| Summary: | Edible oils, especially peanut oil, usually contain aflatoxin B<sub>1</sub> (AFB<sub>1</sub>) at extremely high concentrations. This study focused on the synthesis of rice husk-based mesoporous silica (MCM-41) for the removal of AFB<sub>1</sub> from peanut oil. MCM-41 was characterized by X-ray diffraction, N<sub>2</sub> physisorption, and transmission electron microscope. MCM-41 was shown to have ordered channels with high specific surface area (1246 m<sup>2</sup>/g), pore volume (1.75 cm<sup>3</sup>/g), and pore diameter (3.11 nm). Under the optimal concentration of 1.0 mg/mL of the adsorbent dose, the adsorption behavior of MCM-41, natural montmorillonite (MONT), and commercial activated carbon (CA) for AFB<sub>1</sub> were compared. The adsorption of AFB<sub>1</sub> in peanut oil onto the three adsorbents was slower compared to that of AFB<sub>1</sub> in an aqueous solution. In addition, the pseudo-second-order kinetic model better fit the adsorption kinetics of AFB<sub>1,</sub> while the adsorption mechanism followed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm on the three adsorbents. The calculated maximum adsorbed amounts of AFB<sub>1</sub> on MONT, MCM-41, and CA were 199.41, 215.93, and 248.93 ng/mg, respectively. These results suggested that MCM-41 without modification could meet market demand and could be considered a good candidate for the removal of AFB<sub>1</sub> from peanut oil. This study provides insights that could prove to be of economic and practical value.
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