Removal of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (Piroxicam) in an aqueous medium by an agricultural by-product

The presence of pharmaceuticals in the environment has increased. These pollutants are toxic and non-biodegradable. Piroxicam (PRX) is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug that ends up in wastewater via pharmaceutical industry activities and human being consumption. This work aimed to study the pharmaceutical pollutant removal from wastewater using agricultural by-products as low-cost adsorbent material. Different parameters were studied, such as time, initial adsorbate concentrations, and temperature. The study of the initial concentration-effect shows that the greatest amount of adsorbed is observed in low concentrations. The temperature has shown a negative effect in this study. The kinetics show that after 45min, the equilibrium is obtained; that means the exhaustion of all active sites. The representative model of this adsorption is the Langmuir isotherm according to the regression coefficient, which is equal to 0.99. The natural abundance of this material and the low cost of investment could offer a good alternative to other more expensive adsorbents such as activated carbon.