REMOVAL OF Se AND Sr AND OTHER METALS FROM CONTAMINATED WATER BY TASSEL POWDER

Physicochemical characterisation of tassel has shown that it contains OH, NH2, C=O, C=C, COOH and phenolic groups capable of complexing heavy metals. There is therefore, the possibility of tassel attracting positively charged metal ions. The main thrust of this investigation was to ascertain the removal of some toxic metals such as selenium (Se) and strontium (Sr) from contaminated water samples with the hope of adopting this readily available and cheap waste material as an adsorbent. Tassel has been used to remove heavy metal ion of Cd(II), Cr(VI) and Fe(III) from simulated solutions prepared from standards of these metals. The removal efficiency of these metals varied from 20-80 % depending on experimental conditions). Normally the results of previous studies should be in the Introduction, not the Abstract. In the current study the application and efficiency of tassel as a solid phase adsorbent, for the removal of Se and Sr from polluted groundwater was investigated using batch methods. The effect of pH, concentration, contact time, adsorbent dose and temperature on the removal capacity of tassel was studied