High adsorption capacity of MWCNTs for removal of anionic surfactant SDBS from aqueous solutions

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are an effective adsorbent for removing various organic and inorganic contaminants because of their high surface area. In this study, MWCNTs were used to investigate the removal of sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) in industrial wastewater. The effect of pH, adsorbent dosage, dispersion time and temperature on the kinetics and equilibrium of SDBS sorption on MWCNTs were examined. Consistent with an endothermic reaction, an increase in the temperature resulted in a decreasing SDBS adsorption rate. The adsorption kinetic was well fitted by the pseudo second-order kinetic model. The adsorption isotherm data could be well described by the Freundlich equations. The results suggest that MWCNT could be employed as an efficient adsorbent for the removal of SDBS from aqueous media.