This work studies the removal of Cd, Cr and Pb-ions in water using electric induction furnace slag (EIFS), which is an unused byproduct of the metallurgical industry in Mexico. The effects of initial ion concentration and adsorbent dose were investigated. X-ray Fluorescence, X-ray Diffraction and electrokinetic measurements of slag particles analyzed the EIFS. The results were correlated to the adsorption behavior of the slag for the respective heavy metals. Solutions of three different heavy metals ions were prepared in concentrations ranging from 1 to 10 mg/L, and adsorbent doses from 0.064 to 0.64 g/L were added following an experimental design for the removal of these pollutants by the EIFS. The maximum measured removal efficiencies were 74% for Cr6+, 64% for Cd2+ and 34% for Pb2+. The influence of ion concentration and adsorbent dose was statistically significant, showing that the lowest ion concentration and the highest adsorbent dose produced the best removal results. The efficiencies are similar to the ones reported for fly ash, natural oxides and other industrial waste materials, which demonstrates the possibility of using EIFS as a low-cost adsorbent for heavy metals. The most probable removal mechanism for Cd2+, Cr6+ and Pb2+ is chemical adsorption by silanol and aluminol groups present in EIFS.

Removal of heavy metals with steel furnace slag

249th National Meeting (2015)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.