INVESTIGATION OF ACTIVATED CARBON PRODUCED FROM SUGARCANE BAGASSE AND ITS APPLICATIONS ON SEWAGE WATER TREATMENT

INVESTIGATION OF ACTIVATED CARBON
PRODUCED FROM SUGARCANE BAGASSE AND ITS
APPLICATIONS ON SEWAGE WATER TREATMENT
*Sasy A.H.B. ; *Soha R.A. Khalil and Abdel Wahab M. Mahmoud**
*Sugar Technol., Res. Dept., Sugar Crops Res. Inst., Research. Center, Giza, Egypt
**Plant physiol., Dept., Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt
Keyword: Sugar cane bagasse, Active carbon, Sewage water treatment.
ABSTRACT
Activation phase was used to produce activated carbon (AC) from
sugar cane bagasse (SCB). Whereas, the activation was done by two ways;
the first way had crashed granulate AC to fine powder (PAC) and the second
was the synthesis process nano-particles from granulate activated carbon
(NAC). The surface area of PAC has been estimated by Brunauer–Emmett–
Teller (BET) and characterization of NAC by using Transform Infrared
spectrum (FTIR) and Trasmission Electron Microscope (TEM).
The efficient adsorbent effects for each products and natural lime
stone were tested by its application on sewage water to improve its
physiochemical properties which included (pH, TSS, COD, BOD, TDS,
ASR, NO3, PO4, Mg, Ca, Na, Cd, Cu, Fe and Ni) through different soaking
period (0, 10, 15 and 20 day).
The results cleared that the effects of using individually nano
activate carbon was more efficient than PAC and natural lime stone to
purified sewage water treatment with 10 days soaking period compared to
other soaking periods. Furthermore, NAC exhibited the high efficiency
absorbent to remove metal ions (NO3, PO4, Mg, Ca and Na) and heavy
metals ion (Cu, Cd, Fe and Ni) and decrement BOD and COD from sewage
water. So that, it was selected to test its effects in combination with lime
stone on sewage water treatment.
Based on the obtained data the corresponding reduction values for
all studied traits were higher as compared to applying each of them
separately through soaking period 10 days.
It can be recommended that the combination of (NAC + limestone)
are a very good material in the field of sewage water treatment before
recycle it, which can be apply for reducing some pollutants in sewage water
after disposable.
INTRODUCTION
Nowadays disposal of agriculture more tend to environmental friendly
solutions by transforming the unwanted waste to valuable materials and
thus, improves and upgrades the technology Hu (2018). AC used in diverse
shapes such as powder, granular, pellet and activated carbon fiber. These
types have its specific application Guo et al. (2003). The production of AC
around the world is estimated to be around 100000 ton annually (Ajinomoh
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 171-190
and Salahudeen (2014). Today, much effort has been devoted to exploiting
waste as raw materials in activated carbon production. The pore size of
activated carbon can be divided into three categories: the pore size is smaller
than 2 nm, the pore size is mesoporous in 2-50 nm, and the pore size is
larger than that in 50 nm (Changjia et al., 2019). Generally, AC can be
prepared from a large number of low-cost sources and agricultural residues
i.e corn cob, apricot stone, rice husk and cane bagasse, date palm residue
Nayl et al. (2017). The main reason for the strong adsorption ability and
adsorption capacity of activated carbon is total surface area in its structure
which generally as high as 500-1700 m2//g and small micropores compared
with other adsorption materials (radius<0.02 nm) Bao et.al., (2011). The
pore purview distribution of activated carbon is very wide, ranging from 1
nm to thousands of nm (Liu et al ., 2012) whereas, (Tancredi et al., 2004)
reported that Powdered activated carbon (PAC), compared to granular
activated carbon because it has a much faster adsorption rate and a larger
adsorption capacity of various organics usually related to their much higher
surface area, pore volume and porosity.
Nowadays nanotechnology has expanded broadly in all science
themes. The nanotechnology is one of the new technologies that entered
almost all sides of our lives and were used in agriculture production (Husen
and Siddiqi, 2014(. Many nano-sized materials (metal oxide, zeolites,
carbon-based nanoparticle, nano-clays and nanocomposites) have been used
as adsorbent to remove heavy metal ions from wastewater (Zhao et al.,
2011 and Hua et al. 2012). The nature of activated carbon surfaces
especially the nano size ones have made them promising adsorbents to
remove heavy metals from industrial wastewater but they are restricted in
use due to their high cost Kumar and Chawla (2014) and El-kady et al.,
(2015).
