| Resumo: | The kinetics and equilibrium of Cu and Zn adsorption by sponge gourd fibre were
investigated according to batch method. The final concentration of Cu and Zn in
solution was determined using atomic adsorption spectrophotometer. The
experimental results showed that the adsorption of both metals was rapid during the
first 10 minutes and thereafter slowed down until equilibrium was attained after 60
minutes. The adsorption can be well described ( R²~1.0000) by pseudo-second order
kinetic model. The adsorbed amount of Cu and Zn increased while the percentage
decreased with increase in initial metal concentration. The adsorption conforms (R2
>0.96) to both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. The maximum adsorption capacity,
qmax, of sponge gourd fibre for Cu and Zn was 5000.0 μgg⁻¹ and 2000.0 ggg⁻¹,
respectively. At fixed initial concentration, percentage removal of the metals showed
an increasing trend with increase in adsorbent dosage.
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