Abstract:
This research article presents a comparative study of the adsorption properties of Moringa oleifera
biomass using Pb2+ ions as test analyte. The investigated parameters which affected the adsorption
process were the effect of pH, initial concentration, adsorbent dose, contact time, and temperature. The
comparison of adsorption process was evaluated in the pH range of 3 to 8, concentration range from 5
to 20 ppm, temperature varied from 25 to 80°C, variation of contact time from 15 to 80 min, and dose of
the adsorbent from 0.3 to 1.2 g. The results obtained showed that a high adsorbent dose is required for
high adsorption capacity. The pH of 7 was most effective with temperature set at 25°C and contact time
of 60 min. The Temkin, Dubunin-Radushkevich, Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were applied and
fitted well to the data and values of the parameters of these isotherm equations were calculated. The
Langmuir isotherm proved to be the overall best isotherm. The adsorbent surface functional groups
were identified with Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The maximum adsorption capacity
obtained was 98% for seed, 96% for blended, 94% for pods, and 92% for leaves. Better thermodynamic
and kinetic properties were obtained with the seeds and the blended samples. In total, these results
indicate that the blended moringa biosobent can be employed as a low-cost biosorbent for the removal
of lead ions from water
