Synthesis of Thiamine-Modified Bentonite for Pretreatment of Pharmaceutical Wastewater

A series of sodium bentonite and thiamine were used as raw materials to prepare a new adsorbent – thiamine-modified bentonite. The adsorbent was applied in the pretreatment of pharmaceutical wastewater. The optimum preparation conditions of thiamine-modified bentonite were studied. The experiments showed that the removals of COD (chemical oxygen demand) reached 47.98 % under optimal condition. The FTIR results indicated that bentonite has been modified by thiamine. The X-ray diffraction result showed that the interplanar distance of modified bentonite was increased by intercalating thiamine. From the analyses of the SEM photographs, it can be clearly observed that the bentonite, after thiamine insertion reaction, loses its foliated structure and exhibits a rougher surface. Among several isotherm equations, Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms were investigated. They were widely used to describe equilibrium data for water and wastewater treatment applications. Adsorption isotherms correlate well with the Langmuir isotherm model. Detailed isothermal and kinetic studies show that the modified bentonite removes organic pollutants from pharmaceutical wastewater by physical adsorption processes.