Sorption kinetics on the removal of zinc ion using scoria

Recently, considerable researches have been focused to find out inexpensive sorbents. for removal of heavy metals in aquatic environments. In particular, various natural materials including geologic media have been attractive. In order to evaluate the applicability of the scoria taken from the Jeju island, Korea, to remove Zn(II) from aqueous solutions, the kinetic sorption experiments were performed in this study. The batch-type kinetic sorption tests were carried out under different conditions, such as different initial Zn(II) concentration, particle size of the scoria, and sorbate/sorbent ratio. The results indicated that the removal of Zn(II) by scoria increased with decreases in initial Zn(II) concentration, particle size of the scoria, and sorbate/sorbent ratio. However, the sorption capacity of the scoria decreased with increasing amount of the scoria. The sorption behavior of Zn(II) onto scoria seemed to be mainly controlled by cation exchange.