Bisphenol a removal by adsorption using waste biomass: isotherm and kinetic studies

Abstract

BPA is categorized as a new emerging pollutant that mimics the structure and function of hormone estrogen for humans and animals. The removal of BPA had been concerned because human exposure toward BPA is widespread, and it is harmful to humans and the ecosystem. The aim of the study was to remove BPA by adsorption technique and understand the application of agricultural waste material as potential adsorbent. The increasing of the surface area of post-adsorption from 4.80 m2/g to 5.83 m2/g indicated that the sulphuric acid treatment responsible for the growth in the porosity of the banana bunches, increase the number of available binding sites and its ion-adsorption capacity. The highest removal of BPA by the banana bunch and coconut bunch was obtained in the following condition: the temperature at 25°, pH 3, dosage at 100 mg, and agitation at 150rpm. The adsorption process was well described with the Langmuir isotherm, while the best correlation with the kinetic study of BPA adsorption was the pseudo-second-order model. The negative values of ΔH° suggested that the adsorption of BPA onto banana bunch (-13.748 J mol−1) and coconut bunch (-5693.67 J mol−1) is exothermic in nature.