An Overview of Low Cost Adsorbents for Copper (II) Ions Removal

Abstract

The effective removal of heavy metals from aqueous wastes is among the most important issues for many industrialized countries. Rapid industrialization and poor effluent treatment processes in many industries have led to a substantial lowering of water quality that is fed to water bodies. Presence of heavy metals is one of the many factors that lower water quality. These heavy metals cause harmful effects on health, increase environmental toxicity and affect the aesthetic quality of water. The use of agricultural products and by-products has been widely investigated as an alternative for costly methods of removing heavy metals from water and wastewater. Modification of agricultural by-products could enhance their natural capacity and add value to these by-products. This review is aimed at investigating the use of low-cost adsorbents as an alternative to expensive activated carbon adsorbents used in removing Cu(II) using batch methods from water and wastewater.