Adsorption of Reactive Red Dye from Wastewater Using Modified Citrulluscolosynthis Ash

Dye-bearing wastes pose serious risks to and leave harmful effects on the environment. Increasing wastewater color intensity leads to reduced light reaching the aquatic environment, which adversely affects the life and growth of aquatic plants and invertebrates. Among the many methods available for dye removal from wastewater, membrane separation, oxidation, coagulation, and anaerobic treatment are more common but they are all costly and involve complex processes. Biosorption, in contrast, enjoys both ease of application and simple design so that it is widely used for removing dyes, heavy metals, and phenolic compounds from both water and wastewater. In this paper, the ability of citrulluscolosynthis ash as a bioadsorbent for the removal of reactive red dye is investigated for the first time. Sodium hydroxide is also used to modify the plant ash surface which expectedly enhances its dye removal efficiency. Measurements and removal levels are determined using a UV-vis spectrophotometer. Finally, the effects of pH, adsorbent dosage, dye concentration, and reaction time on dye removal efficiency are also explored. Results show that the optimum conditions to achieve maximum dye removal are as follows: A pH level of 2, an adsorbant dosage of 1.75 g l-1, an initial concentration equal to 90 mg L-1, and A reaction time of 70 min. Adsorption isotherm is found to obey the Ferundlich isotherm. Also, an adsorption capacity of 36 mg g‒1 is achieved under the best conditions. It may thus be concluded that modified citrulluscolosynthis ash can be used as an effective adsorbent to treat colored wastewaters.