Abstract

This study presents a strategy to manage the discharge of wastewater, which is either partially treated or untreated, to safeguard the groundwater reserves in the region. a case study involving Ad Diwaniyah refinery wastewater disposal into an adjacent desert was utilized to evaluate the influence of soil adsorption on the attenuation of Pb, Cu, and Cd ion concentrations. Investigation of competitive adsorption of heavy metal ions (Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+) in Dolomite-Limestone soil was conducted through batch and column methods. the adsorption behavior of the bivalent metal cations was observed to be pH dependent. However, the competitive extraction of the three heavy metals exhibited low sensitivity to pH variations. Isotherms for Pb, Cu, and Cd ions on Dolomitic Limestone soil were determined and found to align satisfactorily with both Freundlich and Langmuir models. Competitive adsorption was recognized as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly method for the elimination of toxic heavy metals from wastewater, even at minimal concentrations. the column test method revealed the adsorption capacity of Dolomite-Limestone soil to be (Pb: 1.5, Cu: 1.18, Cd: 0.9) mg/g. the affinity of the metal ions to the Dolomite-Limestone soil was ordered as Pb > Cu > Cd. Breakthrough curves of the heavy metals, obtained from soil column tests, were used to estimate the retention time for the Dolomitic Limestone to reach saturation. the findings suggest a wastewater management strategy that involves changing the discharge point every 17 months to a new location 90 m from the previous discharge point. This study thus provides a viable approach for managing wastewater discharge and protecting groundwater reserves, particularly in regions dealing with heavy metal contamination.

Department(s)

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

Publication Status

Open Access

Comments

U.S. Department of State, Grant None

Keywords and Phrases

heavy metal competitive adsorption; heavy metals concentration attenuation; soil sorption

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

1755-7445; 1755-7437

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Final Version

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2025 Shared (Authors and Publishers), All rights reserved.

Creative Commons Licensing

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Publication Date

01 Oct 2023

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