Actived carbon which is used in any application must have adequate
adsorptive capacity, chemical purity and mechanical strength. Furthermore,
all these specifications should coexist with a low production cost. The
chemical structure of AC could preferentially adsorb organic materials and
other non-polar compounds from the gas or liquid streams. Due to these
properties, they have been used for removal of COD and BOD, heavy
metals removal, and solutions decolorization (Nayl et al., 2017, Saleh et
al., 2015 and Changjia et al., (2019).
Wastewater purification is usually achieved through adsorption on
soil, plant uptake, sedimentation, and filtration, microbial and chemical
decomposition. Also, wastewater purification could be achieved by the
modification in hydraulic loading rate, hydraulic retention time, water depth,
and recycling system of crud water. However, to achieve better
performance, some highly reactive chemical materials are also being used as
a substrate in wastewater purification such as lime stone, shale, activated
172 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
carbon, zeolite and fly ash (Vohla et al,. 2011; Nayl et al., 2017, ,
Almuktar et al., 2018, Changjia et al., (2019).
Limestones are rocks predominantly originated from calcite minerals
(calcium carbonate with trigonal structure, CaCO3). They are solid and
grained sedimentary rocks of organic or chemical origin contain more than
95% CaCO3. Aziz et al., (2001) found that calcium carbonate (CaCO3) was
an effective material to purified water contaminated with heavy metal ions.
Sdiri et al. (2012) reported that lime stone contains stains (silica, iron or
aluminum oxide and different clay minerals) that enhanced sorption
capacity. Also, Ahmad et al. (2012) recorded a remarkable efficiency of
calcium carbonate as adsorbent (90%) that significantly remove heavy metal
ions from drinking water.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the most
immediate concern and abundant metals are cadmium, chromium, copper,
lead, nickel, and zinc. Copper is an essential micronutrient to the plants but
at higher concentrations it may become toxic. Heavy metal contamination
exists in aqueous waste streams of many industries, such as metal plating
facilities, mining operation and tanneries. Therefore, mitigated the
hazardous effect of heavy metals on the ecosystem is very important (Rai,
2009).
The current work aims to produce activated carbon (AC) material by
two methods; the first is powder (PAC) and the second is the synthesis
process nanoparticles from sugar cane bagasse (NAC). In addition, assess
the effects of these methods on the physical properties of the AC as well as
their application to the disposal of sewage water.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
MATERIALS:
Raw material
1. Sugar cane bagasse was obtained from pilot milling of Sugar Crops
Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Giza Agriculture
Research Station, Egypt.
2. Limestone was purchased from El-Ahram Company for Mining and
Natural Fertilizers, Giza, Egypt
3. Sewage water was obtained from Egyptian station of sewage water
collection Co., El-Safe, Giza, Egypt. The chemical compositions of
sewage water sample were represented in Table 1.
Table1: Chemical compositions of sewage water at zero time
pH SAR COD BOD TSS TDS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
mg O2/L mg/L μg/L
7.4 15.4 92.3 63.6 377 12.4 2.41 0.65 38.4 14.8 58.6 17.6 13.6 306.2 45.7
SAR: sodium adsorption ratio, COD: chemical oxygen demand, BOD: biological oxygen
demand,TSS: total soluble solids, TDS: total dissolved solids
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 173
METHODS:
I. Raw materials preparation:
Bagasse as a by-product of the commercial sugarcane cultivar (GT.
54-9) was tested. The sample of 40 millable cane stalks was squeezed by
an electric pilot mill belongs to Sugar Crops Research Institute,
Agriculture Research Center, Giza Agriculture Research Station, Egypt.
Wet bagasse was collected and washed with tap water to remove any
debris then sun drying for three days and put in oven at 110 °C till
constant weight. The dried bagasse was milled to be in a form of
powders.
II. Activation phase:
Activation phase carried out according to the method described by
Ajinomoh and Salahudeen (2014). The raw materials were impregnated
in phosphoric acid (50% v/v) as an activating agent by 1:1 ratio (bagasse
to acid) for 24 hr to cover the whole mass and to give a paste of soft
consistency. The impregnated sample was admitted into a muffle furnace
at 500oC for 3 hr. The obtained granular carbonized mass was left to cool
and washed many time with hot distilled water pass through litmus paper
to remove washing water. The presence of phosphate was recognized in
the acid treated sample by the white precipitate of Pb3(PO4)2. The AC´s
product was dried at 105oC in an air oven. Active carbons product (PAC)
are milled to pass through a 50-mesh sieve (0.297 mm) then it was stored
in polyethylene bags for subsequent characterization and adsorption
studies.
