• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.798-806
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• 2017

A activated carbon (WCAC, waste citrus activated carbon) prepared from an agricultural waste citrus peel material generated in Jeju was utilized for the removal of dimetridazole (DMZ) antibiotics in aqueous solution. The adsorption of DMZ on WCAC was investigated with the change of various parameters such as contact time, dosage of WCAC, particle size of WCAC, temperature, pH, and DMZ concentration. The DMZ adsorption capacity increased with increasing temperature and decreasing particle size. Also it was decreased at less than pH 4 but sustained almost constantly at pH 4 or greater. Isotherm parameters were determined from the Langmuir, Freundlich, Redlich-Peterson and Duinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherm models. The isotherm data were best described by the Redlich-Peterson isotherm model. And the adsorption kinetics can be successfully fitted to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The results of the intra-particle diffusion model suggested that film diffusion and intra-particle diffusion were occurred simultaneously during the adsorption process. Meanwhile, the thermodynamic parameters indicated that the adsorption reaction of DMZ on WCAC was an endothermic and spontaneous process. The experimental results showed that WCAC is a promising and cheap adsorbent for the removal of DMZ antibiotics.