graphical abstract

Keywords: Biomethanol; Chemical hydrogen storage; Chemical Process Engineering; Chemical Engineering; Crop waste; Water Treatment; Adsorption; Methylene blue; BDST; Hutchins; Yoon–Nelson model; Michael’s equations

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-025-04076-7

Chemical Papers 79 (7) 4551–4566 (2025)