Removal of lead from aqueous solutions by xerogel film supported on activated carbon and silica

ABSTRACT

Carbon xerogel [X], a kind of novel carbon material with low-density and continuous nano-porous structure that can be controlled and tailored on nanometer scale, has been prepared through the sol-gel polycondensation of resorcinol [R] with formaldehyde [F] followed by drying at ambient pressure and carbonization in inert atmosphere. Batch adsorption experiments were performed to find out the effective lead removal at different metal ion concentrations. Removal of lead from aqueous solutions by adsorption onto xerogel film supported on activated carbon and silica has been performed. The removal of Pb ions from aqueous solutions was studied by batch method. The effects of initial metal concentrations, initial pH, contact time and the quantity of adsorbents were investigated. It was found that carbon xerogel supported on activated carbon exhibited the best adsorption potential for removal of lead ions from solutions