III. Synthesis of bagasse activated carbon nanoparticles:
Synthesis of bagasse ignoc carbon nanoparticles (powder) was
done using the method of up to bottom molecular physical and chemical
approach under 2 Mpa pressure. The raw material of bagasse active
carbons was grinding continually for 18 hours then soaking in mixed
solution of HCl :NaOH: hexametaphosphate in the ratio of (1:1:2)
under vigorous stirring. The stirring was continued for 12 h. then 3ml of
Tubercidin tridecyl ecosenoin oxolamine serine methyl ester (TEOS)
solution was add. The resulted material was filtered then exposed to
120oC constantly for 24 hours, after that it left under pressure (2 Mpa) for
terminated 36 hours; finally ultrasonic was done for 30 minutes to
separate nano particles aggregation. The size and shape of bagasse AC
nanoparticles were observed directly by Transmission Electron
Microscopy (TEM) using an electron acceleration voltage of 60 kV.
Transform Infrared spectrum (FTIR – 8400 S Shimadzu, Japan) was used
174 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
to determine the change chemical structural of functional groups in NAC
has preparation.
IV. Experimental
16 treatments were carried out on sewage water as follows:
1- Bagasse active carbon 6 g/l.
2- Lime stone 6 g/l.
3- Nano bagasse active carbon 0.5mg/l
4- 0.5mg/l Nano bagasse active carbon + 6 g/l lime stone.
Each treatment was applied at four soaking periods with sample of
sewage water (zero, 10, 15 and 20 days) according to Saleh et al.,
(2015).
V. Evaluation tests
 Moisture, total carbohydrate, crud fiber, crud protein of raw
bagasse were determined according to (A.O.A.C 2010).
 The chemical constituents of raw bagasse, bagasse active carbon
and lime stone were determined by using Atomic Absorption
Spectrophotometer method (Helrich, 1990).
 Using Multipoint (BET) Brunauer–Emmett–Teller to measurements
Surface area which performed to get an overview of the porous
characteristics of the activated sample included (surface area, pores
volume, and pore size distribution). Nitrogen adsorption isotherm (N2)
was produced at 77 K for this purpose using Surface Area Analyzer
equipment, BEL-Sorb Max., made in Japan.
 Moreover Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) for granular
(GAC), powder (PAC) and limestone were used to study the structural
features of the carbon surface.
 Several laboratory experiments were carried out to select the optimal
dosage for NAC which ended up to 0.5 mg/l sewage water is the most
appropriate as dried powder. The whole experiment was repeated 3
times with the same periods during 2020, the average data were
analyzed using ANOVA at 5% significance level, the difference
between treatments then analyzed using DMRT (Duncan Multiple
Range Test) at 5%.
 After each soaking period, samples of sewage water were taken to
determine some chemical composition which were (pH, TSS, COD,
BOD, ASR, Po4, No3, Mg, Ca, Na, Cd, Cu, Fe and Ni) according to
(Helrich, 1990). Sorption studies were conducted in routine manner
and adsorption experiments were carried out under room temperature
conditions. The standardization dose of adsorbant, agitation time and
period of contact with solution were recorded.
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 175
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The chemical analysis of row dry bagasse, bagasse active carbon
and lime stone are presented in Table (2). The results showed that
sulpher and nitrogen are inferior in raw bagasse than both bagasse active
carbon and lime stone. Data observed that hydrogen ratios are rich in raw
dry bagasse than the other materials. Meanwhile, active carbon product
was highest in carbon contents than the two other materials. The contents
of carbon in case of all carbon groups are in the range of 48.9 – 50.49%
and are much lower than those in the starting polymers of lignocelluloses
materials. Similar relation is observed for nitrogen contents. Oxygen
element is presented in the structure of analyzed materials whereas; in the
case of polymeric precursor it occurs as a constituent of carbonyl group
of the bagasse polymer. This element is also presented in the carbons
structure in the form of carbonyl, carboxylic, lactonic, phenolic which
can be formed during carbonization and activation processes. In the case
of bagasse carbons not only oxygen but also OH groups coming from the
residues of lignocelluloses structures. These results are in agreement with
those mentioned by Changjia et al., (2019) who reported that in the
preparation of activated carbon, the border chemical bond of the aromatic
sheet which formed during shatter stage in carbonization process to form
a border carbon atom with unpaired electrons.
These peripheral carbon atoms have unsaturated chemical bonds
which can be reacting with heterocyclic atoms such as nitrogen,
hydrogen, oxygen and sulfur to form different surface groups. Chemical
constituents of lime stone were about 55.51% CaO and ignition loss ratio
42.25% .This results confirmed mineralogical proportion of calcite as
well as element oxides is the major source of oxygen while Ca2CO3 is the
main source for carbons content in lime stone structure. These results are
in line with those obtained by Aziz et al., (2001).
