| It is estimated that millions of people who are drinking arsenic contaminated groundwater are suffering from arsenic related diseases such as skin, bladder and kidney cancer in Bangladesh. The system to remove arsenic must be economically feasible for the members of affected communities. In a recent report, Ansari et al have concluded that carbon adsorption, which is a comparatively cheap and easy to operate method, is a potentially feasible method for the removal of arsenic. The present study focused on activated carbon as an adsorbent and four different types of activated carbon, which are CPG-LF, F400, OLC and DSR-C, were tested. Both batch and column experiments were conducted to observe the adsorptive kinetics and capacity of each activated carbon. Arsenic is present in natural water as As(V) or As(III), and all four activated carbons removed As(V) effectively. As(III), which is more toxic than As(V), was also effectively removed by CPG-LF in the batch tests. By evaluating the adsorptive kinetics and capacity of each activated carbon, it was concluded that CPG-LF is the best carbon adsorbent of the four activated carbons for arsenic removal. |
