Preparation of activated bentonite and its adsorption behavior on oil-soluble green pigment

The present research work focuses on effective preparation of activated bentonite (AB) and its application in removal of oil-soluble green pigment (OSGP) from either vegetable oils or food-processing wastewater. Mono-factor experiments were carried out to explore the effects of operation factors in preparation of AB. The parameters investigated were the effect of contact time, adsorbent dosage, initial OSGP concentration and temperature. The chemical composition, crystalline phases, microstructure and functional groups of prepared AB were characterized and evaluated by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), respectively. The adsorption kinetics and equilibrium isotherms were studied, finding that the adsorption process fitted better with the pseudo-second-order model and the Freundlich isotherm equation. In addition, thermodynamic parameters, such as standard the Gibbs free energy (Delta G degrees), standard enthalpy (Delta H degrees) and standard entropy (Delta S degrees) were also calculated, indicating that adsorption was spontaneous and endothermic. The findings of this investigation suggest that AB prepared through microwave activation as a cheap adsorbent holds great potential to remove oil-soluble green pigment in the wastewater treatment process.