Table 2: Chemical composition of sugar cane bagasse, bagasse
activate carbon and limestone
Material Mois
%
pH T.C
%
C.F
%
C.P
%
Ash
%
C
%
N2
%
H2
%
S
%
Row dry bagasse 8.83 - 56 40 2.56 2.53 48.9 0.6 5.2 0.215
Bagasse active
carbon
5.6 - 36.5 50.49 0.8 0.76 0.532
Lime stone
chemical
constituents %
SiO2 CaO Al2O3 Fe2O3 So3 MgO Na2O K2O
0.41 55.51 0.24 0.22 0.20 0.15 0.42 0.60
Loss on ignition 42.25
Mois= Moisture, T.C= total carbohydrate, C.F= crud fiber, C.P= crud protein
176 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
Granular Bagasse active carbon Powder Bagasse active carbon
Fig. 1
Overview of the porous characteristics of PAC and limestone by
Multipoint (BET):
The textural characterization of PAC and lime stone samples
determination on N2 isotherms that used in mathematical models to quantify
the specific surface area, pore volume and size distribution by BET area are
shown in Table 2 and fig 1 to 8.
The BET plot in Fig. 1 and 6 indicated that the PAC has smaller
pore size than lime stone meaning that PAC acquires the highest
contribution of nanopores in its structure. Meanwhile the total pore volume
occurs at about 0.1682 and 1.5847 m3 g−1, respectively. The samples had
pointed out pore diameter of 2.1069 nm for PAC sample and 5.0349 for lime
stone (table 2). The practical point of Fig 2 and 7 illustrated that it is fitting
to use NLDFT/GCMC model which had depicted pore size distribution
analysis for the used materials. Their pore size distributions in PAC and lime
stone have nano pore in its structures. The first small occurs at about 2.1069
nm and the second at 5.0349 nm for mean pore diameter. Density Functional
Theory by Model of isotherms pore size distribution analysis by
NLDFT/GCMC as a fitting of the integral adsorption equation for
description. The shape of adsorption isotherms in Fig 3 and 8 indicates that
bagasse active carbon has the largest specific surface area compared to lime
stone. The PAC has remarkable surface area up to 320 m2/g while the lime
stone as expected has low surface area as1.6 m2/g. These results are in
harmony with those obtained by (Benaddi et al., 2000, Ordóñez et al., 2014
and Changjia et al., 2019).
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 177
Table (3) BET values for powder active carbon (PCA) and lime stone
Parameters PAC lime stone
BET plot
Mean pore diameter (nm) 2.1069 5.0349
Total pore volume (m3 g−1) 0.1682 1.5847
a s BET m2 g1 3.1923E+02 1.2590E+00
Model of isotherms pore size distribution analysis by NLDFT/GCMC
Vp cm3 g-1 0.1793 1.0762
In fact, it possesses the highest contribution of nano pore in its
structure. This result may be due to lime stone has the largest contribution of
the micro pore to its structure; unlike the PAC has the largest contribution of
the nano pore, which earned it the highest adsorption capacity moreover, the
production method which led to build narrow pore systems. Also, these
results may be due to the performance indication of AC structure by pore
size and the wall of the pore ranges from micro, macro, meso- pores.
Eventually their distribution in a matrix depend on the source of the AC as
well as the pore size distribution as affected by the nature of the chemical
activating agent employed during activation (Karnib et. al., 2014).
Muli point of BET to get (surface area, porous volume, and pore size
distribution)
Fig. 1 Fig. 2
Fig. 3 Fig. 4
178 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
Fi.g 5
Fig: 1,2,3,4 and 5 Characteristics porous of bagasse activated carbon sample (surface
area, pores volume, and pore size distribution, NLDFT/GCMC and DFT
analyzed by BET area.
Fig. 6 Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig 6, 7 and 8 Characteristics porous of lime stone sample (surface area, pores
volume, and pore size distribution, NLDFT/GCMC and DFT analyzed by BET area
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 179
Characterization of Synthesized Nano- Bagasse activated Carbon:
Figure (9) show that the FTIR spectra of NAC product sample
which point out the nano-particles from granulate activated carbon
(NAC) sample revealed visible IR bands between 500 and 2000 cm‾¹.
The large band represented at around 525 cm‾¹may as a result of
overlapping of C–O–C stretching, C–O stretching and O bending modes
of alcoholic, phenolic and carboxylic groups. The band at 1570 cm‾¹is
assigned to C═C stretching conjugated with another C═C bond, an
aromatic nucleus, or C═O bond. It has been reported that the C═C
stretching frequently occurs at approximately 1600 cm‾¹for carbonaceous
materials .The bands at more or less 2012 cm‾¹are assigned to alkyl
groups such as –CH3, ═CH2 and –CH2CH3. The weak band at around
3150 and 3700 cm‾¹ can assigned to the O–H stretching vibration mode
of hydroxyl functional groups. These surface efficient groups can provide
active sites where chemical transformations take place via surface
reactions. These data demonstrated that the most efficient prepared
material represented as (NAC)
Fig. 9: FTIR spectrums of nano- Bagasse activated carbon
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM):
Figure (10) show that TEM images of GAC and PAC
products which displayed a well pronounced the average particle size
were about 400 to 410 for GAC and ranged from 174 to 200 nm for PAC
meanwhile, TEM image of synthesized Nano- Bagasse activated Carbon
180 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
I detected that the average of particle size ranged from 7.22 to 14.1 nm.
