Predicting competitive adsorption on activated carbon using Mathcad with Ideal Absorption Solution Theory

CHED 1133

Eid Alkhatib, alkhatibe@sacredheart.edu1, Penny Snetsinger, snetsingerp@sacredheart.edu1, Amanda Gauthier, Gauthiera@sacredheart.edu1, and Joseph DePalma2. (1) Department of Chemistry, Sacred Heart University, 5151 Park Avenue, Fairfield, CT 06825, (2) Department of Chemistry, Sacred Heart University, 5151 Park Avenue, Fairfield, CT 06825
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons “PAHs” are priority organic pollutants that are found in a variety of industrial and commercial wastewater sources. Activated carbon is the most viable process commercially applied to remove these contaminants. Adsorption isotherm studies are generally applied to determine the optimum activated carbon dosage needs to treat the contaminated waste. Prediction of activated carbon dosage using computer modeling is a very cost effective method provided that the single solute parameters are known and the model is verified to the wastewater. Activated carbon adsorption isotherms of naphthalene and 9-fluorenol, were determined experimentally as single solute and bisolute isotherms using GC-MS. The computer model prediction uses the software package Mathcad to solve the non-linear equations generated by ideal adsorbed solution theory (IAST). This model was then used to predict and describe competitive adsorption. Comparisons were made of the computer model prediction with experiment.
 

Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Environmental Chemistry
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Division of Chemical Education

The 233rd ACS National Meeting, Chicago, IL, March 25-29, 2007