Biosorptive Removal of Zinc from Aqueous Solution by Algerian Calotropis procera Roots

Abstract

Potentially toxic trace elements, such as zinc, with high levels in water are very serious problems in many places around the world, sometimes in relation to natural sources and in other cases to anthropogenic ones. Adsorption process is among the most effective techniques for removing of many heavy metal ions from different types of water. In this study, an attempt has been made to investigate the efficiency of Calotropis procera roots (CP) in removing of Zn(II) from aqueous solu-tion by using batch mode technique. During the removal process, the effects of solution pH, Zn concentrations and contact time on adsorption efficiency by CP roots were studied. Experimental equilibrium data were analyzed by the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. The results showed that the best fit was achieved with the Langmuir isotherm equation with maximum ad-sorption capacity of 9.69 mg/g. The biosorption of Zn(II) was a fast process and followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic. Keywords Calotropis procera, Zn(II), Adsorption Kinetics, Adsorption Isotherms