Adsorption dynamics of phenol by crab shell chitosan

Abstract The performance of crab shell chitosan (600 µm) as prospective adsorbent for phenol removal was studied in dynamics mode. The chitosan adsorbent had specific surface area of 191 m 2 /g and showed the surface characteristics linked to amine/amide groups. The effects of operating conditions on phenol adsorption at different concentrations (100 and 200 mg/L), flow rates (2.17 and 2.90 mL/min) and bed heights (1.75 and 3.5 cm) were evaluated. Results showed that the maximum phenol adsorption capacity by the crab shell chitosan was recorded at 190 mg/g. Thomas, Yoon–Nelson and Adam–Bohart models displayed good correlation with experimental data, hence best described the dynamics breakthrough of phenol removal. External and internal diffusion were the rate controlling mechanism, while the entire system was predominated by a simultaneous steady state process of intraparticle diffusion and ionic interactions. The crab shell chitosan shows a promising potential as adsorbent for wastewater treatment.