Fakher Jamoussi - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Fakher Jamoussi

International Journal of Global Environmental Issues, 2012

ABSTRACT This study focused on the removal of Pb(II), Cd(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) using reagent so... more ABSTRACT This study focused on the removal of Pb(II), Cd(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) using reagent solutions by natural limestone in a batch system. The sorbent, collected from the Late Cretaceous limestone beds, Tunisia, was characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analysis (XRF) and infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). XRF showed that the studied limestone contained high amount of calcium carbonates. XRD confirmed the presence of quartz along with the sharp peaks of calcite. FTIR spectra indicated that limestone was mainly composed of calcite, confirming the results of XRD and XRF analyses. Preliminary adsorption tests indicated that high removal efficiency could be achieved by limestone. The presence of impurities enhanced the adsorption capacity. Kinetic experiments showed that the sorption of metal ions best fitted the second order kinetic model with equilibration time of 60 min. These results suggested that the Campanian-Maastritchian limestone could be used for the removal of toxic metals from wastewaters.

Cerâmica

The purpose of this study was the development of a low-cost ceramic tubular membrane, using inexp... more The purpose of this study was the development of a low-cost ceramic tubular membrane, using inexpensive materials, namely natural clay, and graphite as a porogenic agent. Such a low-cost membrane can be used as filters or porous supports for the preparation of multilayer ceramic membranes. Extrusion was used as a shape-forming method for this purpose. Graphite was selected as a porogenic additive. Raw materials were physicochemically and morphologically characterized. A comparative study of the influence of porogen content on membrane characteristics was carried out. Finally a graphite addition of 15 wt% and 850 °C as the sintering temperature were chosen. The obtained membrane had 41 vol% of porosity, diametral compression strength of 4 MPa, and relatively good corrosion resistance in basic and acid conditions. The performance of the membrane support was evaluated for diesel-in-water emulsion depuration as a function of pressure. Filtration test using 15% of porogen sample led to turbidity rejection factor of 95%. Therefore, it was considered that this membrane can be suitable for diesel/water emulsion treatment.

Applied Clay Science, 2017

Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Mineralogía, 2002

The study describes the chemical-mineralogical characterization of Barremian sand deposits. These... more The study describes the chemical-mineralogical characterization of Barremian sand deposits. These Sidi Aich sands were collected in central Tunisia. The collected raw silica sand from the Jebel Meloussi (central Tunisia) was characterised by different techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray uorescence (XRF) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray diffraction showed a predominance of quartz and potassic feldspars and lower amounts of kaolinite and calcite. The obtained silica gels had pore diameters over 20 Å and speci c surface areas up to 183 m 2 /g, close to those reported for commercial silica gel materials. The N 2 adsorption isotherms have shown that new materials synthesised from Tunisian silica sands are mesoporous materials with high chemi-physical adsorption capabilities.

Water, Air, & Soil Pollution

This paper presents a study on orange II sodium salt (OII) degradation based on iron nanoparticle... more This paper presents a study on orange II sodium salt (OII) degradation based on iron nanoparticles supported by kaolinite clays. The effects of nanoscale iron and initial dye concentration, as well as hydrogen peroxide dosage in a Fenton process, on the degradation of OII were studied. These nanoparticles were synthesized by green methods using coffee bean extract as a natural antioxidant for this process. Aqueous iron chloride was mixed with coffee extract, which is rich in antioxidants, and these antioxidants are responsible for the reduction of metal compounds into nanoparticles. The composite iron nanoparticle-kaolinite composite was synthesized from an aqueous FeCl3 and kaolinite solution with the added coffee bean extract. The results showed that OII removal efficiency increased with the amount of iron nanoparticles (n-Fe) alone and with the amount iron-supported-kaolinite composite. By increasing the amount of composite, the adsorptive surface area increases as well as the number of active sites, which determine the higher removal efficiency. Regarding H2O2 dosage, dye removal was more efficient at lower quantities: 62% removal efficiency with addition of 10 mL H2O2, while for the test conducted with 20 mL H2O2, removal efficiency was 47%. A possible reason for this behavior can be the n-Fe/ H2O2 ratio, which influences the production of degradation products and hinders the degradation.

