Modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes assisted foam fractionation for effective removal of acid orange 7 from the dyestuff wastewater.

In this study, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) had been used to strengthen the removal of acid orange 7 (AO7) from the dyestuff wastewater by using foam fractionation. First, the surface modification of MWCNTs was performed by introducing hypochlorite groups (-OCl). The modified MWCNTs were characterized by using SEM, XRD, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy. Subsequently, the potential of modified MWCNTs as a novel collector for AO7 adsorption was examined. The adsorption conditions of modified MWCNTs towards AO7 were optimized by using response surface methodology (RSM) with a central composite design (CCD). The adsorption capacity of modified MWCNTs towards AO7 could reach 47.72 ± 0.79 mg·g under the optimum conditions. The kinetics and the equilibrium adsorption data were analyzed by using different kinetic and isotherm models. According to the regression results, adsorption kinetics data were well described by pseudo-second order model, whereas adsorption isotherm data were best represented by Langmuir isotherm model. Finally, foam fractionation was performed with a batch mode. Under the suitable conditions of loading liquid volume 300 mL, modified MWCNTs dosage 180 mg, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) concentration 50 mg·L, AO7 concentration 30 mg·L, pore diameter of gas distributor 0.125 mm and air flow rate 100 mL·min, the removal percentage and enrichment ratio of AO7 were 91.23% and 6.17, respectively. The decolourization ratio of solution after foam fractionation was found to be 98.66%.