Journal of Emerging Trends in Engineering and Applied Sciences: Research Areas

Article Title: Studies on the Adsorption of Phenol Red Dye Using Silica-filled ENR/PVC Beads
by Nurul Amni Abdullah, Rizafizah Othaman, Ibrahim Abdullah, Nazwa Jon and Azizah Baharum

Abstract:
Adsorption of dyes on the solid surface of various materials represents a crucial and intensively studied phenomenon due to the growing concern on the environmental and public health. In this study, silica-filled ENR/PVC beads have been synthesized and the adsorption of organic dye (phenol red) from aqueous solutions by the beads was investigated. The beads are aimed to be used as adsorbent to treat Malaysian textile 'batik' dye effluents. Adsorption of phenol red (PR) onto the composite beads was studied by batch adsorption techniques at 25+_ 1oC using a rotary shaker. The effect of contact time, initial dye concentrations and amount of adsorbent on the adsorption capacity were studied. The adsorption behaviour of PR on the beads was investigated using double-beam UV-Vis spectrophotometer at maximum absorption of 558 nm. The adsorption of dye increased with increasing initial dye concentration and adsorbent dosage. Nearly 50 h of contact time was found to be sufficient for the adsorption to reach equilibrium. The experimental data were analyzed using pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models and the rate constants were evaluated. The Langmuir and Freundlich models adsorption were applied to describe the isotherm equilibrium and to determine its constants. Both models agreed well with the experimental data with an adsorption capacity of 2.67 mg of dye per g of beads with 88.8% removal efficiency.

Keywords: adsorption; kinetic studies; phenol red dye; epoxidized natural rubber (ENR)/polyvinyl chloride (PVC); beads; silica

Download full paper