L’apport d’une coopération Europe-Maghreb pour une meilleure exploitation du district minier de N... more L’apport d’une coopération Europe-Maghreb pour une meilleure exploitation du district minier de Nefza (N-O Tunisie) : géochimie isotopique de l’oxygène et de l’hydrogène des kaolinites et goethites du gisement de Tamra Dekoninck, Augustin; Vennemann, Torsten; Moussi, Béchir; Jamoussi, Fakher; Hatira, Nouri; Chaftar, Hedi-Ridha; Yans, Johan Published in: Ressources and Innovative Geology 2016 Abstract book

Clay science, 2006

抄録 Tunisian and Portuguese smectitic clays are under study to assess their potentialities to be u... more 抄録 Tunisian and Portuguese smectitic clays are under study to assess their potentialities to be used as natural raw materials for the production of Light Weight Aggregates which have an important function in civil construction work. Several smectitic clay deposits from the ...

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2016

The tannery effluent from the wet finishing stage is a complex, highly charged rejected of organi... more The tannery effluent from the wet finishing stage is a complex, highly charged rejected of organic and mineral matter. It has variable characteristics over time and is not readily biodegradable. Its physicochemical treatment by adsorption on the smectitic clay of Khlédia proves to be effective. The reduction of dye, BOD, COD, heavy metals are remarkable. The decrease of the conductivity is due to the phenomenon of the cations adsorption on the negatively charged support colloids.

Mineral Deposits at the Beginning of the 21st Century

Clay Minerals

The rare earth element (REE) content of the Tunisian Permian–Neogene shales have been studied to ... more The rare earth element (REE) content of the Tunisian Permian–Neogene shales have been studied to determine the origins of the clay minerals in these shales. The Permian–Neogene series overlies the Palaeozoic basement that has been studied via oil-drilling cores. This study of REEs was performed in various palaeogeographical domains of Tunisia, from the ‘Saharan Platform’ in the south to the ‘Nappes Zone’ in the north. In this work, those levels rich in illite (Palaeozoic, Triassic and Jurassic), smectite (Campanian–Maastrichtian) and palygorskite (continental Eocene) as well as some Miocene levels rich in halloysite are examined. The distribution of REEs in the Tunisian margin sediments is generally homogeneous, except for the Miocene levels containing halloysites. The normalization curves of REEs vs North American shale composite characterize the inherited clays regardless of the dominant minerals, except for a few cases of neoformation. The flat REE curves indicate a detrital orig...

Bioresource Technology, 2012

This study examined the ability of two biochars converted from anaerobically digested biomass to ... more This study examined the ability of two biochars converted from anaerobically digested biomass to sorb heavy metals using a range of laboratory sorption and characterization experiments. Initial evaluation of DAWC (digested dairy waste biochar) and DWSBC (digested whole sugar beet biochar) showed that both biochars were effective in removing a mixture of four heavy metals (Pb 2 + , Cu 2+ , Ni 2+ , and Cd 2+) from aqueous solutions. Compared to DAWC, DWSBC demonstrated a better ability to remove Ni and Cd. Further investigations of lead sorption by the two biochars indicated that the removal was mainly through a surface precipitation mechanism, which was confirmed by batch sorption experiments, mathematical modeling, and examinations of lead-laden biochars samples using SEM-EDS, XRD, and FTIR. The lead sorption capacity of the two biochars was close to or higher than 200 mmol/kg, which is comparable to that of commercial activated carbons.

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2021

The addition of various quantities of raw materials could be used in order to improve the physica... more The addition of various quantities of raw materials could be used in order to improve the physical and pyroscopic performances of silica-alumina refractories manufacturing. Here we study the possibility of local kaolinitic clay (SB) valorization in low alumina fireclay refractory materials manufacturing. Alumina-rich commercial kaolin (AS) (33.4% alumina) was also used as an additive to (SB) clay (24% alumina), to improve the physical and pyroscopic performances of the manufactured samples. The thermal behavior of (SB) clay was studied to determine necessary parameters for the production of good chamotte. In order to elaborate the refractory samples, two mixtures were optimized; mixture M1 (80 wt.% of chamotte (SB) and 20 wt.% of (SB) clay as a binder in crude fine form) and mixture M2 (80 wt.% of chamotte (SB) and 20 wt.% of (AS) kaolin as a binder in crude fine form) and sintered at 1350 °C for 2 h after compaction and molding. The obtained samples were characterized by their bulk density, open porosity, shrinkage, cold crushing strength, microstructure by scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs, mineralogical composition, and their refractoriness under load. Our data suggest that the addition of the alumina-rich clay to the main mixture enhances the refractoriness from 1198 to 1213 °C (T0.5), the mechanical behavior of the manufactured pellets from 36 to 44 MPa, and the mullite amount from 25 to 29%, and decreases the open porosity from 19.6 to 18.6 %.

Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Cerámica y Vidrio, 2021

Abstract This study was undertaken to valorize naturally occurring silica sand in the synthesis o... more Abstract This study was undertaken to valorize naturally occurring silica sand in the synthesis of new consolidated concrete materials. The mixtures of silica sand, calcium sulphate, commercial metakaolin, demolition materials were designed to propose sulphate and sodium silicate/NaOH activate concretes and geopolymers, respectively. Three raw silica sand samples were collected from various locations in Tunisia. The obtained new materials were characterized by SEM and mechanical properties were investigated. The calcium sulphate-based concretes displayed good technological properties with a compressive strength close to 15 MPa and 40–56% of water adsorption. When, metakaolin and demolition reject were added the mechanical resistance decreased due to the lower pozzolanic properties of these materials. Concerning the geopolymer-based sand concrete, lower compressive strength values were registered. Moreover, by incorporating demolition materials, the mechanical resistance decreased in all consolidated products. The effect of the metakaolin reactivity is more significant when it is activated with a alkaline solution. However, the sodium silicate/NaOH activation of metakaolin governs the reaction when it is highly reactive. Finally raw silica sand from Tunisia provided good consolidated concrete materials in the presence of calcium sulphate. As well, the silica sand provided good geopolymers in the presence of metakaolin and alkaline solution.

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2021

In this paper, we use Tunisian clay materials as alternative low-cost adsorbents, as well as subs... more In this paper, we use Tunisian clay materials as alternative low-cost adsorbents, as well as substrates to immobilise TiO2 for the decolouration of methylene blue (MB) dye solutions. The collected raw clay from the mine of Tamra was characterised by various techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). XRD patterns of the raw clay showed halloysite as the main phase (61%), with a lower content of kaolinite (39%). For MB adsorption, the experimental data were fitted by Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption equations. It was found that the studied clays alone were not very efficient at adsorbing MB dye molecules. The decolouration of MB was improved by adding a photocatalytic function to the clay, by adding various amounts of TiO2 nanopowder (20–80 wt%) to the clay, imbuing it with photocatalytic capabilities. These combined effects of the phenomena of adsorption and photocatalysis for MB removal by the TiO2-doped clay resulted in a very satisfactory performance, even with the relatively low quantity of 20 wt% added TiO2 photocatalyst. This gave 48.6% removal after only 30-min adsorption in the dark, increasing to 84.1% removal after a further 3 h under UV light, through combined chemo-physical adsorption and photocatalytic decolouration phenomena.

International Journal of Global Environmental Issues, 2012

ABSTRACT This study focused on the removal of Pb(II), Cd(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) using reagent so... more ABSTRACT This study focused on the removal of Pb(II), Cd(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) using reagent solutions by natural limestone in a batch system. The sorbent, collected from the Late Cretaceous limestone beds, Tunisia, was characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analysis (XRF) and infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). XRF showed that the studied limestone contained high amount of calcium carbonates. XRD confirmed the presence of quartz along with the sharp peaks of calcite. FTIR spectra indicated that limestone was mainly composed of calcite, confirming the results of XRD and XRF analyses. Preliminary adsorption tests indicated that high removal efficiency could be achieved by limestone. The presence of impurities enhanced the adsorption capacity. Kinetic experiments showed that the sorption of metal ions best fitted the second order kinetic model with equilibration time of 60 min. These results suggested that the Campanian-Maastritchian limestone could be used for the removal of toxic metals from wastewaters.

Cerâmica

The purpose of this study was the development of a low-cost ceramic tubular membrane, using inexp... more The purpose of this study was the development of a low-cost ceramic tubular membrane, using inexpensive materials, namely natural clay, and graphite as a porogenic agent. Such a low-cost membrane can be used as filters or porous supports for the preparation of multilayer ceramic membranes. Extrusion was used as a shape-forming method for this purpose. Graphite was selected as a porogenic additive. Raw materials were physicochemically and morphologically characterized. A comparative study of the influence of porogen content on membrane characteristics was carried out. Finally a graphite addition of 15 wt% and 850 °C as the sintering temperature were chosen. The obtained membrane had 41 vol% of porosity, diametral compression strength of 4 MPa, and relatively good corrosion resistance in basic and acid conditions. The performance of the membrane support was evaluated for diesel-in-water emulsion depuration as a function of pressure. Filtration test using 15% of porogen sample led to turbidity rejection factor of 95%. Therefore, it was considered that this membrane can be suitable for diesel/water emulsion treatment.

