Abstract—The rapid development of science and technology
in recent years created a standard of living that caused serious
deterioration in the environment. Heavy metal contamination
in the soil, surface water and groundwater is one of the major
environmental problems due to their non-biodegradability and
toxicity. Thus, how to solve efficiently the heavy metal pollution
in groundwater has become the most essential issue around the
world. Commercialized adsorbents such as activated carbon are
effective in removing heavy metals but remain costly. In this
study, the removal of copper (II) from aqueous solutions using a
biodegradable material, known as chitosan coated sludge (CCS),
was investigated under static conditions. The sludge was
obtained from a water treatment plant. Moreover, batch
experiments were conducted to investigate the adsorption effect
under different initial concentration (Co = 100, 500, 1000 and
2000 mg/L), solution at pH=3 to pH=4 and contact time (0.5, 1, 2,
4, 6, 12 and 24 h). Results indicated that the data fitted well with
Langmuir model at Qmax value of 18.83 mg/g CCS for Cu(II)
ions at two hours contact time. The kinetic data best fit the
pseudo-second order equation, indicating that chemisorption is
the rate-limiting step of the Cu(II) adsorption.
Index Terms—Adsorption, chitosan, copper, sludge, water
treatment plant.
Meng-Wei Wan and Chien-Min Chen are with the Department of
Environmental Engineering and Science, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy
and Science, Tainan City 71710 Taiwan (e-mail:peterwan
@mail.chna.edu.tw; jimchen@mail.chna.edu.tw).
Chan-Ching Wang is with the Department of Environmental Engineering,
National Kaohsiung Marine University,142 Haijhuan Road, Nanzih District,
Kaohsiung 81157, Taiwan (email: stacy13306@gmail.com).
Cite:Meng-Wei Wan, Chan-Ching Wang, and Chien-Min Chen, "The Adsorption Study of Copper Removal by Chitosan-Coated Sludge Derived from Water Treatment Plant," International Journal of Environmental Science and Development vol. 4, no. 6, pp. 545-551, 2013.