Zinc adsorption capacity with humic acids extracted from bituminous coal

Abstract

The contamination of bodies of water by heavy metals represents not only a danger for the environment, but also for human health; because they do not have the capacity to biodegrade, accumulate in the environment and in the tissues of the living organisms that inhabit it. In order to minimize these impacts, Zinc adsorption (Zn) was studied in aqueous solutions using humic acids extracted from bituminous coal from the Cerrejón mine (Guajira). This investigation was divided into two phases: The extraction of Humic Acids and the adsorption study. In the first phase, an aqueous oxidation of coal samples with different particle sizes (125mm, 250mm, and 425mm) was performed, with hydrogen peroxide as the oxidizing agent, at a concentration of 30%. In the second phase Zn²⁺ removal using Humic Acids extracted from bituminous coals was studied in aqueous media as a function of pH, highest percentage of adsorption obtained was of 66.8% at a pH of 5.