Nitrophenols removal from aqueous medium using Fe-nano mesoporous zeolite

In this study, Fe-nano zeolite was applied to the removal of ortho, meta and para-nitrophenols to evaluate its potential applications as an effective adsorbent. Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy, and gas adsorption analysis were used to compare the advanced properties of Fe-nano zeolite with those of commercial activated carbon (AC). The Fe-nano zeolite with a greatly improved surface area was particularly effective in the removal of the nitrophenols. The maximum adsorption capacity of m-, o- and p-nitrophenol were 168.7, 193.9 and 223.1mg/g, respectively. These adsorbents were applied to the remediation of wastewater containing high p-nitrophenol concentration of 380 mg/L. The results revealed 92.8% removal efficiency of pnitrophenol from wastewater by Fe-nano zeolite, which is much higher than those AC (56.5%). The regeneration characteristics of the p-nitrophenol-loaded adsorbent were analyzed. Even after 15 adsorption-desorption cycles, the removal efficiencies of p-nitrophenol by Fe-nano zeolite and AC were 78.6 and 57.9%, respectively. The required adsorption cost for the treatment of 1000 kg wastewater containing 380 mg/L of p-nitrophenol using Fe-nano zeolite was 67.6% lower than that using AC. Based on these results, Fe-nano zeolite can be used as economic and effective adsorbent for removal of nitrophenols from wastewater. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.