Removal of fluoride from water with powdered corn cobs.

The adsorption of fluoride on corn cobs powder was investigated in the present study. Neat powdered corn cobs did not show remarkable adsorption but aluminium treated corn cobs had good adsorption capacity. The parameters studied include the contact time, concentration, temperature and pH. Near neutral pH was identified as the optimum condition of the medium, and 90 to 120 minutes was the best contact time for maximum fluoride adsorption. The adsorption process was found to follow Freundlich isotherm. The adsorption process was found to be exothermic as adsorption decreased with increasing temperature.