The use of activated alumina and magnetic field for the removal heavy metals from water

Abstract

The objective of this work was to verify the granular activated alumina (AA) sorption properties, during the process of removing copper, lead and cadmium from water, and to monitor the impact of magnetic field (MF) on the effectiveness of removing copper, lead and cadmium from water. Activated alumina adsorption is known to be an effective and inexpensive technology for the removal of selenium and arsenic from water, and was suggested by EPA as a BAT for point-of-use applications. The removal of copper, lead and cadmium from water using AA and impact of magnetic field was reported to a lesser extent. Pilot tests showed that the use of AA sorption materials with MF impact could possibly decrease the copper, lead and cadmium content in the model water. The MF also had a positive effect on the efficiency of removal copper, lead and cadmium on AA. Increasing the efficiency of heavy metals removal in the samples exposed to magnetic field varied from 1.9% to 8.2% compared to the control samples.