O. A. Habeeb, K. Ramesh, Gomaa A. M. Ali, R. M. Yunus, T. K. Thanusha, 1 O.A. Olalere
الملخص العربي
In the current work, the Response Surface Method (RSM) is used to optimize the
adsorption efficiency of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) onto the coconut shell activated
carbon. The considered design (or operating) variables are; initial H2S concentration,
adsorption contact time and adsorbent dosage, while the response variable is H2S
equilibrium concentration (Ce). Coconut shell is an agricultural by-product in
Malaysia, which could be used as a source of carbon. The combination of the operating
variables was determined based on the 23
factorial experimental design method. On the
other hand, SEM, EDX and FTIR techniques were utilized to investigate the physical
and chemical properties of the prepared activated carbon. H2S removal efficiency was
investigated using batch mode process. It was found that the adsorption contact time
and the initial H2S concentration play a dominant role in affecting the adsorption
process. Moreover, the ANOVA test showed that the model is significant. It is
observed that the H2S adsorption rate can be better represented by the pseudo-firstorder
model as compared to the second order model. The isotherm adsorption
mechanism models are also investigated in the current work. Freundlich model was
found to be the well fitted adsorption process model. The study revealed that, coconut
shell based activated carbon is a good candidate adsorbent for removing dissolved H2S
from synthetic petrochemical refinery wastewater.