Use of La-, Ce-, Y-, Fe- bentonites for removing phosphate ions from aqueous media

Abstract

Clays play an important role in the environment. By removing cations and anions either through ion exchange, adsorption and precipitation, or all these combined, they can act as natural decontaminating agents of numerous pollutants. In this study, four modified bentonites (La-, Ce-, Y-, Fe-bentonite) were prepared and characterized, and their phosphate sorption capabilities were measured in batch experiments. Equilibrium times were also examined. The activation energy of the sorption process was calculated. The La-, Ce- and Y-bentonite can bind similar amount of phosphate ions, while iron-bentonite can bind only half of it compared to La-, Ce- and Y-bentonite.