Development of Simple Method for Preparation of Mesoporous Alumina Based Adsorbents and Their Application in Removal of Fluoride Ion from Water

Abstract

Though it is a well known fact that a significant portion of human population all around the world is suffering from consumption of fluoride contaminated ground water, but to date defluoridation of drinking water is a major challenge. Several techniques have been invented for this purpose which are capable of removing F- from water at various contamination levels. Amongst these techniques, adsorption based methods are found to be more convenient and cost effective. Most commonly used adsorbent for defluoridation of water is either activated Al2O3 or Al2O3 based materials. Activated alumina is extensively used adsorbent for defluoridation of drinking water because of its high affinity and selectivity for F- ions. In this research work, an aqueous solution based cost effective chemical method has been developed for preparation of mesoporous Al2O3, and ZrO2, MgO and CaO nanoparticle loaded mesoporous Al2O3. The synthesized adsorbents were characterized using powder X-ray diffractometer (XRD), N2 adsorption-desorption surface area and pore size analyzer and High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (HRTEM).