Regularities of phenol adsorption from aqueous solutions on carbon–mineral materials obtained from bentonite clay

Carbon-mineral materials are obtained by impregnation of bentonite clay with an organic modifier (sucrose) solution under the action of ultrasonic vibration followed by carbonization in water vapor atmosphere. It is shown that the ultrasonic treatment of the clay suspension yields carbon-mineral materials with higher specific surface area and affinity for phenol than those of the starting clay and the material obtained without ultrasonic impact. The adsorption capacity of this sample with respect to phenol is 110 mg/g, which is higher than that of active brown coals. The main parameters affecting phenol adsorption by carbon-mineral materials are pH, sorbent content, phenol concentration, and temperature. The kinetics of phenol adsorption from an aqueous solution on the carbon-mineral sorbent corresponds to a psevdo-first-order reaction with a correlation coefficient of 0.9977.