Evaluation of biosorption process in the removal of arsenic from water

• Main Author: Kiang, Xin Yin
• Format: Final Year Project / Dissertation / Thesis
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: TP Chemical technology
• Online Access: http://eprints.utar.edu.my/5351/1/1703870_FYP_report_%2D_XIN_YIN_KIANG.pdf; http://eprints.utar.edu.my/5351/

Arsenic water pollution is a growing concern these days, as arsenic is a highly toxic compound that can have serious consequences for both human health and the environment.The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that the arsenic concentration in drinking water should not exceed 10 μg/L. To mitigate these issues, different methods were proposed to remove arsenic from the wastewater, includingoxidation, ion exchange, chemical precipitation, membrane filtration,and adsorption. Among all the proposed techniques, adsorption displayed the greatest ability to remove arsenic from wastewater, but the high prices of adsorbents were an obstacle that urged the development of alternative adsorbents such as natural biomass. This study was conducted based on three main objectives: to evaluate the effects of various types of biosorbents in the arsenic removal process; to study the effects of different operating parameters on the removal efficiency; and to study the removal mechanisms of arsenic using the biosorption process. The pH of the wastewater, the initial arsenic concentration, and the dosage of biosorbents were the operating parameters highlighted in this study. The outcomes of the results and discussions concluded that industrial by-products and microorganism were highly suitable for arsenic removal, supported by the high arsenic removal efficiency obtained.The optimum pH that should be applied for the removal of arsenite and arsenate is under neutral (pH 6-8) or nearly acidic conditions (pH 4), respectively. Additionally, a lower initial arsenic concentration is favoured to optimise the arsenic removal efficiency.Moreover, an optimum dosage of biosorbents should be determined rather than introducing a large amount of biosorbents as it was greatly dependent on the initial arsenic concentration. To wrap up, biosorbents were encouraged to replace the use of commercial adsorbents as biosorbents are readily available, cheaper, and environmentally friendly.