Kinetics, equilibrium and thermodynamic study of phenol adsorption using NiFe2O4 nanoparticles aggregated on PAC

This study describes the preparation of a novel composite adsorbent, NiFe2O4-(PAC) by physical adsorption technique. The developed adsorbents were used for the removal of phenol from aqueous solutions. The synthesised adsorbent particles were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), Field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and Transmission electron microscope (TEM). The effect of NiFe2O4 modified PAC particles on the physicochemical properties of phenol adsorption was studied by varying different parameters such as contact time, adsorbent dose, pH, temperature and the initial concentration of adsorbate. The most common adsorption isotherms such as Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were used to investigate the equilibrium behaviour of the system. A regeneration technique was proposed in order to examine the reusability the spent adsorbents. Adsorption equilibrium studies suggested Langmuir model was best suited with a high adsorption capacity of 93.25 mg/g.