TY  - JOUR
AU  - Jara, Yohannes Shuka
AU  - Anbesa, Mekonnen Abera
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/19
TI  - <i>Vernonia amygdalina</i>-Based Activated Carbon as a Biosorbent for Wastewater Treatment: Insights into Adsorption Thermodynamics, Isotherms, and Kinetics
JO  - Advances in Environmental and Engineering Research
SP  - 033
VL  - 07
IS  - 04
AB  - Today, the global community is facing significant environmental challenges due to widespread pollution entering ecosystems, such as toxic dyes in water bodies. This global issue requires environmentally conscious approaches and the development of innovative, eco-friendly and affordable solutions. In this study, activated carbon (AC) derived from Vernonia amygdalina stem bark (VA) was prepared by the chemical activation method as an efficient biosorbent for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from the water system. The porosity, structural characteristics, and morphology of the prepared VA biosorbent were investigated using the iodine number, methylene blue (MB) number, pH point of zero charge (pHpzc), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The analysis revealed that the biosorbent has higher microporosity with a greater sorption capacity, interactions of functional groups on a slightly acidic surface, and changes in morphology before and after adsorption. The maximum removal efficiency of 95% was achieved at optimal conditions, which were determined to be a dosage of 0.25 mg/L, pH 8, 10 mg/L MB concentration, 60 min contact time, and 55°C for the batch studies. Thermodynamic analysis indicated a endothermic character, spontaneous, interfacial randomness and weak physical adsorption process. Adsorption isothermal studies best fit the Langmuir model (R2 = 0.99) with a maximum capacity of 3.94 mg·g-1, and kinetic data followed a pseudo-second-order model (R2 = 0.99). Finally, the results show that activated carbon derived from VA stems bark offers a cost-effective, eco-friendly, and practical solution for removing toxic chemicals from water systems.
SN  - 2766-6190
UR  - https://doi.org/10.21926/aeer.2604033
DO  - 10.21926/aeer.2604033
ID  - Jara2026
ER  -