Characterization and evaluation of the adsorptive capacity of charcoals prepared with bananas

Abstract

The accumulation of banana crop residues occurs as a consequence of the wide production and consumption of fruits, and the preparation of adsorbents made with these wastes has become an alternative for reuse. This work aimed to characterize banana coals and to evaluate the sodium chloride removal capacity, comparing them with a commercial coal. Were used bananas charcoals acquired during the dry and rainy season were used, green and ripe, in the compositions of peel, pulp and peel with pulp, to characterize them by the variables: moisture, ash, yield, pH, conductivity, functional groups, methylene blue adsorption and iodine number. Sodium chloride adsorption tests were performed with 20, 50 and 100 mg L-1 solutions, keeping constant the characteristic pH of the solution, shaker table frequency (80 rpm), temperature (25 ° C) and contact time (2 hours). The period of fruit acquisition did not influence the characterization of adsorbents. Differences were found between the evaluated parameters of the charcoals that differed the banana maturation and the composition of the materials used as adsorbent precursors. The banana charcoals presented higher sodium adsorptive capacity when compared to commercial charcoal, demonstrating their adsorptive potential associated the reduction of waste accumulation of this nature.