Applied Clay Science, 2017

Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Mineralogía, 2002

The study describes the chemical-mineralogical characterization of Barremian sand deposits. These... more The study describes the chemical-mineralogical characterization of Barremian sand deposits. These Sidi Aich sands were collected in central Tunisia. The collected raw silica sand from the Jebel Meloussi (central Tunisia) was characterised by different techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray uorescence (XRF) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray diffraction showed a predominance of quartz and potassic feldspars and lower amounts of kaolinite and calcite. The obtained silica gels had pore diameters over 20 Å and speci c surface areas up to 183 m 2 /g, close to those reported for commercial silica gel materials. The N 2 adsorption isotherms have shown that new materials synthesised from Tunisian silica sands are mesoporous materials with high chemi-physical adsorption capabilities.

Water, Air, & Soil Pollution

This paper presents a study on orange II sodium salt (OII) degradation based on iron nanoparticle... more This paper presents a study on orange II sodium salt (OII) degradation based on iron nanoparticles supported by kaolinite clays. The effects of nanoscale iron and initial dye concentration, as well as hydrogen peroxide dosage in a Fenton process, on the degradation of OII were studied. These nanoparticles were synthesized by green methods using coffee bean extract as a natural antioxidant for this process. Aqueous iron chloride was mixed with coffee extract, which is rich in antioxidants, and these antioxidants are responsible for the reduction of metal compounds into nanoparticles. The composite iron nanoparticle-kaolinite composite was synthesized from an aqueous FeCl3 and kaolinite solution with the added coffee bean extract. The results showed that OII removal efficiency increased with the amount of iron nanoparticles (n-Fe) alone and with the amount iron-supported-kaolinite composite. By increasing the amount of composite, the adsorptive surface area increases as well as the number of active sites, which determine the higher removal efficiency. Regarding H2O2 dosage, dye removal was more efficient at lower quantities: 62% removal efficiency with addition of 10 mL H2O2, while for the test conducted with 20 mL H2O2, removal efficiency was 47%. A possible reason for this behavior can be the n-Fe/ H2O2 ratio, which influences the production of degradation products and hinders the degradation.

L’apport d’une coopération Europe-Maghreb pour une meilleure exploitation du district minier de N... more L’apport d’une coopération Europe-Maghreb pour une meilleure exploitation du district minier de Nefza (N-O Tunisie) : géochimie isotopique de l’oxygène et de l’hydrogène des kaolinites et goethites du gisement de Tamra Dekoninck, Augustin; Vennemann, Torsten; Moussi, Béchir; Jamoussi, Fakher; Hatira, Nouri; Chaftar, Hedi-Ridha; Yans, Johan Published in: Ressources and Innovative Geology 2016 Abstract book

Clay science, 2006

抄録 Tunisian and Portuguese smectitic clays are under study to assess their potentialities to be u... more 抄録 Tunisian and Portuguese smectitic clays are under study to assess their potentialities to be used as natural raw materials for the production of Light Weight Aggregates which have an important function in civil construction work. Several smectitic clay deposits from the ...

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2016

The tannery effluent from the wet finishing stage is a complex, highly charged rejected of organi... more The tannery effluent from the wet finishing stage is a complex, highly charged rejected of organic and mineral matter. It has variable characteristics over time and is not readily biodegradable. Its physicochemical treatment by adsorption on the smectitic clay of Khlédia proves to be effective. The reduction of dye, BOD, COD, heavy metals are remarkable. The decrease of the conductivity is due to the phenomenon of the cations adsorption on the negatively charged support colloids.

Mineral Deposits at the Beginning of the 21st Century

Clay Minerals

The rare earth element (REE) content of the Tunisian Permian–Neogene shales have been studied to ... more The rare earth element (REE) content of the Tunisian Permian–Neogene shales have been studied to determine the origins of the clay minerals in these shales. The Permian–Neogene series overlies the Palaeozoic basement that has been studied via oil-drilling cores. This study of REEs was performed in various palaeogeographical domains of Tunisia, from the ‘Saharan Platform’ in the south to the ‘Nappes Zone’ in the north. In this work, those levels rich in illite (Palaeozoic, Triassic and Jurassic), smectite (Campanian–Maastrichtian) and palygorskite (continental Eocene) as well as some Miocene levels rich in halloysite are examined. The distribution of REEs in the Tunisian margin sediments is generally homogeneous, except for the Miocene levels containing halloysites. The normalization curves of REEs vs North American shale composite characterize the inherited clays regardless of the dominant minerals, except for a few cases of neoformation. The flat REE curves indicate a detrital orig...

