Application of lemon peels biomass chemically modified with Al2O3 nanoparticles for cadmium uptake

Adriana Herrera-Barros, Candelaria Tejada-Tovar, �ngel Villabona-Ort�z, �ngel Dar�o Gonz�lez-Delgado, Erika Ru�z-Paternina
2018 Indian Journal of Science and Technology  
Agricultural wastes have attached great attention for developing novel materials with physico-chemical properties favorable for several applications as heavy metal ions uptake from aqueous solution. Objectives: In this work, Lemon Peels (LP) residual biomass was successfully modified into a novel biosorbent using alumina (Al 2 O 3 ) nanoparticles and applied to remove cadmium ions. Methods/Analysis: Characterizations of LP-Al 2 O 3 biosorbent by FT-IR and SEM were performed to identify
more » ... y and main functional groups. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out under different pH values (2, 4, 6) and particle sizes (0.355, 0.5, 1 mm). The removal yields were calculated using LP and LP-Al 2 O 3 in order to compare these results and determine the effect of alumina nanoparticles on adsorption process. Finding: The FT-IR analysis revealed the presence of covalent binding of aluminum with carboxyl and carbonyl groups of this biomass. The porous surface of LP-Al 2 O 3 biosorbent observed in SEM micrograph suggested a high surface available to metal ions binding. The removal yields were increased from 90.35 to 93.3% after loading alumina nanoparticles into lemon peels biomass due to the larger surface given by nano-scale particle size. Novelty/Improvement: These results suggested that lemon peels-based biosorbents can be efficiently used for cadmium ions uptake from aqueous solution.
doi:10.17485/ijst/2018/v11i26/129403 fatcat:vy5km2qzy5hz3env7whio6lr3e