Adsorption of phosphate from aqueous solutions onto modified wheat residue: Characteristics, kinetic and column studies

Kinetic and column adsorption of phosphate from aqueous solution using modified wheat residue (MWS) as an adsorbent were studied in a batch reactor. The respective characteristic rate constants and activation energy were presented after linear and non-linear fitting. In addition, the effects of influent concentration of phosphate and flow rates on the column adsorption were also investigated. The results showed that the adsorption process could reach equilibrium in 10–15 min, and the pseudo-second-order equation generated the best agreement with experimental data for adsorption systems. The activation energy was 3.39 kJ mol−1 indicating that the synthesis process was a physical adsorption. In the column tests, the increase of influent concentration and flow rate both decreased the breakthrough time, and the MWS-packed column exhibited excellent phosphate removal from aqueous solution. These results provide strong evidence of the potential of MWS for the technological applications of phosphate removal from aqueous solutions.