Abstract:
Heavy metals produced from several industrial processes cause
many environmental problems. Efforts made to overcome this heavy
metal pollution include adsorption methods. Agricultural by-products
have the potential as an adsorbent, one of which is corn cobs. In this
study, corncobs were used as Pb and Zn adsorbents. The purpose of
this study was to determine the effect of particle size and stirring speed
in the process of Zn and Pb metal absorption using activated charcoal.
Adsorption was done by mixing 100 mL waste of PT. Grafika Wangi
Kalimantan with 10 grams of activated charcoal measuring 355
micron, 500 micron and 710 micron. Each mixture is stirred for 15
minutes at speeds of 30, 60, 90, and 120 rpm and then allowed to stand
for 3 hours. Analysis of the absorbed Zn and Pb metal content was
carried out using a spectrophotometer at adjusted wavelengths. The
greater the stirring speed, and the small size of the active charcoal
particle used, decrease of Zn and Pb levels is increasing due to the
better absorption of adsorbate by the adsorbent. The biggest decrease
in Zn and Pb levels was seen at a stirring speed of 90 rpm and the
active charcoal particle size of 355 microns where the Zn and Pb
parameters contained in the sample were <0.01 mg / L.
Keywords:
Activated Charcoal
Adsorption
Corn Cobs
Printing Waste
