Adsorbents from Schinopsis balansae: Optimisation of significant variables

The current article presents the study of the influencing variables in gelification process of Schinopsis balansae tannin extract. This product is an adsorbent for wastewater remediation since it retains cationic pollutants such as heavy metals, surfactants or dyes. Design of experiments procedure was used in order to evaluate the influence of two main factors involved in the immovilization process: temperature and formaldehyde-tannin ratio. The complete statistical protocol has confirmed an optimal temperature of 75 degrees C and the fact that minimum amount of formaldehyde leads to a more efficient adsorbent. The theoretical predicted results through the design of experiments were experimentally confirmed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.