KINETICS AND ISOTHERMS OF Cu(II) ADSORPTION ONTO Ze–RHM–41 MATERIAL

Abstract

A zeolite-containing MCM–41 mesoporous material (Ze–RHM–41) was synthesized using the direct method with a sodium silicate solution prepared from rice husk ash as a silica source. The synthe-sized material was characterized using XRD, TEM, and EDX techniques. The sorption behaviors of Cu(II) ions onto the material were studied. The results showed the presence of mesoporous MCM–41 and microporous Y type molecular sieves in the material with its highly ordered hexagonal mesostructures. The adsorption capacity of the synthesized material for Cu(II) ions was significantly improved and influ-enced by the Cu(II) initial concentration. The pseudo–second–order kinetic model could fit the rate equa-tion of Cu(II) adsorption onto the Ze–RHM–41 solids. The Langmuir isotherm is more suitable than the Freundlich isotherm for the adsorption of the Cu(II) ions onto the synthesized material.