Utilization of Agricultural Waste as a Biosorbent for the Removal of Dyes from Aqueous Solution

The effectiveness of using sugarcane bagasses and modified rice hull as a low cost material for the removal of dyes from both single and binary dye solutions was investigated. Surface morphology analysis was carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Batch and column studies were performed under various experimental conditions. Batch studies revealed that the removal of the studied dyes was both pH and concentration dependent. Maximum sorption capacities calculated from the Langmuir model were in the range of 14.68 - 67.11 mg g^-1 in single dye solutions. In column studies, results revealed that breakthrough was influent concentration, flow rate and bed height dependent. The breakthrough curves exhibited the typical S shape of packed bed system.