Removal of BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene) from aqueous solutions using surface-modified zeolite

BTEX, also known as benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene , xylene, is a common gasoline oxygenate. The contamination of groundwater , surface water with BTEX and its primary breakdown product has drawn a lot of attention. However, surface-modified zeolite's sorption mechanisms and affinity for BTEX can be employed to potentially remove these toxins from water. Tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) was utilized to alter the morphology of the adsorbent. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that zeolites have a greater capability for removing emerging chemicals. Some of the emerging compounds' relatively large dimensions limit their natural ability to lower values. Gas chromatography was used to determine the BTEX concentration decrease range. The Yoon-Nelson and Adams-Bohart model's use of mathematical modelling to determine the efficacy of the column's adsorption. The model with the highest R2 values for characterizing equilibrium isotherm data describes equilibrium adsorption data. To gain an understanding of the shape, pore structure , active sites, the characterisation is concentrated on quantitative analysis using XRD, qualitative analysis using FTIR, , optical study using SEM.

Automated summary

The contamination of groundwater and surface water with BTEX and its breakdown product has become a concern. Surface-modified zeolite has shown potential in removing these toxins. Various methods, such as gas chromatography and mathematical modeling, were used to study the adsorption and characterization of BTEX.