According to above results of BET and transmission electron microscopy
(TEM), the most efficient forms is PAC and NAC because it had
produced nano-scale by much higher surface area, pore volume, and
porosity compared to GAC. These results are in harmony with those
obtained by (Tancredi et al., 2004).
A
B
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 181
Fig 10: TEM images of GAC (A), PAC (B), NAC (c) and Limeston (D)
Experimental applications on sewage water:
Treatment sewage water by the fine powder of active carbon (PAC)
Data in Table (4) elucidate that PAC had a appreciable effects on
all mention traits of sewage water compared to untreated water except,
pH was not affected with all prolonging period under studied .
C
D
182 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
Significant decreases in COD, BOD, SAR,TSS, NO3, Ca, Na, Cd, Cu, Fe
and Ni in sewage water amounted by (14.5, 15.7) mg O2/L and (4.2,
367.2, 0.41, 0.2, 4.6, 1.7 and 4.3) mg/L while, TDS was increased
amounted to 299.4 mg/L after soaking period 10 days with zero time and
without any significant differences among all soaking period for all traits
except between soaking periods 10 and 15 days for PO4 and also
between soaking periods of 15 and 20 days for TDS content of sewage
water. Data in the same Table also clear that there is no significant
difference among soaking periods 10, 15and 20 days for SAR, COD,
BOD, TSS, NO3, Ca, Na, Cu, Cd, Fe and Ni. further, the same trend was
detected for Mg between results of soaking periods (zero and 10) days
and also between soaking periods (15 and 20) days for the same traits
while it was found between soaking periods (10 and 15) days for ASR
and TDS. These results are in harmony with those obtained by Ahn et
al., (2009) and Hua et al., (2012) they found that PAC due to its high
porosity, large surface area and high efficiency has gained more interests
than the others. In addition the affected of PAC as a reported explain by
Jung et al., (2013) who found that the maximum adsorption capacity of
PAC reach to 46.9 mg/g for metal ions removal from aqueous solutions.
Furthermore Tancredi et al., (2004) reported that (PAC) compared to
granular activated carbon, has a much faster adsorption rate and a larger
adsorption capacity of various organics usually related to their much
higher surface area, pore volume, and porosity.
Treatment sewage water by limestone:
Data presented in table (5) show that treated sewage water by
limestone had significant affect on SAR,TSS, COD, BOD, TDS, PO4,
NO3, Ca, Mg, Na, Cd, Cu, Fe and Ni. Significant reduction resulted in
soaking period 10 days in COD and BOD amounted to (3.9 and 4.9)
mgO2/L and also was (369.4, 0.3, 0.13, 3.2, 1.7 and 0.8) mg/L for TSS,
PO4, NO3, Ca, Mg and Na, respectively while was (13.32, 7.94, 114.8
and 19.2) μg/L for Cd, Cu, Fe and Ni, respectively except the value of
TDS was increased amounted by 332.8 mg/L as compared to sewage
water at zero time. On the other hand, increasing soaking period from
zero to 15 days resulted in significant reduction in PO4 and NO3 and
caused an increasing in TDS amounted by (0.41and 0.17) and 329.3
mg/L, respectively as compared to zero time. Meanwhile, other values of
mention traits between soaking period from10 and 15 in Table 6 was not
affect
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 183
Table (4) Effect of powder active carbon (PAC) on sewage water chemical composition
S.P/
day
powder active carbon (PAC)
pH SAR
COD BOD TSS TDS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
mg O2/L mg/L μg/L
zero 7.4a 15.4a 92.3a 63.6a 377 a 12.4a
2.41a
±0.1
0.65a
±0.03
38.4a
±0.2
14.8a
±0.12
58.6a
±0.2
17.6a
±0.2
13.6a
±0.02
306.2a
±0.12
45.7a
±0.3
10 7.2a 11.2b 77.8b 47.9b 9.8b 311.8b
2.00b
±0.02
0.45b
±0.02
33.8b
±0.1
13.1a
±0.11
54.3b
±0.1
6.75b
±0.01
8.81b
±0.03
201.6b
±0.31
32.6b
±0.02
15 7.2a 10.8b 76.5b 47.5b 8.5b 309.2b
1.82c
±0.01
0.41b
±0.01
33.6b
±0.1
12.9b
±0.10
54.2b
±0.2
6.44b
±0.02
8.53b
±0.02
200.3b
±0.24
32.5b
±0.01
20 7.2a 10.7b 72.8b 48.1b 8.1b 300.7c
1.75c
±0.02
0.40b
±0.01
33.7b
±0.1
12.3b
±0.11
54.2b
±0.1
6.38b
±0.02
8.52b
±0.03
200b
±0.17
32.6b
±0.01
S.P: soaking period, SAR: sodium adsorption ratio, COD: Chemical oxygen demand, BOD: biological oxygen demand,TSS: total soluble
solids,TDS: total dissolved solids
Values with different letters show significant differences at P ≤ .05 (LSD).
