Adsorption of lead (II) ions from synthetic waste water using biochar derived from sugar cane bagasse

Abstract

In this research, adsorption technique was applied for the removal of heavy metal i.e. lead and zinc in synthetic waste water. Biochar derived from sugarcane bagasse was preferred to any other materials because of its availability in Uganda. The objective of study was to investigate the removal efficiency of biochar derived from bagasse as an adsorbent for lead ions from synthetically prepared heavy metal concentrations. Adsorbents were prepared by pyrolysis of sugar cane bagasse, the biochar obtained was then ground into smaller particles. The waste water was prepared synthetically in the laboratory by dissolving metal solutions (lead nitrate) into deionized water. The prepared water was treated against the adsorbent with varying pH and adsorbent dosage using constant initial concentration of metals. The optimum pH was observed to be pH 7 for the maximum removal of lead ions. While the maximum efficiency for adsorption of biochar was 96.85% at its optimum PH of 7. The results obtained from the experiment were recorded and graphs were plotted to study the behavior of the adsorbent material in removing heavy metals from the water.