Published Paper Details:

The discharge of contaminant effluents from industries and municipalities into water bodies has led to serious environmental stress, raising concerns about human health, environmental sustainability, and conservation. Industrial effluents carry harmful chemicals and heavy metals, such as Pb, Ni, Cr, Zn, Cd, Fe, Co, and Cu, posing a significant threat to life. This research focuses on assessing the physico-chemical parameters and heavy metal contamination in a petroleum refinery effluent. Four agricultural waste precursors - coconut shell, corn cob, rice husk, and sugarcane bagasse - were employed as activated carbon for the remediation process. The study evaluated the removal efficiency of physico-chemical parameters, including alkalinity, pH, acidity, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), and turbidity. Additionally, heavy metals such as chromium, cadmium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc were investigated. The findings revealed significant removal efficiencies for the physico-chemical parameters using the different activated carbon precursors. Coconut shell activated carbon demonstrated removal percentages of 43% for BOD, 90% for COD, and 79% for turbidity. Similarly, corn cob activated carbon exhibited removal efficiencies of 59%, 90%, and 85% for BOD, COD, and turbidity, respectively. Rice husk and sugarcane bagasse activated carbons recorded removal percentages ranging from 80% to 93% for BOD, COD, and turbidity. This research underscores the potential of utilizing agricultural waste precursors as activated carbon for effective remediation of petroleum refinery effluent. The findings contribute valuable insights to the development of sustainable and eco-friendly approaches to address water pollution. However, further optimization and exploration of different effluents and contaminants are necessary to unlock the full potential of these agricultural waste-derived activated carbons for broader environmental applications.