Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol.10, No.1, 102-108, 2002
Sorption of acid dyes onto silica modified with cetyltrimethylammonium cations
The sorption behavior of acid dyes onto cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)- modified silica as a function of pH in the aqueous medium was studied. Single- and multi-solute sorption equilibria of orange II(OR), phenol red (PR) and Eriochrome Black T (EBT) were studied at pH 3, unbuffered water pH and pH 11. Sorption behavior of EBT could not be conducted at pH 3 due to its aggregation in acidic medium, All the reaction conditions, experimental protocols and techniques remained the same throughout the sorption process. Sorption isotherms for single-solute system were fitted by the Langmuir model, while Langmuir competitive model (LCM) and the ideal adsorbed solution theory (IAST) coupled with Langmuir model (IAST/Langmuir) were used for the prediction of multisolute competitive sorption. Sorption affinities influenced by the factors like physical interactive forces between the molecules of CTA on silica and sorbate, structural limitations of the dyes based on their geometrical arrangement were investigated, Sorption affinity of OR was found to be higher than that of EBT and PR at all the pH values investigated. Magnitude of the sorption capacities was observed to be higher in acidic medium but lower in alkaline medium. Trends of the sorption affinities in multisolute system were similar to those in single-solute system but magnitude of the sorption capacities was significantly reduced due to the prevailing competition among the sorbates.