COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF Pb2+ SEPARATION USING NATURAL AND SYNTHETIC SILICATE MATERIALS

Abstract

In this study, the adsorption capacity and removal efficiency of lead using various metal-oxide materials from aqueous solution have been analyzed. Two SiO2-based materials, natural (loam) and synthesized (metal-oxide heterostructures – MOH) were investigated. The characterization of these samples was performed using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Adsorption tests were performed in a batch system by varying the mass of tested materials. The highest adsorption capacity for Pb2+ was achieved using 5 mg of MOH (166.6 µg g-1), while the removal efficiency using the optimal mass (10 mg) of MOH and loam was 99.3 and 94.2 %, respectively. Based on the obtained results, it was concluded that the synthetic material has higher adsorption capacity and removal efficiency than the natural material for the selected ion.