Preparation and Application of Zeolitic Adsorbents for Removal of Fuoride from Aqueous Solution; Equilibrium, Kinetic and Thermodynamic Studies

Z. Abaei, H Faghihian*and N. E

Abstract

The presence of fluoride in drinking water has profound effect on teeth and bones strengthening. But at concentrations higher than 1.5 mgL-1, fluoride becomes a serious contaminant of water. In this study, removal of fluoride from aqueous solution was studied by adsorbent prepared by modification of Y-zeolite. The parent and modified zeolites were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD. (The effect of different parameters including pH, fluoride concentration, contact time and temperature on the adsorption capacity of the adsorbents was investigated. At the optimized conditions, the adsorption capacity of 200 mgg-1 was obtained which was higher than the previous reported values. The fluoride adsorption on modified zeolite (Fe-Y) was well described by the Freundlich adsorption isotherm model. The kinetic of adsorption followed pseudo second-order model and the process was endothermic.