Table 5: Effect of lime stone on sewage water treatment
S.P/
day
lime stone
pH SAR
COD BOD TSS TDS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
mg O2/L mg/L μg/L
zero
7.4a 15.4a 92.3a 63.6a 377 a 12.4a 2.41a
±0.1
0.65a
±0.03
38.4a
±0.2
14.8a
±0.12
58.6a
±0.2
17.6a
±0.2
13.6a
±0.02
306.2a
±0.12
45.7a
±0.3
10
7.3a 11.8b 88.4b 58.7b 7.6b 345.2b 2.11b
±0.03
0.52b
±0.02
35.2b
±0.3
13.1b
±0.11
57.8b
±0.1
8.70b±
0.2
11.4b
±0.01
249.2b
±0.20
41.6b
±0.14
15
7.3a 11.8a 85.7b 58.3b 7.1b 341.7c 2.00c
±0.02
0.48c
±0.03
35.2b
±0.4
13.0b
±0.11
57.6b
±0.1
8.50b
±0.3
10.2b
±0.01
248.5b
±0.22
41.5b
±0.12
20
7.3a 11.7a 80.6c 58.5b 7.1b 341.6c 1.98c
±0.02
0.48c
±0.02
35.1b
±0.3
13.0b
±0.10
56.4b
±0.02
7.66c
±0.2
10.0b
±0.01
241.6c
±0.21
41.0b
±0.11
Values with different letters show significant differences at P ≤ .05 (LSD).
184 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
Increasing soaking period from zero to 20 days resulted in a
significant reduction in COD, Cu and Fe amounted by 11.7 mgO2/L,
(9.94 and 64.6) μg/L respectively compared to zero time. Moreover, there
is no difference between soaking period from 15 and 20 days for the
other values of all mention traits in Table 5. The different absorption
capacities of limestone substance through different soaking period zero,
10, 15 up to 20 days may be attributed to various factors such as metal
solubility, cationic size, electronegativity, affinity of adsorbent, contact
time etc as a mentioned by Geetha and Belagali (2013). This results
coincides with those found by Ahmad et al., (2012) who reported that
CaCO3 showed a good metal binding capability for heavy metals ions
and can be used an effective alternative from real wastewater metal
removal.
Treatment sewage water by nano active carbon (NAC):
Data in Table (6) elucidate that nano active carbon had a
appreciable high effects on all traits of sewage water with increased
soaking period from zero to 10 days except pH value was insignificantly
affected by the prolonging period from zero, 10, 15 to 20 days after
treated. The results also showed that there no detected any significant
differences among all other soaking period and zero time for all above
traits in Table 6 except, Fe was obtained significant decrease which
amounted to (8.9 and 123.7) μg/L in soaking periods10 and 15 days,
respectively after treatments as well as increasing soaking period from
zero to 20 caused an increase in TDS and reducing NO3 which amounted
to (248.9 and0.05) mg/L as a compared to zero time. It worthily to
mention the corresponding reduction values for all traits in Table 6 were
highest as compared to the other treatment materials. This finding was
true when refer to table (2). These results may be attributed to the fact
that PAC has a relatively larger particle size compared to NAC and
consequently, presents a smaller external surface. These results are in
line with those obtained by Elkady et al., (2015) who found that NAC
exhibited array of unique performance for improvement properties of
sewage water like deodorization and heavy metal removal.
