Heavy metal removal from water by sorption using surfactant-modified montmorillonite.

Removal of Cu2+ and Zn2+ from aqueous solutions by sorption on the montmorillonite modified with sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) was investigated. Experiments were carried out as a function of solution pH, solute concentration, and temperature (25-55 degrees C). The Dubinin-Kaganer-Radushkevick model was adopted to describe the single-solute sorption isotherms. Also, the binary-solute sorption equilibria could be reasonably predicted by the competitive Langmuir model, in which the Langmuir parameters were directly taken from those obtained in single-solute systems. The thermodynamic parameters (DeltaH(o) and DeltaS(o)) for Cu2+ and Zn2+ sorption on the modified clay were also determined from the temperature dependence. The kinetics of metal ions sorption was examined and the pseudo-first-order rate constant was finally evaluated.