Abstract
Despite exhibiting adsorption for some industrial and therapeutic substances like paracetamol, activated carbon of pits of Phoenix sylvestris (family Arecaceae) has not been investigated for its adsorption behaviour with respect to changes in pH, an important variable in adsorption. Therefore, the present study describes the adsorption kinetics of ZnCl2- and H3PO4-activated carbon of pits in a range of acidic and basic pH. Commercially available activated charcoal was used as a control. The equilibrium contact time for maximum adsorption was found to be 60 min for activated carbons of both types, whilst it was 45 min for the control. The H3PO4 activated carbon showed better adsorption at acidic pH as compared to the basic one, and its adsorption capacity was comparable to that of the control. FTIR analysis indicated that hydrogen bonding was involved in adsorption. The results of this study indicate that activated carbon of pits of Phoenix sylvestris may be used to effectively adsorb paracetamol when it is in the stomach.