Efficient lead removal from industrial wastewater using activated carbon synthesized from wood sawdust

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.21924/cst.11.1.2026.1914
Keywords:
Lead, activated carbon, wood sawdust, adsorption isotherm, kinetics

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Firdos Abdulla
College of Chemical Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad 10066, Iraq
Qusay Al-Obaidi
College of Chemical Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad 10066, Iraq
Maryam Al-Ameri
College of Chemical Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad 10066, Iraq
Mohd Shukor Salleh
Fakulti Teknologi Dan Kejuruteraan Industri Dan Pembuatan, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Hang Tuah Jaya, Melaka 76100, Malaysia
M. N. Mohammed
Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Gulf University, Sanad 26489, Bahrain
Oday Abdullah
College of Engineering, Al-Naji University, Baghdad 10015, Iraq; Department of Energy Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Baghdad, Baghdad 10071, Iraq; Department of Mechanics, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty 050040, Kazakhstan
Faris H. Al-Ani
College of Civil Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad 10066, Iraq

Abstract

The social economy's rapid expansion and unprecedented population growth are significantly contributing to environmental issues. Contamination of soil and water by heavy metals is a major environmental problem. Activated carbon synthesized from biomass possesses several qualities, including a large specific surface area, a hierarchically porous structure, robust adsorption capability, and high economic value. Wood sawdust, a plentiful agricultural by-product, was used to chemically produce activated carbon (AC). Lead removal from industrial wastewater was examined using this AC. The Langmuir and Freundlich models, along with first- and second-order kinetics, were applied for kinetic analysis. The novelty of this work lies in the combination of moderate-temperature chemical activation (600 °C) with Iraqi wood sawdust, achieving a remarkably high surface area (1477.54 m2/g) compared to most previously reported biomass-derived adsorbents. Results showed an impressive maximum adsorption capacity of 177.54 mg/g. This value compares favorably with many recently reported biomass-derived adsorbents. The boundary layer effect occurs, and the adsorption of Pb follows pseudo-second-order kinetics.

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Abdulla , F., Al-Obaidi , Q., Al-Ameri, M., Salleh, M. S., Mohammed, M. N., Abdullah, O., & Al-Ani, F. H. (2026). Efficient lead removal from industrial wastewater using activated carbon synthesized from wood sawdust. Communications in Science and Technology, 11(1), 162–168. https://doi.org/10.21924/cst.11.1.2026.1914
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Vol. 11 No. 1 (2026)
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Articles
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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