Performances of metals modified activated carbons for fluoride removal from aqueous solutions

[Display omitted] •Development and characterization of a novel AC-Al material.•Aluminum loading and impregnation time during synthesis has significant effect on fluoride adsorption.•The effect of certain operating parameters on the removal percentage were optimized.•The Langmuir, Temkin, Sips and Redlich-Peterson isotherm models fit adequately the experimental data with the maximal adsorption capacity was estimated at 13.03 mg.g−1. The present research work focused on the activated carbon (AC) preparation from dates waste followed by its surface modification by incipient wetness impregnation using different metals: Ca, Co, Mg and Al. The obtained results showed that the AC-Al presented the best removal efficiency of the fluoride. The prepared activated carbons (AC) and (AC-Al) were characterized by several techniques. The optimization study of the AC-Al impregnation conditions was investigated by varying the impregnation time and the Al loading. Batch experiments were carried out to investigate the effect of certain operating parameters on the removal percentage. Several isotherm models were applied.