Iron-activated carbon nanocomposite: synthesis, characterization and application for lead removal from aqueous solution

The removal of Pb(II) ions from aqueous solution by adsorption on an Iron-Activated Carbon (IAC)nanocomposite was investigated. Removal studies were carried out in a batch system, and the effects ofvarious operating parameters, such as solution pH, solid to liquid ratio and initial concentration wereevaluated. Experimental design was carried out using central composite design (CCD) with responsesurface methodology (RSM). According to the RSM results, the optimum adsorption conditions for Pb(II)removal by IAC were pH ¼ 6.5, solid to liquid ratio of 3 g L1 and initial lead concentration of 10 mg L1.Under these optimum operating conditions, 96.5% of Pb(II) was removed by the IAC nanocomposite. Theequilibrium adsorption data were well described by the Freundlich isotherm. The maximum adsorptioncapacity of IAC was 121.9 mg g1 for Pb(II). It was observed that the adsorption kinetics of Pb(II) on theIAC could be well analyzed with a pseudo-second-order model.