Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Modifed-Zeolite as a Promising Adsorbent for the Removal of Natural Organic Matter From Aqueous Environments

High concentrations of natural organic matter (NOM) may cause the production of harmful compounds in treated
drinking water. Surfactant-modifed zeolites (SMZs) with various loadings of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have been used as adsorbents
to remove NOM from aqueous solution. SMZ has presented higher NOM adsorption more efciency than natural zeolite. NOM affects the
quality of drinking water in several points.
Objectives: The purpose this study was to investigate the SDS-modifed isotherm of natural Iranian zeolite obtained from Semnan mines,
for the removal of NOM from aqueous solution.
Materials and Methods: The adsorption of NOM onto SDS-modifed zeolite as a function of contact time, initial NOM concentrations,
adsorbent dose and solution pH was investigated. The isotherm experiments were carried out with fxing the adsorbent dose and varying
the initial concentration of NOM.
Results: The results indicated that SDS-modifed zeolite showed greatly enhanced adsorption capacity. Findings revealed that the
Langmuir isotherm best described the NOM adsorption on the adsorbent. The adsorption isotherm was well ftted to the Langmuir model.
The maximum adsorption capacity of SMZ with surfactant bilayer coverage for NOM was 111 mg/g at 25°C and pH = 5.
Conclusions: The fndings of this study showed that the modifcation of natural zeolites can achieve higher adsorption capacity for
organics. In addition, based on the results, natural zeolite being modifed with SDS as a cationic surfactant had good efciency for the
adsorption of NOM