Bioresource Technology, 2012

This study examined the ability of two biochars converted from anaerobically digested biomass to ... more This study examined the ability of two biochars converted from anaerobically digested biomass to sorb heavy metals using a range of laboratory sorption and characterization experiments. Initial evaluation of DAWC (digested dairy waste biochar) and DWSBC (digested whole sugar beet biochar) showed that both biochars were effective in removing a mixture of four heavy metals (Pb 2 + , Cu 2+ , Ni 2+ , and Cd 2+) from aqueous solutions. Compared to DAWC, DWSBC demonstrated a better ability to remove Ni and Cd. Further investigations of lead sorption by the two biochars indicated that the removal was mainly through a surface precipitation mechanism, which was confirmed by batch sorption experiments, mathematical modeling, and examinations of lead-laden biochars samples using SEM-EDS, XRD, and FTIR. The lead sorption capacity of the two biochars was close to or higher than 200 mmol/kg, which is comparable to that of commercial activated carbons.

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2021

The addition of various quantities of raw materials could be used in order to improve the physica... more The addition of various quantities of raw materials could be used in order to improve the physical and pyroscopic performances of silica-alumina refractories manufacturing. Here we study the possibility of local kaolinitic clay (SB) valorization in low alumina fireclay refractory materials manufacturing. Alumina-rich commercial kaolin (AS) (33.4% alumina) was also used as an additive to (SB) clay (24% alumina), to improve the physical and pyroscopic performances of the manufactured samples. The thermal behavior of (SB) clay was studied to determine necessary parameters for the production of good chamotte. In order to elaborate the refractory samples, two mixtures were optimized; mixture M1 (80 wt.% of chamotte (SB) and 20 wt.% of (SB) clay as a binder in crude fine form) and mixture M2 (80 wt.% of chamotte (SB) and 20 wt.% of (AS) kaolin as a binder in crude fine form) and sintered at 1350 °C for 2 h after compaction and molding. The obtained samples were characterized by their bulk density, open porosity, shrinkage, cold crushing strength, microstructure by scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs, mineralogical composition, and their refractoriness under load. Our data suggest that the addition of the alumina-rich clay to the main mixture enhances the refractoriness from 1198 to 1213 °C (T0.5), the mechanical behavior of the manufactured pellets from 36 to 44 MPa, and the mullite amount from 25 to 29%, and decreases the open porosity from 19.6 to 18.6 %.

Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Cerámica y Vidrio, 2021

Abstract This study was undertaken to valorize naturally occurring silica sand in the synthesis o... more Abstract This study was undertaken to valorize naturally occurring silica sand in the synthesis of new consolidated concrete materials. The mixtures of silica sand, calcium sulphate, commercial metakaolin, demolition materials were designed to propose sulphate and sodium silicate/NaOH activate concretes and geopolymers, respectively. Three raw silica sand samples were collected from various locations in Tunisia. The obtained new materials were characterized by SEM and mechanical properties were investigated. The calcium sulphate-based concretes displayed good technological properties with a compressive strength close to 15 MPa and 40–56% of water adsorption. When, metakaolin and demolition reject were added the mechanical resistance decreased due to the lower pozzolanic properties of these materials. Concerning the geopolymer-based sand concrete, lower compressive strength values were registered. Moreover, by incorporating demolition materials, the mechanical resistance decreased in all consolidated products. The effect of the metakaolin reactivity is more significant when it is activated with a alkaline solution. However, the sodium silicate/NaOH activation of metakaolin governs the reaction when it is highly reactive. Finally raw silica sand from Tunisia provided good consolidated concrete materials in the presence of calcium sulphate. As well, the silica sand provided good geopolymers in the presence of metakaolin and alkaline solution.

Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 2021

In this paper, we use Tunisian clay materials as alternative low-cost adsorbents, as well as subs... more In this paper, we use Tunisian clay materials as alternative low-cost adsorbents, as well as substrates to immobilise TiO2 for the decolouration of methylene blue (MB) dye solutions. The collected raw clay from the mine of Tamra was characterised by various techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). XRD patterns of the raw clay showed halloysite as the main phase (61%), with a lower content of kaolinite (39%). For MB adsorption, the experimental data were fitted by Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption equations. It was found that the studied clays alone were not very efficient at adsorbing MB dye molecules. The decolouration of MB was improved by adding a photocatalytic function to the clay, by adding various amounts of TiO2 nanopowder (20–80 wt%) to the clay, imbuing it with photocatalytic capabilities. These combined effects of the phenomena of adsorption and photocatalysis for MB removal by the TiO2-doped clay resulted in a very satisfactory performance, even with the relatively low quantity of 20 wt% added TiO2 photocatalyst. This gave 48.6% removal after only 30-min adsorption in the dark, increasing to 84.1% removal after a further 3 h under UV light, through combined chemo-physical adsorption and photocatalytic decolouration phenomena.