Adsorption of Congo Red Dye from Aqueous Solutions by Montmorillonite as a Low-cost Adsorbent

In this study, the sorption of Congo red (CR), as a toxic dye, from aqueous media was investigated using montmorillonite (MMT) as a low-cost adsorbent. The influence of several factors such as contact time, pH, adsorbent dosage, dye content, and ionic strength was investigated on the dye removal. MMT was characterized by Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). Different kinetic and isotherm models including pseudo-first and pseudo-second order kinetic and Langmuir and Freundlich were applied to analyze experimental data, respectively. The results showed that the data were well fitted by pseudo-second-order kinetic and Freundlich isotherm models. The optimum conditions for the sorption of CR were achieved over 40 min and at pH=2. According to the results of the present study, MMT can be used as a low-cost, eco-friendly and effective option for the adsorption of CR from aqueous solutions.