Kinetics of decolourization of malachite green from aqueous medium by maize cob (Zea maize): An agricultural solid waste

Adsorbent prepared from maize cob powder (MCP), an agricultural waste, was successfully used to remove the malachite green from an aqueous solution. The adsorption was carried out by varying the parameters such as agitation time, dye concentration, adsorbent dose and pH at constant temperature of 27 degrees C. Kinetic parameters of adsorption such as Lagergren pseudo first-order, pseudo second-order, Elovich and intraparticle diffusion models were determined. Equilibrium adsorption data followed both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. The adsorption capacity was found to be 80.64 mg dye/g of adsorbent. These studies suggested that MCP could be used as a low-cost alternative in wastewater treatment for dye removal. The adsorbent was also characterized by FTIR, XRD and SEM analyses.