In accordance with previous results in table 3, 4 and 5 about the
performance indication of individual effect of each PAC, lime and NAC
stone on sewage water chemical composition, the results observed that
NAC treatment was high effects than the other materials so that, it was
selected to study the effects of using it in combination with lime stone on
the disposal of some chemical composition found in sewage water table
7 and SEM images for combination NAC + lime stone was investigated
at Fig.11
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 185
Table 6: Effect of Nano active carbon (NAC) on sewage water
treatment
S.P/
day
Nano active carbon (NAC)
pH SAR
COD BOD TSS TDS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
mg O2/L mg/L μg/L
zero 7.4a 15.4a 92.3a 63.6a 377 a
12.4
a
2.41a
±0.1
0.65a
±0.03
38.4a
±0.2
14.8a
±0.12
58.6a
±0.2
17.6a
±0.2
13.6a
±0.02
306.2a
±0.12
45.7a
±0.3
10 7.1a 10.1b 58.3b 44.2b 7.6b 267.5b
1.61b
±0.02
0.38b
±0.02
32.1b
±0.11
11.8b
±0.13
51.6b
±0.3
4.28b
±0.1
5.66b
±0.03
191.4b
±0.45
26.5b
±0.11
15 7.1a 10.0b 56.5b 42.8b 7.1b 267.1b
1.51b
±0.01
0.38b
±0.02
31.5b
±0.13
11.8b
±0.11
50.2b
±0.3
3.06b
±0.1
5.48b
±0.04
182.5c
±0.41
23.6b
±0.13
20 7.1a 10.0b 56.3b 42.3b 7.1b 261.3c
1.50b
±0.02
0.33c
±0.03
31.2b
±0.20
11.5b
±0.11
49.1b
±0.2
2.03b
±0.2
4.92b
±0.01
180.1c
±0.32
20.2b
±0.11
Values with different letters show significant differences at P ≤ .05 (LSD).
Fig. 11: TEM images of combination NAC + lime stone
Treatment sewage water by combination of (NAC + lime stone):
The results in Table (7) declared that all chemical traits of sewage
water were significantly affected by using nano active carbon in
combination with limestone. Significant decreasing in all mentioned
traits in Table 7 with increased soaking period from zero, 10, 15 up to 20
days excepted, trait of TDS was increase while, pH value was not
affected by all prolonging periods. Treatment sewage water by
combination of (NAC + lime stone) achieved substantial decrements after
soaking period 10 day amounted to (36.9, 26) mg O2/L for COD and
BOD and amounted to (5.6, 370.2, 1.67, 0.38, 8.6, 4.5, 10) mg/L for
SAP, TSS, PO4, NO3, Ca, Mg and Na and amounted to (13.24, 9.75,
133.6 and 30.9) μg/L for Cd, Cu, Fe and Ni content , respectively and
186 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020
trait of TDS increasing amounted to 246.4 mg/L compared to that of
untreated sewage water. Also in the same Table, it was noticed that
insignificant variances were found in SAR, COD, TSS, Ca, Mg and Na
traits among their values in soaking period 10, 15 and 20 days. While, the
significant difference was detected between soaking periods 15 and 20
days for TDS and PO4 as well as between soaking period15 and 20 days
for BOD, NO3, Cu, Cd, Fe and Ni. These results may be attributed to
various factors such as metal solubility, cationic size, electro negativity,
affinity of adsorbent, contact time etc as a mentioned by Geetha and
Belagali (2013). This finding meaning using this combination for water
treatment it can be achieve impressive results for removal some ions of
metal oxides and heavy metals as well as reducing chemical and
biological oxygen demand in sewage water.
Table 7: Effect of combination of (NAC + lime stone) on sewage
water treatment
S.P/
day
combination 0.5mg/l NAC + 6g/l lime stone
pH SAR
COD BOD TSS TDS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
mg O2/L mg/L μg/L
zero 7.4a 15.4a 92.3a 63.6a 377 a 12.4a
2.41a
±0.1
0.65a
±0.03
38.4a
±0.2
14.8a
±0.12
58.6a
±0.2
17.6a
±0.2
13.6a
±0.02
306.2a
±0.12
45.7a
±0.3
10 7.1a 9.8b 55.4b 37.6b 6.8b 258.8b 0.74b
±0.03
0.27b
±0.01
29.8b
±0.1
10.3b
±0.10
48.6b
±0.1
4.36b
±0.04
3.85b
±0.03
170.6b
±0.13
14.8b
±0.3
15 7.1a 9.9b 55.1b 35.5c 6.3b 258.1b 0.72b
±0.02
0.21c
±0.02
29.5b
±0.1
10.2b
±0.13
46.5b
±0.2
3.89c
±0.03
1.81c
±0.05
162.3c
±0.11
13.7c
±0.1
20 7.1a 9.8b 54.2b 35.6c 6.3b 253.4c 0.58c
±0.03
0.20c
±0.02
25.5b
±0.2
8.3b
±0.05
45.2b
±0.2
2.81c
±0.05
1.28c
±0.05
154.8c
±0.12
12.1c
±0.1
Values with different letters show significant differences at P ≤ .05 (LSD).
