Adsorption of Atenolol on Kaolinite

The prescription drug Atenolol (AT) is a beta-blocker that has been widely used for the treatment of hypertension, a cardiovascular disease. AT is a common contaminant in drinking water, and its environmental impacts are of growing concern. Kaolinite is a common clay mineral in soils that formed in warm humid climates. Due to kaolinites abundance in these soils, and its sorption properties, it is important to study its interaction with AT. / In this study, the interaction of AT on kaolinite in aqueous solution was investigated under different isotherm, kinetic, ionic strength, pH, and temperature conditions. The isotherms of kaolinite follow the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model, and the maximum adsorption was determined to be 40mmol/kg. Increasing the ionic strength of the aqueous solution decreases the amount of AT adsorbed. Kinetic batch tests determined that AT adsorption on kaolinite reaches equilibrium in less than 30 minutes. The temperature batch study determined that adsorption of AT on kaolinite is exothermic, and the free energy of adsorption was small and negative. The results of the experiment suggest that surface adsorption occurs between AT and kaolinite