Adsorption of uranium by adsorbents produced from coal mining waste

Abstract

Nuclear wastes in water have attracted public concern since nuclear industry has become an integrated part of our life. Although much attention has been given to the adsorption of uranium by some materials, there are no data available on the adsorption of uranium by unconventional adsorbents, such as materials produced from coal mining wastes. The authors assume that coal mining wastes can be used to produce new adsorbents for the removal of radionuclides. In this context, the adsorbents were prepared by chemical activation from coal mining wastes, and the adsorption of uranium on the adsorbent produced from coal mining waste was investigated by a series of experiments. The adsorption experiments were carried out as a function of time, initial concentration, concentration of adsorbent, temperature and presence of other cations. The results obtained from kinetic studies were evaluated by Lagergren equation. Adsorption mechanism was investigated using the kinetic values. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were fitted to the obtained adsorption data. The effect of presence of other cations on the adsorption of uranium was investigated, which was found to be reduced by them.