Data presented in Table 8 show that water treatments under
studied were arranged in ascending order according to the removal% of
chemical contents. This ranking refer to the good reflect of using NAC in
combination with limestone as a better treatment on enhancing sewage
water quality. The removals of unwanted traits by the combination
(NAC+ Lime stone) may be related to the function activity of surface
area and also nano particles has a special properties i.e. high wide
specific surface area, high reactivity, tunable pore size, which may allow
them access to the maximum adsorption capacity and larger adsorption
porosity moreover, the capability of limestone as a tool in water
treatment and carriers to nano particles at the same time.
Table 8: Removal % for all sewage water treatments after soaking
period 10 days
Treatments
SAR COD BOD TSS PO4 NO3 Ca Mg Na Cu Cd Fe Ni
% % %
1 Limestone 0.23 0.04 0.08 0.98 0.12 0.2 0.08 0.11 0.009 0.51 0.16 0.17 0.09
2 PAC 0.27 0.16 0.25 0.97 0.17 0.31 0.12 0.12 0.07 0.62 0.35 0.34 0.29
3 NAC 0.34 0.37 0.31 0.98 0.33 0.41 0.16 0.20 0.12 0.75 0.58 0.37 0.42
4
NAC +
Lime stone
0.36 0.40 0.41 0.98 0.69 0.58 0.22 0.30 0.17 0.75 0.71 0.44 0.67
Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020 187
CONCLUSION
Producing powder activated carbon and/or synthesis of activated
carbon nano-particles (NAC) from sugar cane bagasse is considered one
of successful trying up grate agricultural waste treatment technologies.
Combination treatment (NAC + limestone) exhibited unique performance
for reducing some pollutants from sewage water.
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التحقق من الکربون المنشط المنتج من مصاصة قصب السکر وتطبيقو
عمى معالجة مياه الصرف الصحى
انور حامد ساسى* ، سيا رمضان ابوالعلا خميل* ، محمد عبد الوىاب محمود**
*قسم بحوث تکنولوجيا السکر - معهد بحوث المحاصيل السکرية - مرکز البحوث الز ا رعية – الجيزة – مصر
**قسم فسيولوجيا النبات - کمية الز ا رعة جامعة القاهرة - الجيزة- مصر
حيث تم (SCB). من قصب السکر (AC) أستخدام مرحمة التنشيط لإنتاج الکربون المنشط
والثانية کانت (PAC) إلى مسحوق ناعم AC التنشيط بط ريقتين ؛ الطريقة الأولى تحطمت حبيبات
PAC تم تقدير مساحة سطح (NAC). عممية تخميق جزيئات نانوية من حبيبات الکربون المنشط
باستخدام طيف الأشعة تحت NAC وتوصيف Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) بواسطة
Trasmission Electron Microscope (TEM). و (FTIR) الحم ا رء
تم اختبار تأثي ا رت الممت ا زت المنتجة وحجر الجير الطبيعي من خلال تطبيقاتهم عمى مياه
الصرف الصحي لتحسين بعض الخواص الفيزيائية والکيميائية التي إشممت عمى )الأس الهيدروجيني ،
، Fe ، Cu ، Cd ،Na ،Ca ،Mg ،PO4 ،NO3 ،ASR ،TDS ،BOD ،COD ،TSS
00 يوم(. ، 01 ، 00 ، خلال فت ا رت نقع مختمفة ) 0 )Ni
أوضحت النتائج أن تأثي ا رت استخدام الکربون المنشط النانوي بشکل فردي کانت أکثر کفاءة
اولحجر الجير الطبيعي لمعالجة مياه الصرف الصحي مع فترة نقع 00 أيام مقارنة بفت ا رت PAC من
کممتز کفاءة عالية في إ ا زلة أيونات NAC النقع الأخرى. علاوة عمى ذلک ، أظه رت المعالجة ب
وتقميل )Ni ،Fe ،Cd ،Cu ( وأيونات المعادن الثقيمة )Na ،Ca ،Mg ،PO4 ،NO المعادن ) 3
من مياه الصرف الصحي. لذلک ، تم إختبار تأثيره فى توليفة مع الحجر الجيري عمى COD و BOD
معالجة مياه الصرف الصحي. اظهرت النتائج ان نسب الا ا زلة المقابمة لمصفات الکميائية المدروسة کانت
+NAC ( أعمى مقارنة بتطبيق کل منهم منفردا خلال فترة النقع 00 أيام.توصى الد ا رسة باستخدم التوليفة
الحجر الجيري( کمادة جيدة جدًا في مجال معالجة مياه الصرف الصحى قبل إعادة تدويرها والتي يمکن
تطبيقها لتقميل بعض مموثات مياه الصرف الصحي بعد التخمص منها.
190 Egypt. J. of Appl. Sci., 35 (12) 2020