Adsorption studies on heavy metal removal from synthetic wastewater by pyrolyzed chicken feather fiber

In this study, chicken feather fiber was treated by a two-step pyrolysis and tested as an adsorbent to remove calcium, manganese and copper from synthetic wastewater. Batch adsorption studies were performed to investigate the effect of pH (3-5) and mass of adsorbent (0.2-1.5 g). Experimental results revealed that the optimum conditions for all three metals removal were at pH 4.89 and 1.5 g of adsorbent with the highest percentage removal of 21% for the copper. From ANOVA analysis, mass of adsorbent was found to be the most influential factor for the removal of heavy metal in this study. The adsorption isotherm for copper removal was suitably described by Langmuir equation with the maximum adsorption capacity of 2.0829 mg/g. The unsatisfactory removal may be attributed to the melting of keratin during the fast heating rate (30 degrees C) used in this study. The results from this experimental work have provided useful information on the characteristics of thermal treatment on the chicken feather (CF) and can be used as a preliminary data for researchers to study the PCFF as a low-cost adsorbent.