Removal of arsenic from drinking water by ferric hydroxide microcapsule-loaded alginate beads in packed adsorption column

In this paper we have presented a unique low cost arsenic removal technique using ferric hydroxide microcapsule-loaded alginate beads (FHMCA) as an adsorbent in a continuous packed column. The microencapsulated particles of ferric hydroxide were produced in a spray dryer and subsequently coated with calcium alginate to form spherical beads of about 2 mm diameter. Batch experiments were conducted with these beads to generate isotherm data. The loading capacity was found to be 3.8 mg arsenic/gm of adsorbent. The experimental data conformed to Freundlich adsorption isotherm. A generalized mathematical model was also developed and the visual basic codes run with the physical parameters of the adsorbent and isotherm data that were evaluated experimentally was achieved for a continuous 75 days' operation. The safe disposal of the spent adsorbent was confirmed by the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) results. With known set of physical parameters of the adsorbent, input water flow rate and its arsenic concentration, the model could predict the number of days the column would run with output below a specific arsenic concentration.