THE EFFECT OF THERMAL AND CHEMICAL ACTIVATION ON RIVER SAND FOR THE REMOVAL OF METHYLENE BLUE DYES BY ADSORPTION

Abstract

In this study, river sand was activated thermally and chemically to observe its performance in removing methylene blue dye from aqueous solution by adsorption. Thermal activation was carried out at a temperature range of 200 – 600 ^oC, while chemical activation was carried out using NaOH with a concentration range of 1N – 5N. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis was carried out to observe the functional groups present in the sand. Adsorption experiments were carried out in batches in a beaker equipped with a magnetic stirrer. The experimental results showed that the highest dye removal was achieved at thermal activation temperature of 200 ^oC. Meanwhile, for chemical activation, the highest dye removal was achieved at NaOH concentration of 3 N. In this study, FTIR spectrum analysis showed that the percentage of dye removal was directly proportional to the peak width of the -OH group.