Investigation of Copper Sorption by Sugar Beet Processing Lime Waste (original) (raw)

Copper in farm effluents

Effluent water and sludge samples from a number of dairy and piggery units were collected. These samples were analysed for the free-ionic and the organic-complexed copper (Cu). A glass house experiment was conducted to examine the transformation of Cu in soils and the uptake of Cu by pasture. Three Cu sources were used which included fast-release copper sulphate (CuSO4), slow-release copper oxide (CuO), and sludge Cu. The pasture samples were analysed for Cu concentration. The transformation of Cu in soils was monitored by analysing the soil samples for various fractions of Cu. The concentration of Cu was higher in the sludge than in the effluent water. Higher concentration of Cu was observed in effluents collected from farms which regularly use Cu to treat lameness and as a growth promoter. The total Cu concentration ranged from < 0.1 to 1.55 mg/litre and from 0.5 to 10.5 mg/litre in the piggery and diary effluent water, respectively. The corresponding values for the sludge samp...

Reduction of Copper using Agricultural Waste

The main goal of this study was to exploit low-cost and efficient sorbents for the removal of copper from wastewater. The low cost adsorbents used for the laboratory scale work are mainly agricultural waste like rice husk, tamarind seed, wheat bran, Tamarind fruit shell, orange peel etc. Batch kinetic and equilibrium experiments were conducted to determine the adsorption kinetic rate constants and maximum adsorption capacities. Acid and alkali treatment of the agricultural waste material has been done to increase the adsorption capacity of the biosorbent. It is observed from the experimental results that almost 80 – 90% copper can be removed from the solution by using this agricultural waste. Langmuir adsorption isotherm and Freundlich isotherm model has been used to describe the distribution of copper between the liquid and solid phases in batch studies.