Adsorption of Ethylbenzene from Aqueous Solution Using Recycled Rubber from Scrap Tyre

The adsorption of ethylbenzene from aqueous solution using waste tyre rubber granules (WTRG) was investigated in a batch system. The effect of various factors such as contact time, initial concentration of ethylbenzene, amount of adsorbent, size of adsorbent particles, and temperature of solution on the adsorption capacity of WTRG was determined. The equilibrium contact time was obtained to be 70 minutes indicating fast adsorption. The adsorption of ethylbenzene on WTRG was observed to increase from 8.4 to 57.85 mg/g with increase in initial ethylbenzene concentration from 250 to 850 mg/L. The adsorption capacity of WTRG increased from 55.35 to 71.6 mg/g with decrease in particle size from 2.36 to 0.212mm. Increasing the temperature of the aqueous solution from 5 to 40oC resulted in a decrease in the adsorption capacity of WTRG from 59.83 to 45.15mg/g. Kinetic and isotherm studies indicate that the adsorption of ethylbenzene was best described by the Lagergren pseudo-first order kinetic equation and Langmuir isotherm equations respectively. Results obtained indicate that recycled rubber from scrap tyres can be used as an efficient adsorbent for the removal of ethylbenzene from aqueous solution.