title: Role of Surface Precipitation in Copper Sorption by the Hydrous Oxides of Iron and Aluminum.
abstract: Isotherms were developed at pH 6.9 for adsorption (ADS) and coprecipitation (CPT) of Cu by hydrous oxides of Fe (HFO) and Al (HAO) to study the role of sorbate/sorbent ratio in metal cation removal. For low sorbate/sorbent conditions, HFO had a higher Cu retention capacity than HAO regardless of contact methodology. For either oxide, CPT was consistently more effective than ADS in removing Cu from solution. At high sorbate/sorbent ratios, surface precipitation dominates and the oxide's net cation retention capacity depends on the nature and solubility of the precipitate formed at the oxide-water interface. X-ray diffraction patterns and isotherms of HAO for both ADS and CPT suggest formation of a solid solution [e.g., CuAl2O4(s)] with dramatically lower solubility than Cu(OH)2(s) precipitated in bulk solution. In contrast, Cu precipitated on the HFO surface exhibited a solubility comparable to the bulk precipitated Cu(OH)2(s). Therefore, at high sorbate/sorbent ratios, HAO has a higher Cu "apparent" sorption capacity than HFO. The relative utility of these oxides as metal scavengers thus depends markedly on sorbate/sorbent conditions. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.
authors.affiliation: Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, 16802
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Karthikeyan
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Elliott
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chorover