Development of fruit-waste derived bio-adsorbent for removal of pharmaceutical contaminant from aqueous solution

Abstract

In this work, a low-cost adsorbent from abanduntly available biowaste jamun seed (Syzygium cumini) was developed via carbonization and chemical-activation process. It was ultilized to remove one of the pharmeutical drug, ofloxacin, from its aqueous solution. The surface morphology and surface area of the repared activated Jamun seed dust were investigated by “Field Emission Scanning electron microscope” (FESEM) ,“Brunauer-Emmet-Teller”(BET), “Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy” (FTIR), particle size analysis. The surface area of Activated Jamunseed (ACJS) was founs as 366.39 m2/g. The carbon content of Jamun seed powder was found after CHNS analysis is 55.68 %.The removal rate of Ofloxacin from aqueous solution by activated Jamun seed powder (ACJS) was 96% at 3.5 hr, maintaining pH of the solution is 5. The highest adsorption capacity of ACJS was 39.97 mg/g. The adsorption kinetics followed linear pseudo-2nd-order model with R2=0.9999. The isotherm study has shown that Langmuir linear isotherm fitted with experimental data.From the thermodynamics study indicates the adsorption is feasible and exothermic process.The activated carbon which is derived from Jamun seed powder, also cost effective and can be utilized upto five cycles without compromising the removal efficiency of OFC from aqueous solution.