A Study on Adsorption of Li from Aqueous Solution Using Various Adsorbents

The aim of the present study is to explore the possibility of utilizing fly ash, loess and activated charcoal for the adsorption of Li in aqueous solution. Batch adsorption experiments were performed to evaluate the influences of various factors like initial concentration, contact time, and temperature. The adsorption data showed that fly ash and activated charcoal are not effective for the adsorption of Li. On the contrary, loess showed much higher adsorption capacity for Li. The adsorption of Li on loess was highly concentration dependent. It was found that the adsorption capacity of loess is favored at a lower Li concentration. At equilibrium, approximately 95% of adsorption was achieved by loess. The equilibrium data were fitted well to the Freundlich isotherm model. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model appeared to be the better-fitting model because it has higher R-2 compared to the pseudo-first-order kinetic models. The thermodynamic parameters such as free energy Delta G, the enthalpy Delta H, and the entropy Delta S were calculated.