Modification of Non-Activated Carbon from Rubber Fruit Shells with 3-(Aminopropyl)-Triethoxysilane and Its Adsorption Study on Coomassie Brilliant Blue and Methylene Blue in Solution

This study involved modifying carbon derived from rubber fruit shells, referred to as nAC-RFs, without activation. The modification process utilized a silane agent known as 3-Aminopropyl-Triethoxysilane (APTES), resulting in the formation of nAC-RFs-S. To confirm the successful modification, the adsorbent underwent characterization using an Infrared Spectrometer (IR) to identify functional groups and Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive-X-ray (SEM-EDX) to analyze surface morphology and constituent elements. The adsorption capacity of nAC-RFs-S was evaluated through batch adsorption experiments involving Coomassie Brilliant Blue (CBB) dye (anionic) and Methylene Blue (MB) dye (cationic). The optimal conditions for CBB and MB adsorption on both nAC-RFs and nAC-RFs-S were found to be pH 5, a contact time of 90 min, and a temperature of 27 & DEG;C. The adsorption kinetics of CBB and MB onto nAC-RFs and nAC-RFs-S followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The pseudo-second-order rate constants (k(2)) for CBB were 2.674 x 10(-3) and 0.185 x 10(-3) (g/mg & BULL;min) for nAC-RFs and nAC-RFs-S, respectively, while for MB, the corresponding values were 2.735 x 10(-3) and 0.415 x 10(-3) (g/mg & BULL;min). CBB adsorption tended to conform to the Freundlich adsorption isotherm model on nAC-RFs, whereas, on nAC-RFs-S, it tended to align with the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. For MB, both nAC-RFs and nAC-RFs-S exhibited adsorption tendencies that followed the Freundlich isotherm model. The nAC-RFs-S adsorbent demonstrated remarkable effectiveness in adsorbing CBB and MB in solution, with the ability to be reused for up to three cycles while maintaining an adsorption percentage exceeding 80%. Consequently, the nAC-RFs-S adsorbent holds promise as an advantageous and efficient solution for combating water pollution caused by toxic chemicals like synthetic dyes.

Automated summary

This study modified carbon derived from rubber fruit shells, resulting in nAC-RFs-S through the use of a silane agent called 3-Aminopropyl-Triethoxysilane (APTES). The adsorbent was characterized using Infrared Spectrometer (IR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive-X-ray (SEM-EDX). Batch adsorption experiments showed that nAC-RFs-S had optimal conditions for adsorbing Coomassie Brilliant Blue (CBB) and Methylene Blue (MB) dyes. The nAC-RFs-S adsorbent demonstrated remarkable effectiveness in adsorbing CBB and MB in solution, with the ability to be reused for multiple cycles.