Kinetic and Equilibrium Studies of Cesium-137 Adsorption on Olive Waste from Aqueous Solutions

The agricultural by-product olive pomace either in its raw material or carbonized form was used for the removal of 137 Cs from aqueous solutions. Experimental studies were conducted to evaluate and optimize some affecting factor such as contact time, adsorbent dosage, pH value and initial 137 Cs concentration ions. The sorption process was described by pseudo first-order, pseudo second-order and Intra-particle diffusion models. Data have been interpreted in terms of Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherms. The obtained data showed that 120 minutes are sufficient time to attain equilibrium and maximum % removal of 137 Cs was found 80% and 99% for raw olive pomace and its carbonized form, respectively. The maximum sorption capacity of raw and carbonized adsorbent for cesium removal was 0.360 and 0.565 mol/g respectively. Key word: Adsorption/ Olive pomace/ Cesium-137/ Kinetic/ Carbonization