DEVELOPMENT OF A MANUFACTURING TECHRIQUE OF GRANULAR ACTIVATED CARBON FROM PROCESSED SOLID RESIDNE OF OLIVE MILL PRODUCTS FOR ENUIRONMENTAL APPLICATIONS

摘要

A novel technique for processing the solid residue of olive mill products (SROOMP) to produce granular and powdered activated carbon has been developed. The activation process of the SROOMP is extremely cost effective and can be achieved without the need for extremely advanced technology. The manufactured activated carbon has been tested to treat drinking water containing: several heavy metals in trace concentrations, namely, Cr(III), Ni(II), Pb(II), Cd(II), and Zn(II); viruses; and industrial wastewater contaminated with pesticides such as Cypermethrin, Malathion and Methomyl. Different experimental approaches including equilibrium batch mode experiments, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) were used to explore the feasibility of this material as an adsorbent for the removal of the above mentioned contaminants. Results indicate that SROOMP is an extremely effective adsorbent that can be used for the removal of wide range of contaminants from aqueous solutions. Several studies are currently underway to determine the SROOMP feasibility for removing several air pollutants from gaseous systems